Everide2016

The smaller towns are still competing against schools with the same enrollment numbers, so I don't see how people leaving (moving away) has an impact on the success of their football program? If enrollment goes down, their classification drops. There are schools and towns just like them that are encountering the same issues, but still find a way to be successful on the gridiron. With the smaller towns and schools, the single biggest factor is coaching. Yes, talent is important, but a coach that can inspire the kids, knows how to engage, and how to truly coach can dominate the other small (4A and down) schools that don't have this. And even more so if a small town/school finds a way to get a coach like this to stick around and not be enticed to move on to "bigger and better things" in the larger towns/schools.

What? Just because an areas' population is growing doesn't mean their school(s) have more players to select from and more money to pay the coaches. That's why we have classifications. All schools are competing against other schools with a similar number of players to select from with the exception of the very top of 6A with the likes of Allen and a few others. And more money to pay coaching? With the growth they have to higher more coaches and build more schools. They may have more tax revenues coming in, but they're expenses have also gone up substantially.

Nacogdoches? Seems like they are as they've always been. When did they ever compete for State Championship?

Refugio had injuries too, so that card doesn't play. The real and frustrating thing I believe has carried Region 4 to some of the closer victories is their kids just believe they are going to win and go out and make the plays, even on several occasions when it seemed clear that our region had more talent on the field. Probably some coaching superiority too in the past. Perhaps our region has closed that gap? And it's the coaching that carries the kids to that belief that they are going to do what it takes to win.

It's not working for the Aggies.

There are some things money just can't buy. Another season down the drain.

Mack was done? He was still winning 8-9 games and we'll never know, perhaps was going to get back to 10+. Instead the Horns moved from that to 5-6 wins a year. What kind of sense does that make? Three coaches since Mack and they are barely breaking even. Mack was still killing it compared to his successors.

No hate, just stating what I from the outside looking in. The consistency at coaching hasn't just been since Mack. It goes all the way back to the mid 80s. Take out Mack and Texas is a very mediocre program, on the field, for almost 40 years, especially considering the resources they have at their disposal. No other program has done so little with so much with the possible exception of Notre Dame. Over the past 40 years, they've won only 50% without Mack. Texas should have stayed with Mack until he decided he was done. Now they need to stop the rotating door of coaches and stay with Sark long term, for better or worse. Programs need consistency.

It's what you get with a country club culture that is so embedded at UT that they can't get out of their own way. It's certainly embedded in the administration and that filters to the coaching and players. Nothing is ever 100%, there are always individuals that give all, all the time. But as a whole, they are country club to a fault. Even the guys that get paid to discuss this on Austin radio reference this over the years and are talking about it again today.

I still believe it's in the culture. Going back through 4 coaches to 2010, they've managed to squander and underperform and the answer is always the coach? Do they not go out and hire what they consider the best coach, and then UT finds a way to turn the "best" coach into doo-doo? Texas simply is not a top tier program. They will have a good run again at some point and then return to mediocrity for 10-15 years. It's who they are.

I've been hard on East Texas 2A for a number of years now. Having grown up in east tx, I want to see them do good, but haven't seen them do much beyond hype themselves and then get donkey stomped. But, I've been watching Timpson, Shiner, Refugio.... and I'm seeing a turn, at least for this year. I think this may be the year of the breakthrough. I finally believe Timpson has what it takes to get it done for their Region. Shiner is definitely down a bit from last year, but will take it to Timpson if they don't bring everything to that semi-final game. Refugio is up a little from last year, but they had a long way to go and won't be able to handle Shiner this year unless Shiner makes mistakes like they've been prone to do against Refugio in the past. I think most agree Timpson will play Shiner or Refugio for the right to go to the SC game. Make the most of it this year and approach that game/week with humility of lessons learned in previous years, going easy on the chest pounding and just showing it on the field.

I agree. I like Sark and the way he handles himself. I especially like that he doesn't smack gum throughout the entire game like previous coach. That alone would make any coach more tolerable. Texas fans just need to realize that something is deeply embedded in the culture of the Texas football program that keeps them from approaching every game like they are going to open a can of w-a on the other team and never let up. They need to go full stop, and start from the bottom.... If I were coach for a day, I would take the locker rooms down to the studs, removing any semblance of comfort or anything that would convey to them that they are playing at top level program, because they aren't. The only thing that is top level is the money. I'd do the same for my office and every other part of the facility. Then as we show on the field that we are a legitimate program, we would consider gradually bringing the perks back.

Texas has to be the most disappointing program in college football over the past 10 years, with all they have at their disposal, they consistently do so little with so much.

Stream?

Right. That's me too.

There is always the option of becoming a ref? Unless not physically able to do so. They're always needed, it might be fun for you, and you can be a part of bringing it back.

That pretty much says it all.... "they never should've won that game." That's the very mindset that may have assisted LH in winning the game. Perhaps the Carthage players had this same mindset, underestimating Liberty Hill and subsequently getting punched in the nose.

The app is still horrible relative to what it was before. How is it possible to screw it up so bad?

Is this being streamed? If so, can someone share the link?

Being from Liberty Hill... I'd have to say Carthage: They (at least the fans on here) talked so much smack, but couldn't back it up. Always good to taper even good smack talk with some humility, just in case. Gilmer: Pretty much same reason as Carthage. It has been a while, but when Liberty Hill whipped them like a red headed step child, they were so full of it leading up to that game and then after the initial kickoff it looked like Gilmer was a JV squad. I think that was played in Waco around 2007. That is still remembered as a sweet win due to Gilmer fan's thinking they were invincible. Holland: They're not very good, somewhat obscure, not a team anyone thinks of very often, and that's okay, but "CenTexFootball" fan, aka The Sage of Holland Football, makes it impossible to like them even when I've wanted to pull for them.

Everyone has grown accustomed to Shiner and Refugio winning even against quality larger schools, but I don't think these losses are that big of a deal. Both Halletsville and Hitchcock are twice the size of Shiner and Refugio and they have very good teams. Not a huge thing to lose to these teams as they will both go at 3-4 rounds in the 3A playoffs. But, from what little I saw of some Refugio highlights, they looked rough. I don't see them being a contender this year.

The app still stinks. What a royal screw up.

The app sucks. I can't even find the chat area. I've found my way there by accident a time or two. Can someone please explain to me how to get to the chat for a specific game so I don't waste time guessing.

Sad, but almost always true regarding the playoff games, especially at the 2A level. The top 4, 5, or 6 teams in the state just beat the crap out of other teams until they finally get to play each other in the quarter or semi-finals.

Every payday.