ANTI

Woods is a great coach. Solid season that he has put on for JT in year one. But the Lions are still young and have not seen anything like they're about to see Friday. This won't be close.

Ridiculous.

Who'd have thought that Tyler would be sitting at 6-2 right now? Their two losses (McNorth and Lancaster) were by one score. I was the first to say it. Woods was a very solid hire for Tyler. Whether they make the playoffs or not this year, this season probably exceeded most people's expectations. When I made my Tyler preview in the district thread that I no longer update (that's a different story), one of the first things that I said about Tyler was that they were 'interesting'. Tyler is also fairly young across the board with more reinforcements on the way. Woods will have CUJO rolling next year, and definitely the year after. Lufkin on the other hand seriously needs to clean house. It shouldve been done years ago to be honest. Tyler is not a more talented team than Lufkin at this point, but won the game. I've been to 3 Lufkin games this year including last night. That staff severely under utilizes what they have. You wouldn't even know that Lufkin has multiple D1 caliber WRs because: 1. QB1 can't get them the ball, despite being a 3 year starter? 2. I've seen 7 year olds on Madden with better play calling than Lufkin's OC. #18 had a huge mismatch the entire night and his number might've gotten called twice. 3. The staff flat out does not know how to manage and utilize the talent that they have. There are even kids sitting on the sidelines, specifically in the '25 class that could've helped Lufkin a lot this year but, yeah. It also seems like it's been at least since 2017 that I've seen a decent Lufkin OL. That alone needs to be addressed. You will not win games without winning in the trenches.

Tyler High QB is pretty impressive. Will only get better as he ages.

John Paul Brewer

I do what I can Man your boy looks the part. Can't believe Lufkin doesn't at least try to create packages to get more '25s like him on the field.

Lobo defense may give up some plays just cause, but McNorth defense won't have an answer at all. 52-21, Lobos.

Of course Thompson gives up the game winning TD. That's a modern day Lufkin product for ya. And Ewers...Dillon won't be a real draft prospect and looked 20x better than Ewers today. That 1st INT was atrocious. Embarrassing performance for UT.

Longview, Tyler, Legacy and LP fans all at Bucees lol

Forney is now combined 12-0 on subvarsity. I told people last year that Forney was headed to the top because I saw what they were bringing up the ladder. JV was a good game. Longview 9th has suffered some season ending injuries in the backfield and WR that has slowed the offense down a bit. But again, Forney is loaded in the '26 and '27 classes.

When it comes to Longview's backfield history, you need a thesaurus!

Made this post in another thread back in June...nothing has changed since June except Taylor Tatum's stats so just reposting here.... My official top 7 Longview RBs (2 more for extra...because our backfield history is so deep) 1A. Fred Talley (1996-1998) Ask a room of Lobo fans who the best Longview RB is, most will say Fred Talley. There isn't a back in Longview history with more "aura" than Fred Talley. Fastest Longview back to lace them up and its not a debate. He won the 100m at state with a 10.43 time. Up until Fred Talley, the most that any Longview RB had ran for in a season was 1,626 by Andre Davis. Seemed like a 2,000 yard back was something that could only be dreamed of but Talley gave Longview 2,000+ in 1997, most of any Lobo back in a season. His career rushing yardage record will probably never be touched. You hear a lot about Talley's performance in 1997 and 1998 but to me, the 1,300+ performance as a sophomore in 1996 is just downright nasty when you consider that he was sharing the backfield with D1 back Tajuan Stoker who put up 1,500+ of his own yards that year. 1B. Vondrell McGee (2003-2005) Vondrell did a lot of great things as a Lobo but one year in particular makes him the goat in my humble opinion, 2004. McGee averaged 190 yards a game in the playoffs, and came 15 yards short of breaking Fred Talley's single season rushing yards record...in 3 less games. He probably gets it with more carries against Lufkin that year in the playoffs, and Longview maybe makes it out of Nac alive. (Ivory's turnovers in that game were costly). He had 183 yards on 18 carries that day, 10 yards a clip. McGee is the only Lobo back to have an 8 carry, 260 yard game....in the rain and till this day, that 90 yard TD run against Lee in 2004 is probably the most replayed play by a Longview back in program history. Talley was the fastest Longview back. But Vondrell McGee was a 4.4 back himself and probably had a little more burst. They're 1A and 1B for me. 2. Taylor Tatum (2021-present) Tatum comes in as the 2nd/3rd best Lobo back ever...and the story is still being written. That means that he could be the best ever depending on how the 2023 season goes. Tatum is 12 TD's away from being Longview's all time leading scorer. He'll probably be 2nd on Longview's all time career rushing list when its all said and done. Tatum is the most talented back on this entire list when you consider the totality of his game. He doesnt have the speed of Talley or Vondrell but is a 21.7 200m guy at 6'0 200+. He's fast. Best hands and route running out of the backfield from Lobo back without question. He can dance on you, he can run through you...he can play between the tackles, outside of the tackles. There arent many limitations which is why he is currently considered the #1 back in Texas. If he played LB, SS or WR....he'd still be a major P5 recruit. Tatum saw varsity carries for Longview, as a freshman. Unheard of at Longview. 3. Earnest "Babydoo" Hunter (1987-1989) Joe Johnson was undoubtedly the highest recruited Lobo RB of the 80s but Hunter was the best and there are some around Longview that have pretty high praises for Hunter if you catch my drift. Hunter to many was "Vondrell before Vondrell". He probably played at about 5'8 180 as a Lobo but was electric as can be. Only 5 times has a Lobo ran for more than 280 yards in a game. Hunter did it twice, once was in the playoffs. None football challenges may have slowed his recruiting down but ultimately, he still ended up playing for multiple NFL teams and hit record books in college. 4. Joe Johnson (1983-1984) There wouldn't be another East Texas back see the national attention that Earl Campbell did until Joe Johnson hit the scene for the Lobos in 1983. Longview came into the season ranked in the top 5 nationally in USAToday polls in large part because of Johnson who played at about 6'1 200 in HS while running a 4.4. Between 1983 and 1984, Johnson put up 2,300+ on the ground in an 18 game stretch. I don't have a ton to say about his game as he played before my time but when talking to older generations, Joe was all business on the field. I'd be a fool not to rank him high up there. 5. Tyler McCray (2008-2009) Meredith probably deserves this spot and there are certainly days that I believe Meredith was better but, not today. McCray was a magician on the field without even trying. The only none honorable mention back on this list that left you saying "how?!" on 80% of his runs. If he's healthy for Longview in those back to back state title games, who knows. He was giving Lake Travis the business in 2008 before he left the game with a broken ankle. A little under 1,800 yards in 2008...while sharing the backfield with the likes of Aaron Johnson and Dacedric Hunt. Not bad. 6. Kaden Meredith (2018-2020) My goodness. Meredith was a walking touchdown. Everytime that he got the ball, you honestly felt like he was taking it all the way. One of only 3 backs in Longview history with a 300 yard game on their resume (Talley and Babydoo Hunter). You weren't going to get all of the lateral moves that some of the others on this list had but he was fast, determined and understood what was happening in front of him as good as anyone. Had all of Judson Middle School's rushing records, until '26 RB Mason Washington recently came and shredded them. Meredith is Longview's all time leading scorer, and is tied for most kick returns for TDs with Bobby Taylor. Like I said, walking TD. 5 honorable mentions: Braylynn "Pig" Anthony (2015) 15, that was Anthony's average per carry which is highest in Lobo history. He only got one year to prove himself thanks to sharing the backfield with the likes of Jamycal Hasty and Tylan Miller throughout his career but he certainly proved himself. Probably the smoothest runner on this entire list. Keilyn Williams (2017-2018) The most under appreciated Longview RB in program history. He probably played at around 5'5 160 pounds on a wet day, but there havent been too many more talented Lobo backs than Keilyn Williams. He gave you the "how?!" moments of Tyler McCray, gave you the heart of Andre Davis and gave you the hands of Taylor Tatum. Yeah, Keilyn is a Lobo great. 1,500 yards on the ground in 2018. Over 1,200 the year before in 2017. JaMycal Hasty (2012-2014) Although backs like Tyler McCray and Tory White received D1 offers, Hasty was the first major recruit in the backfield for Longview since Vondrell McGee. He missed majority of 2014 with a lower back injury which killed his career numbers but Hasty did enough in 2013 to make recruiters flock to Longview. Hasty is currently RB2 for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Andre Davis (1990-1991) Once Babydoo Hunter was done, Davis was next up. In the words of my boy gtee, Davis wasn't the most athletic Lobo back you'll see, but he probably had the most heart which is why he was able to play college ball at TCU. Back to back 1,000+ yard seasons in 1990 and 1991 during a time when everyone in the stadium knew RB1 was getting the ball. Davis once held Longview's single season rushing record. Jessie Anderson (2016-2018) Technically Anderson was a combo back, and I consider him the best fullback in Lobo history. Still when he was lined up in the RB position, he gave Longview fans a small taste of Javorskie Lane. Anderson played at 6'0 240 his SR year and had no problem lowering that shoulder and laying out the opposition. Very physical runner. Anderson had 28 touchdowns in 2018 which was a program record at the time. Taylor Tatum took that away from him last year. If he doesn't miss majority of 2017 with injury and plays exclusively RB throughout his career, he'd be in my top 5 for sure. Willie Andrews, Isaiah Stoker, Johnny Garrett, Tory White, Cliff Ward (way before my time) are other names that I didn't mention.

Yeah, Mesquite ISD needs to rezone to relieve Horn. When it happens, Mesquite and West Mesquite could gain at least 300 kids a piece. Honestly with proper zoning, all 5 Mesquite schools could be in one conference. Not enough kids at Poteet, too many at Horn. With a 6th HS and proper zoning, all 6 would be on the bubble of 6A and 5AD1. Which brings me to my next question....do you ever see Mesquite building HS #6 if it gets too crazy down in that I-20 area?

Zack Hall was a beast. Them knees just couldn't hold up man.

Just to expand on the situation at Longview....and why there is so much buzz. District has grown. The number that we turn in will depend on how many part time students we have but based on the figures that I've seen....70% chance Longview is going back up to 6A. TEA numbers from last October had Longview at 2,170 on the main campus (not including Lead which was at 191). Well...this fall that main campus number is well beyond that before Lead. Will be interesting to see how it unfolds. Forney has 6A numbers as I type...so they'll move up. Lancaster had 2,250 in October 2022, another one to watch (those Desoto kids had to have landed somewhere). The rest of the 7-5A D1 district should remain 5A D1. Lufkin's enrollment has declined a bit....zero chance of a move up to 6A. I don't think the Mesquite schools or Tyler move up either. Not a lot of growth at McNorth...

I hear ya. What does your Lee list look like?

Man, I get that Johnson was the blueprint and he is certainly top 3 for JT with Bryson Smith IMO. But Greg Ward has to be #1. Electric as they come. Defensive coordinators nightmare. It's sorta like rap. Yeah, Sugarhill Gang did it first but ain't no way rappers like Nas, Big, Pac, DMX aren't better lol

Yeah Street is up there. We're about to see some shuffling on that QB list the next few years.

Killing it at Georgia Tech currently. Leads the ACC in passing. Glad he got out of that mess in College Station. Haynes is the goat. After him, I'd go Aaron Johnson, Joel Armstrong, Bivins Caraway and Pete Robertson in that order.

And I feel like a big reason for that is we finally put our best 5 out there. It was the first game that we rolled Longoria, George, Morgan, Wrighten and Watts on the field at once.... Which is what I predicted the OL would look like at the beginning of the year. The best part is the OL still looks the part with this lineup. Big boys.

Huge game. Maybe the biggest in the district and yes, I know Longview will be at Forney. Must win for both teams but Lancaster is starring down the barrel of missing post season after being ranked #2 in the state at one point this year. A loss to Tyler and they can dang near hang it up. Woods has proven to be a solid hire for Tyler...he's a better coach than Paul at Lancaster. A questionable call by the zebras ultimately was the difference in Tyler losing to McNorth Thursday. Fair warning that you will have to play the zebras in Lancaster too.

Now wait. I thought you were saying Lancaster isn't good. What does "a team that beat Lancaster" have to do with anything then?

Booossiieee