Indian92

Ridge has built a solid staff and has definitely developed a scheme that is being implemented at every level. Were it not for a couple of key injuries early on, his second year at the Indian helm would look drastically different than it does today. The administration and school board have committed to rebuilding the football program by investing financially in personnel, facilities & equipment. Admittedly, before 400,000 of you reply, when it comes to the injury excuse, the same could be said for many east Texas football programs. Each team we have played this year would be completely different with an injury to a few of its key players! The discussion of previous coaches and their successes or failures is pointless. Ridge is the man today. My football coach told us at least once every week that nothing ever stays the same. He said it either gets better or worse. He was correct. Today, we are getting better. I am proud to be an Indian and look forward to a time in the near future when we return to a winning program. Make no mistake. There are many wins taking place. They just aren't showing up on the scoreboard yet and for the most part, you won't read about them on forums such as this. Before 495,000 of you reply...yes, winning football games is the end goal. I am simply pointing out that winning has to start off the field before it makes its way to the scoreboard on Friday nights. To that end, our program is headed in the right direction. We are getting better. -BYG

I respectfully disagree w/ you bluedevil07. Our season is not over. You were probably referring to our ability to reach the playoffs, and yes, that portion may be behind us now. This season is about much more than wins and losses. It's about developing attitudes and an understanding of what it is going to take to turn our program around. These kids/coaches will battle to the end and when that kind of dedication and determination is demonstrated, others will follow! Yes, we have Truett for two more years, and yes, he has the ability to be an excellent player. He needs to be a recruiter as much as a player right now! There are a lot of young athletes watching, their parents too. Hopefully, we as fans/parents, realize that we can help by watching what our team is going through this year and taking action. Our numbers are down: duh... So, parents need to motivate their kids to get in shape and participate. Players need to motivate their friends to get in shape and participate. Fans need to motivate parents and their kids to get in shape and participate. Hopefully the dedication and determination a few will demonstrate the rest of the way will pave the road to the beginning of a strong program. For that reason, this season has not ended!

I got two correct. I think you're leaving out the Winnsboro pick.:rolleyes: I admit my picks for Grand Saline are skewed by the fact that the Indians are my team. Couple that with the expectations coming into this year and that would explain my unwillingness to believe that we aren't that good. Well, we just aren't that good. Depth is a big part of the problem, but I think we are seeing the results of a program that has been underdeveloped over the last few years. Football is not easy. To be competitive: it comes at a high cost of work (running, lifting, studying, teaching - mostly running and lifting)! Championships, district or otherwise: happens when the work (running, lifting, studying) is already in place and the teaching and coaching are good. This coaching staff is having to build all of it. Ludlow's first year: we surprised teams w/ a freshman qb that could play and most of the best athletes in sr. class were playing w/ some talent. We don't surprise anyone any more. The program has been down and thus kids aren't motivated to come out. The kids that played last night "want" to play football, enjoy playing football and if they can stay the course, they just might be the cataylist that can get other student athletes to come out and help the team. I, like you Allday, hate that the seniors are having to go through this their last year, along with every player/coach/fan that is having to do it!! These coaches/players are giving their best and that has not always been the case in years past. We just need athletes to step up and get involved! We need to keep and develop our athletes in middle school instead of playing kick ball and dodgeball! And most of all, we, being Indian fans, need to remain supportive and realize that we are in a fight much larger than the games on Friday night. We are fighting a lack of interest and respect for our program from within our own system. Until we fix that, our program will never be elite. We, fans & parents, are as much to blame for our football program as anyone! Kids are a reflection of their environment, period! I support these kids/coaches and want them to be successful. Our record may not end up the way we want it, but how great would it be for this team to look back five years from now and be able to say that they were the beginning of a Grand Saline Indian resurgence? Anything is possible & our kids/coaches will give us everything they have in the remaining games. Sorry for the homer portion, but had to write it. Now, for the rest of my picks... looks like after last night, Eustace, Lone Oak, Malakoff and Winnsboro will fight it out. :icon_confused: The teams are keeping it interesting for sure! Week #5 (District Week#2) Grand Saline 6 Quitman 31 Eustace 30 Malakoff 16 Lone Oak 54 Kemp 12 Winnsboro Bye

Grand Saline, Malakoff & Lone Oak win tonight. Winnsboro will go as their qb does.

Think you're right. Who do you think will win it? I am thinking Malakoff at this point but really don't know much about Eustace. I feel like homecoming can be a big distraction for players. Although, it sure didn't bother Kerens against us.

Week #4 (District Week #1) Grand Saline 12 Malakoff 40 Winnsboro 42 Quitman 28 Eustace 45 Kemp 0 Lone Oak Bye Grand Saline cannot make a stop on defense and is not much better offensively. Quitman scored more on Winnsboro than I thought they would which tells me they are getting better. Eustace did what I thought they would.

Ok... Grand Saline (34 - 27) , Winnsboro (42 - 6) & Eustace (56 - 0) win. Lone Oak is off. That's my final answer.

Winnsboro by four td's

OUTSTANDING!!!

Week #3 Eustace 24 Castleberry (Ft Worth, TX) 42 Malakoff 30 Westwood (Palestine, TX) 34 Quitman 0 Mineola 26 Grand Saline 20 Kerens 52 Winnsboro 7 Mt Vernon 42 Lone Oak 42 Chisum (Paris, TX) 14 Kemp 7 Mabank 31 District teams go 1 - 6 this week I read on another post that Kerens had a lot of turnovers against Edgewood and someone else warned that if Kerens cleaned that up it would be a long night for Grand Saline. That statement was very true. Yes Kerens is 1A and yes they have lost some games, but they are young and athletic with speed, which makes them very dangerous. I will be interested to see how their season turns out. Grand Saline gave up way too many big plays defensively. Again this week, our players had opportunities to make plays but couldn't make the initial tackle which shows me that our coach's defensive game plan going in is good. We have to make the initial tackle and right now we're losing some 1 on 1's and getting blocked at the second level which allows runners to get loose for big plays. Offensively, we just couldn't close the deal. I will say this. Some of our offensive failures were assisted by questionable calls AT BEST that did not go our way. Of the 13 - 15 calls I am referring to, EVERY ONE OF THEM went against us! Now before someone accuses us Indians of whining about officiating, please read my previous posts! I do not believe that the officials can be blamed for this loss. I do however like to think that percentages would dictate that if there are 14 calls that could swing to either side, we would at least get 4 or 5. In this game, we got zero. It was not just holding penalties or blocks in the back either. It was touchdowns and drive killers. Again, I am not expecting perfection; just an equal number of mistakes/correct calls going to both sides! I do want to clarify that I believe that in this particular game the officials did affect Grand Saline's ability to win. I also want to restate what I wrote previously, if Grand Saline made the defensive stops we should have, I probably would not have even mentioned the officiating. If that makes me a homer then so be it. I want to point out one more thing, before I move on, about my Indians. These losses have covered up a significant development w/in our locker room that needs mentioning. These kids are giving 100% effort the entire game!! Two players, Jake Bennett (JR) and Brian Davis (SR), were asked this week to move to the offensive line to help us up front after playing running backs their ENTIRE football careers and did not blink at the request. Two more players, Ethan O'Donnell and Kyle Walker, were asked do the same thing in the very beginning and stepped up to the challenge. We may not be the most athletic, have the most talent or list the most players on the program but these boys are a team and they play hard! I have watched the last 4 or 5 years of Indian football and can say with no hesitation this has not always been the case. Ludlow and his staff have our kids playing together and fighting together to win games. I, for one, as disappointing as these last two losses have been, can say that it is refreshing to see that changes are occuring. Who knows if we can eliminate the mistakes, make tackles and win the rest of the way? I don't. I can, with confidence, say that whoever walks on the field in a Grand Saline football uniform is going to be committed to the team and give everything they have to help us win. Just ask Kerens or Edgewood either one! With the score already lopsided at the half in both games, neither team was afforded the luxury of playing an Indian team that had given up! That makes the game fun to watch!!! The district really took it on the chin this week with Lone Oak being the "Lone" winner. Winnsboro dropped another (Tebbets out is a MAJOR factor w/ the offense they run) and no one else could pull out the win either. I say Grand Saline (this will be an unpopular pick) beats Malakoff and Winnsboro beats Quitman, both righting the ship as the first week of district games start. Eustace beats Kemp and Lone Oak takes the week off. Come on Friday night! What do you think?

Week #1 Eustace 26 Rice 23 Malakoff 64 Italy 36 Redwater 35 Quitman 14 Scurry Rosser 8 Grand Saline 28 Tatum 22 Winnsboro 14 Clarksville 47 Lone Oak 27 Ferris 49 Kemp 8 District teams go 3 - 4. Week #2 Eustace 6 Rusk 45 Malakoff 44 Kerens 36 Quitman 0 Toup 41 Grand Saline 6 Edgewood 29 Mineola 41 Winnsboro 21 Lone Oak 27 Caddo Mills 14 Kemp 6 Grace Community 57 District teams go 2 - 5. Well, I am sitting here this morning in shock. I finally got to see Grand Saline play last night and thought that I was going to witness a close, competitive football game that the Indians would win by 12 points. Instead, I saw a disaster w/ the Indians not being able to do anything offensively. We were dominated up front with basically a three man rush. Now, I am not sure what we have. Defense played well at times but missed a lot of tackles. So, now as far as I am concerned, our team is like a box of chocolates....... On the positive, our kids play hard from start to finish. This was a hard loss to endure because it was Edgewood!!! Hats off to Simmons and his squad. Their play caused a lot of our problems. To add insult to injury, we lost two centers and I am not sure how those boys are this morning. I hope they're ok! Please, those of you that might respond to this post... don't call for the coaches' heads or massive changes to offense/personnel! One loss will only define our season if we allow it to. This is a young team, maybe not in grade level, but definitely in experience level, especially up front. Be positive and support the coaches and players as they go about making adjustments to make us successful!!!! Then, I find out Winnsboro was beaten by Mineola. This was another game I was way off target. I thought that after the Tatum game, Winnsboro wouldn't lose again for awhile. Maybe they did too. It's 2A high school football and as in all divisions, that's why the games are played on the field and not on paper. I understand Tebbetts got banged up and hope that he's ok. With Malakoff and Lone Oak winning this week I have to lean toward them as we get closer and closer to district play. But..... who knows? I still believe Winnsboro is for real and that Grand Saline has the potential to be the same. If that happens, we should be in for one heck of a district race!! What are your thoughts?

Did you see the game last Friday in Sunnyvale allday? I hear Ollison looked good, ending up somewhere in the 175 yard neighborhood on 12 carries. Also sounds like he made some defensive plays as well. Sounds like we are making contact more too. Truett did not have his best game either. If we get both of them rolling at the same time it could get interesting. The offensive line has improved every week. Avoiding injuries will be a huge proposition every week we play! Though Scurry may be down, I agree w/ bluedevil07. A big game Friday night would really boost some players' confidence!

Grand Saline 48 Scurry Rosser 14

Grand Saline has to take control of their own destiny. Ludlow is asking quite a few guys to step up this year and I believe they will. This pre-district schedule is a valuable commodity for the Indians and they should improve as players start believing in their abilities first and Ludlow's system second. When all these boys decide to go "all in" and play team offense/defense we will make noise in district and potentially see the playoffs for the first time in years! Against Sunnyvale, we had way too many opportunities to win that game to blame the referees! Do we expect the correct call or non-call on every snap? Absolutely! Does every team have that expectation? Absolutely! Is that realistic? No! Bluedevil07, had we played even close to error-free football, I would be all over the officiating too. I just felt like we let it happen because of our play and like others have written on this blog; No Excuses! We are way too quick to blame the officials, when a good strong look in the mirror would be the best medicine prescribed!!! As for Winnsboro leaving our district, no thank you. It's not a bad drive either way and if you look at Winnsboro's district record over past years, this has been a competitive league for the most part. As for Tatum; hold on to the ball and let Tebbett make some plays in the passing game to compliment the run. I will agree w/ hosierdady too. If this game is close, Winnsboro may not lose another game in the regular season. Having stated that, if another loss happens, it will be at the hands of Grand Saline . Is it Friday night yet??? :)

Eustace 13 Canton 34 Kemp 00 Palmer 60 Malakoff 21 Mabank 07 Lone Oak 49 Scurry Rosser 20 Winnsboro 33 Harmony 00 Grand Saline 20 Sunnyvale 35 Quitman 06 Bullard 58 District teams go 3-4 week zero. I missed my Grand Saline pick (stating the obvious) but saw a lot of good things last night! Sunnyvale lived on yards after contact which can be viewed in one of two ways. I choose the positive which is: coaches are getting our players in the correct position at the correct time and as the year progresses that contact will become tackles! Sunnyvale had some receptions, I know one td for sure, and again, our defenders were right there just a movement or two from breaking it up or getting the interception. D-coordinator dialed up some stunts and blitzes that gave Sunnyvale all kinds of trouble and we created some turnovers. Offensively, the opportunities were there. Ludlow runs a lot of timing plays both when running and passing and we had moments where we should have capitalized but the timing was a little off. Our running backs run hard every time they touch the ball and our young, undersized offensive line worked their tails off and has definitely improved since scrimmages. Our receivers are getting open and the potential is there for big plays. Most impressive was the hustle from the opening kickoff to our last defensive play that ended the game. This Grand Saline team has some fight in them & that always makes football fun regardless of the outcome!!! I am expecting us to bounce back quickly. The band and cheerleaders were great and even after the loss, the fans kept their enthusiasm and brought home the KMOO spirit stick!! Is it Friday night yet?