7-5A Division II Football District

[Mavchamp]

2024 Football schedule  

Aug 22 Pine Tree (scrimmage)
Aug 30 Tyler
Sep 6 Longview
Sep 13 @ Tyler Legacy
Sep 20  @ Palestine
Sep 27 BYE
Oct 4 Mt Pleasant
Oct 11  @ Tex Hi
Oct 18  Jacksonville (HC)
Oct  25 @ Nacogdoches
Nov 1 Hallsville (Sr night) 
Nov 8  @ Whitehouse

[Mavchamp]

3 hours ago, Mavchamp said:

2024 Football schedule  

Aug 22 Pine Tree (scrimmage)
Aug 30 Tyler
Sep 6 Longview
Sep 13 @ Tyler Legacy
Sep 20  @ Palestine
Sep 27 BYE
Oct 4 Mt Pleasant
Oct 11  @ Tex Hi
Oct 18  Jacksonville (HC)
Oct  25 @ Nacogdoches
Nov 1 Hallsville (Sr night) 
Nov 8  @ Whitehouse

That non-district schedule

Gotta be one of the toughest in the state for a 5A Div II school.  

Two 6A schools….. one of them likely top 5.  A 5A Div I school that probably would have been a playoff team in any other district last season.   Expected to be even better in 2024.

Marshall will only be favored in 1 of the 4 games. 

For the upteenth year in a row we have a murder’s row of non district games.  This trend goes back well over a decade. Longview, Tyler, Legacy, Shadow Creek, Byrd, Bossire Airline, Royce City, Corsicana 

Would have traded the PT scrimmage with one of those big 3 games and made that a scrimmage.   JMHO. 

[nacdragon07]

8 hours ago, Mavchamp said:

That non-district schedule

Gotta be one of the toughest in the state for a 5A Div II school.  

Two 6A schools….. one of them likely top 5.  A 5A Div I school that probably would have been a playoff team in any other district last season.   Expected to be even better in 2024.

Marshall will only be favored in 1 of the 4 games. 

For the upteenth year in a row we have a murder’s row of non district games.  This trend goes back well over a decade. Longview, Tyler, Legacy, Shadow Creek, Byrd, Bossire Airline, Royce City, Corsicana 

Would have traded the PT scrimmage with one of those big 3 games and made that a scrimmage.   JMHO. 

To be quite honest Marshall should be favored in two games legacy and Palestine but don’t sleep too much on Palestine. They were a tough out a year ago. 

[Lion7000]

9 hours ago, Mavchamp said:

2024 Football schedule  

Aug 22 Pine Tree (scrimmage)
Aug 30 Tyler
Sep 6 Longview
Sep 13 @ Tyler Legacy
Sep 20  @ Palestine
Sep 27 BYE
Oct 4 Mt Pleasant
Oct 11  @ Tex Hi
Oct 18  Jacksonville (HC)
Oct  25 @ Nacogdoches
Nov 1 Hallsville (Sr night) 
Nov 8  @ Whitehouse

Palestine is interesting I highly doubt much history. Kilgore or Chapel Hill would  fun. I like the Tyler game and raider games. Competitive and get you prepared. Hopefully this the Lobos go easier .  I could see 3-1 going into district if everything goes right.

[mav01]

Mavs return a load of key players but the key to success will be how physical the Oline and Dline will be. Our staff needs to really focus on the trenches this off-season.  I think maybe 4 or 5 return on the oline. So that's a good start. Some studs on the Dline return as well. Will be loaded at Rb, but won't matter if the oline doesn't improve.

[Mavchamp]

5 hours ago, nacdragon07 said:

To be quite honest Marshall should be favored in two games legacy and Palestine but don’t sleep too much on Palestine. They were a tough out a year ago. 

I don't see how we can be favored against Legacy.  They are a large 6A school (over 2500).... they have more than 1,000 students than Marshall.  I think they were a playoff team last season.

Before picking up the series in 2016-2019.... we had last played them in 2001.  

The thing that was most striking to me in the recent series was their sheer size.  Their offensive and defensive lines were ENORMOUS compared to us.

I realize Legacy isn't a the winning program they once were..... but their classification, participation numbers, and bulk of their players is a lot for a mid-sized 5A Div II program to overcome.

While they may not be a force against the likes of Longview, Rockwall, and other 6A metro schools.... they would be the proverbial 500 lb gorilla in 7-5A-II.  They would likely beat everyone in the district with the exception of Texas High.

Do I think Marshall can win?  Sure..... we have a lot coming back.  Our offensive/defensive systems are intact under Coach Hammett along with almost all of the existing staff.  All that adds up to positives for the Mavs.

Of the four games 2016-2019..... 2 were blowouts.  One by Marshall and one by Legacy.  But two of the games were very close (29-27) in 2017 and (27-20) in 2019.  

I'm definitely not sleeping on Palestine.  I think we've proven what sleeping on teams does to us (Mount Pleasant 2023, Hallsville 2022).   Especially on a long road trip.

It's hard for me to gauge Palestine....they lost to a Nac team that we scored 70 on.  I honestly thought Nac was going to blow that game out..... but Nac way under-performed in 2023 IMHO.  I had Nac picked for the playoffs last season.

 

5 hours ago, Lion7000 said:

Palestine is interesting I highly doubt much history. Kilgore or Chapel Hill would  fun. I like the Tyler game and raider games. Competitive and get you prepared. Hopefully this the Lobos go easier .  I could see 3-1 going into district if everything goes right.

Marshall last played Palestine in 1973.  Mavs lead the series (10-8).  They first played in 1919 and played on and off till 1930 (six games).  The series was renewed in the 1950's when 6 more of the games were played.  The series ended after another 6 games were played from 1968-1973.  Marshall has won 6 of the last 8 games.

Long road trip and they have a history of being tough at home.

[Mavchamp]

Game 1:  Tyler- No doubt the Lions will be favored.  The showed huge improvement from 2022 to 2023.  If they were in just about any other 5A D-I district in the state they would have been a playoff team.  But when you have the likes of Longview, Lancaster, Forney, and McKinney North.... that's a lot to ask.  I have no idea what Tyler has coming back....but the Lions are never short on talent or athleticism.   The 2022 game was a blowout win for Marshall....but the 2023 game was a 5OT barnburner (I still think our guy got in) that hopefully is a taste of how the series will be played in 2024 and 2025.  I think it's a winnable game for Marshall..... but there's no doubt Tyler will be the favorite.  I'm hoping for a good, tough game that prepares us for district play....win or lose.  I just want competitiveness.

Game 2: Longview- It's no secret I'm ready for this to end.  And it's not even about losing to the Lobos.  I could take losses to Longview if they were 21-14, 28-21, 31-28 type games.....but historically it hasn't been.  Blowout after blowout.  A game-long series of 3 and outs.  We've seen this game play out the same for a while now.  Marshall jumps out to a 7-0 lead on a long play to start the game..... and then the steamroll begins.  There's always hope of seeing it becoming competitive again.....but until that actually happens..... I'd rather see this slot filled with Lufkin.....or Byrd....or a metroplex school (Ennis, Crandall, etc).    Fact is.....Longview is 800+ bigger.  They are 2 classifications above us.... they are among the state's elite and we are still trying to build back to that.  Just in two different orbits right now.

Game 3: at Tyler Legacy-   Legacy is even bigger than Longview..... well over 1,000 more than Marshall.  As stated in my earlier post..... there's been a glaring difference between us in our most recent series.  The sheer size across Legacy's Offensive and defensive lines is astonishingly huge compared to ours.  We simply do not have a bench full of 300+ lb players to pick from like the Raiders do.  Granted.... our series with them in 2016-2019 was highly competitive.  Marshall and Legacy each got blowout wins and 2 of the games were 1 possession games (29-27) and (27-20).  I have no idea what Legacy has coming back.... I know they have a QB that transferred back to the school.  But size matters....and the Marshall coaching staff has to find a way to use our speed to our advantage because we will never have the glut of huge linemen that they have.  Legacy will no doubt be favored.  I do think this is a winnable game for Marshall...... and I wouldn't be shocked if we won.  But I'm no fool.... the Red Raiders will be favored in this game.

Game 4: at Palestine-  I was a little surprised by this match-up.  I honestly thought we'd jump on Pine Tree as a non-district game.  They have been much better rivals than Hallsville has been for the last decade, so I thought the Pirates were a sensible pick up.  I even thought there was a chance we'd see a revival of the Lufkin series....maybe even Kilgore.  This will be a good long road-trip game.  The Wildcats are traditionally tough at home.  Marshall should be favored.....but I'm not predicting a blowout by any means.  The Mavs can't be overlooking people.  We did it once last year Vs. MP and they punched us in the mouth.  Hallsville did it to us in 2022.  We have a proclivity to overlook teams we "should beat" at least once a season.  It's infuriating.  

------------

Week 5- BYE

Week 6: Mount Pleasant-  Opening district play Vs. MP is big...... this is going to be a huge revenge game.  I know the players and the staff were disgusted with their performance (or lack thereof) against the Tigers last season.  I'm willing to bet this game will be circled in the fieldhouse.   MP is always loaded with athletes...it will be interesting to see how they replace their QB....he was the gas that made them go last season.  Those are big shoes to fill.  Big, big game to open district.

Week 7: at Texas High- Winning at Grimm is something of a rarity for us.  Haven't won there since 2017.  This was a close game last season.....for a half.  A 14-7 THS lead blew up into a 30-7 romp.  Texarkana will likely be heavy favorites for this game.....and until we can beat them....especially at Grimm.... the Mavs have got to figure out a way to stop their offense.  THS usually has their way with us, scoring early and often.  We've had some success against them offensively...but we always have untimely turnovers and/or penalties that kill promising drives.  

Week 8: Jacksonville- I stand by my statement about not overlooking anyone.  Marshall will likely be heavy favorites in this game......but we can't snooze on the Indians.  They are never short of speed nor short on athletes.  We've got to take care of business.  I'm assuming this will be Homecoming.... and Marshall hasn't lost a homecoming game in a long, long, looooong time.  

Week 9: at Nacogdoches-  We haven't lost in Nacogdoches in a LONG time (1999), but I'm never comfortable going there.  It always feels like a trap game.  It's a long trip..... always seems cold/chilly/damp/wet..... you'd think I'd be happier to go there considering our success.  But it never translates into confidence.  Nac hasn't had much success over Marshall in the last 30 years (only 4 wins), but all 3 of those 4 losses were devastating to our playoff hopes.  They crushed our playoff hopes in 2020, 2006, and 1999.  The long road trip coupled with their history of being a spoiler never makes playing Nac feel like a "homecoming game".  Mavs will likey be favored.....but I won't be comfy until the W is in hand.

Week 10: Hallsville- Another team I'm never comfortable playing in spite of our success against them.  Marshall has won 8 of the last 9 games..... a bulk of them have been blowouts....but when they are close they are generally barnburners.  The Bobcats have had serious defensive issues the last few seasons.... worst in the district the last two seasons, although Nac gave them a run for their money last year.  If the Bobcats can figure out defense.... their offense traditionally has been pretty good.  Marshall will be favored in this one....but rivalry games can be quirky.  We can't let them sneak up on us.

Week 11: Whitehouse-  No team in the district has a bigger homefield advantage than WH.  Ask MP, Texas High, Nac, PT..... It seems WH has a bit of a....."reputation" with their officiating.  This game could be HUUUUGE.  Texarkana is the favorite for the district title.... which means the winner of this game likely gets a home playoff game while the loser could be packing their bags and heading to PNG or Nederland, or Huntsville for a first round playoff game.  There's some bad blood between these two.  Whitehouse entered this game as the favorite both in 2022 and 2023 and lost both of them to Marshall.  They lost on the final play of the game last season as the Mavs scored a TD with 0:00 left on the clock.  The Mavs have won 5 of the last 6 games dating back to 2018.  Whitehouse will likely be favored being the home team.  You can't win a close game in Whitehouse...... gotta score and score and score.  The Zebras will make sure a close game goes their way.  Huge game to close the regular season.

-----------------------
I could see this go a lot of ways....... could be anywhere from (5-5) to (8-2).  (7-3) seems likely.  But hard to say till I know what everyone has coming back.  Particularly Tyler, Legacy, Mount Pleasant, and Whitehouse.

 

[Mavchamp]

Main page: https://www.marshallmavericks.net/

News page: https://www.marshallmavericks.net/general-9

Realignment news and thoughts

2024 schedule thoughts

[Hogman2018]

Heard from someone that is close to the Texas High program that they can't find any non conference games .They had Anna lined up but they backed out and the Frisco teams said they didn't want to drive to Texarkana when they can play plenty of teams in their area. They are calling other states to try to find some games. Any TH fans got any more on there Non conference schedule?

Edited February 5, 2024 by Hogman2018

[SiriusDogon7]

They played a school from Benton Louisana the last two years so they may look back in that state. They should probably look at the Little Rock Arkansas area too.

[Ace]

Same old problem for Texas High, really hard to get non-conference games due to geographic isolation (and the fact that the team might be pretty good).   Not uncommon to have to go to Arkansas or Louisiana, but my recollection is that those two states are not on the same 2 year cycle that Texas is on, so it's hard to be able to guarantee the game in year 2 because of re-shuffling that might happen in those states.  

[Lion7000]

20 hours ago, Hogman2018 said:

Heard from someone that is close to the Texas High program that they can't find any non conference games .They had Anna lined up but they backed out and the Frisco teams said they didn't want to drive to Texarkana when they can play plenty of teams in their area. They are calling other states to try to find some games. Any TH fans got any more on there Non conference schedule?

Carthage is still looking just saying. They are playing a 6a team from the border in Houston. 

[Hogman2018]

47 minutes ago, Lion7000 said:

Carthage is still looking just saying. They are playing a 6a team from the border in Houston. 

I agree with you they should 

[wilcatwillis79]

On 2/1/2024 at 5:33 PM, Lion7000 said:

Competitive district. You gotta think the Texas, Marshall , & Whitehouse look to challenge for the Title. Nac, Hallsville, Mount pleasant trying for that last playoff spot. Poor Jacksonville. Winless is a real possibility again.

Really competitive between these top three teams.  MP fell off badly at the end of last season.  They have athletes everywhere, but not sure how many impact players graduated.  Nac has athletes everywhere too so anything could happen.  Expect someone  in the bottom three to steal one from the big three.

[RCBulldogfan]

This looks like a really competitive district out in East Texas.  Not real sure on what each team will bring to the table but should be some great games next season!

[MattStepp]

Texas High has

Week 1: Tyler Legacy

Week 2: Argyle Liberty Christian

Week 3: Midlothian Heritage

Week 4: Waco University

 

I believe the University game will be a neutral site

[Ace]

1 hour ago, MattStepp said:

Texas High has

Week 1: Tyler Legacy

Week 2: Argyle Liberty Christian

Week 3: Midlothian Heritage

Week 4: Waco University

 

I believe the University game will be a neutral site

Isn't Cowboy TE Jason Witten the coach at Liberty Christian in Argyle?    

Edited February 7, 2024 by Ace
mis-spelling

[MattStepp]

7 minutes ago, Ace said:

Isn't Cowboy TE Jason Whitten the coach at Liberty Christian in Argyle?    

Yes

[MattStepp]

1 hour ago, MattStepp said:

Texas High has

Week 1: Tyler Legacy

Week 2: Argyle Liberty Christian

Week 3: Midlothian Heritage

Week 4: Waco University

 

I believe the University game will be a neutral site

Never mind on Week 4....University game isn't happening 

[Lion7000]

1 minute ago, MattStepp said:

Never mind on Week 4....University game isn't happening 

So Carthage and Texas High make it happen. 

[MattStepp]

25 minutes ago, Lion7000 said:

So Carthage and Texas High make it happen. 

Carthage has a Week 4 vs Chapel Hill 

[VonG]

2 hours ago, MattStepp said:

Carthage has a Week 4 vs Chapel Hill 

That's a nice matchup.

[MattStepp]

3 hours ago, MattStepp said:

Never mind on Week 4....University game isn't happening 

Texas High is now playing Fayetteville, AR Week 4

[Tex85]

3 hours ago, MattStepp said:

Never mind on Week 4....University game isn't happening 

i was wondering if it was the right university when i saw the schedule since Waco University had someone else on their schedule instead of T-High

[bordertown]

Exhibit A on why the UIL should make this an 8 team district.