Sports and Outdoors

 Lake Info

Normal Lake Level is 322.00 feet above Mean Sea Level.
Current level for Cedar Creek Lake is: 321.12 Water Temperature:
89  degrees - top
85 degrees - bottom

Monitor Photo/
Kerry Yancey
A practice jersey provides a good grip for Kemp junior varsity defender Zach Patterson (80) on a Brownsboro running back during a mixed varsity/junior varsity portion of the first controlled scrimmage for both teams at Yellowjacket Stadium Saturday.

The Yellowjackets will host the Van Vandals for their second scrimmage Thursday (tonight), with the junior varsity opening at 5:30 p.m., followed at 6:30 p.m. by the varsity teams.
One major positive for Kemp head coach Greg Anderson was that the Yellowjackets came out of Saturday’s bruising and sweaty contest relatively healthy, other than the usual bumps and bruises.
The low temperature early Saturday only dipped to about 80 degrees, and when the scrimmage ended near noon, the temperature was at or near 100 degrees, with a heat index higher than that.
“I thought we did some good things, and we saw some technique things that we need to work on,” Anderson said. “That’s what first scrimmages are for.”
The Yellowjacket offensive line was a bright spot, Anderson said.
“Talking with (Brownsboro) coach (John) Settle afterward, he was very impressed with the way they came off the ball,” Anderson said.
A concern on the defensive side was some sloppy tackling, particularly in the open field, he noted.
“Brownsboro usually has good team speed,” he said. “They had some big plays, but those plays were due to (poor) open-field tackling. All in all, though, it was a good opportunity for our backups to get in there.”
Senior Johnny Kilgore had a strong scrimmage on both sides of the ball, Anderson said.
“We held Justin (Lawler) out,” Anderson added. “He has a sore hamstring. Had this been a game, he probably could have played.”
The Vandals will present another stern test for the ’Jackets.
With a new coach, the Vandals have moved to a full-time spread offense after about three years of switching back and forth from the spread to the venerable power I, depending on the game situation.
“They (the Vandals) scrimmaged Arp Saturday, and they looked pretty good, especially defensively,” Anderson said. “They had some sluggishness on offense, but they’ll clean that up this week.”
Despite Lawler not being on hand to provide proven outside speed, the ’Jackets were able to make some plays on the edge, “and we ran the ball fairly well inside,” Anderson said.
Scrimmages are intended to get new players used to the difference between practice speed and actual game speed, he pointed out.
“No matter how fast things are in practice, once you get under the lights, it always seems to go a little faster,” Anderson said.

Wendel pleased with Bulldogs’ 1st scrimmage
By Kerry Yancey
Monitor Staff Writer
EUSTACE–That big smile crinkling his face Saturday morning made it clear Eustace head coach Doug Wendel was fairly pleased with what he was seeing in the Bulldogs’ first controlled scrimmage.
The Bulldogs dominated play against the visiting Scurry-Rosser Wildcats, particularly in the early going, matching first team against first team.
“We will get a much more physical test against Elkhart,” Wendel said Monday.

Monitor Photo/Kerry Yancey
Eustace quarterback Jacob McCarter fights through an attempted tackle to score on a 16-yard run during the Bulldogs' first controlled scrimmage against the visiting Scurry-Rosser Wildcats Saturday.

Eustace Bulldogs will host the Elkhart Elks in a controlled scrimmage Thursday (tonight), with junior varsity play opening at 6 p.m., followed at 7 p.m. by the varsity teams.
During the first 15-play set, the Wildcats broke a scoring play on the second snap, but then the Bulldog defense settled down and allowed just one first down in the next four possessions, forcing a trio of three-and-outs.
The Bulldogs, in contrast, motored downfield like a well-oiled machine, scoring three touchdowns on three possessions and averaging right at a first down on each running play.
“I was very pleased with our run defense, especially between the tackles,” Wendel said Monday. “We saw some technique issues we’ll be working on, but I was very pleased with our conditioning and our effort.”
Wendel said he apparently found a backup fullback in Tyler Folsom, who protected the ball well, while new quarterback Jacob McCarter managed the offense like a well-seasoned starter.
“All of the stuff we did are things we’ve been doing the last four years,” Wendel said. “That’s what I’m proud of, more than anything – that we were able to put in new kids and do what we expected to do.
“That shows where we are as a program,” he added.
There were some concerns, of course – penalties were a nagging problem, “and every position on the field needs to improve on their technique by Thursday, and through September,” Wendel said.
Depth is always a concern, but the Bulldogs came through the scrimmage injury-free, other than the usual bumps and bruises.
“Defensively, we’ve got to make sure we are aligned properly with new formations,” Wendel said. “That’s easily correctable.
“I thought we executed fairly well on both sides of the ball,” he added.

Panthers pop Jacksonville; to scrimmage Athens tonight
By Kerry Yancey
Monitor Staff Writer
MABANK–In a first test for a lot of players, the Mabank Panthers were able to excel against a bigger, faster opponent with a lot more players Saturday.
“I was a little concerned when we lined up to stretch and they (Jacksonville) covered that whole end of the field,” Mabank head coach Jimmy Cantrell said Monday.
“Jacksonville has good size and good speed,” he added. “Nobody in our district is going to be any bigger or faster.”
The Panthers will travel to Athens’ Bruce Field Thursday (tonight) to face the hosting Hornets in the second controlled scrimmage, opening at 5 p.m. with freshmen and the junior varsity, followed by varsity action around 6:30 to 7 p.m.

Monitor Photo/Kerry Yancey
Mabank Panther quarterback Austin Craig (right) fakes the ball to Panther running back Cory Gibbons (17) and keeps it for a substantial gain, as the visiting Jacksonville Indian defenders mistakenly chased Gibbons during the first controlled scrimmage for both teams Saturday.

“I think Jacksonville is going to be a very competitive team,” Cantrell said. Despite Jacksonville’s numbers advantage, the Panthers were able to stay with them in hot and steamy conditions.
“They were totally two-platoon, where we had six or seven kids going both ways,” Cantrell said.
Mabank’s already-thin numbers at outside linebacker took a hit when Chris Zitko suffered a knee injury. Zitko may not be able to return, pending an MRI Monday.
“Somebody is going to have to step up and play,” Cantrell said. “That’s the nature of the game.”
Despite Zitko’s injury, the Panthers showed they would be able to face opponents of the Indians’ caliber.
“I was fairly pleased with the scrimmage on both side of the ball,” Cantrell said. “You have the things happen that you expect to happen in a first scrimmage, but we moved the ball fairly well.
“We ran the ball well, and that’s something we haven’t done here in four years,” he added.
In the early matchup of first-teamers, Jacksonville didn’t have much success going up the middle against the Panther defense, but did find some running room to the outside.
“On the outside is where we’re going to be weak, with a totally new secondary and new outside linebackers,” Cantrell said. “I was very pleased with the way we ran to the ball, and I thought we tackled well. We also forced several turnovers.”
This early in the season, timing is always going to be an issue on offense, Cantrell said.
“We had a few missed snaps, and we put the ball on the ground a couple of times, but overall, I thought offensively we’re a little ahead of where I thought we would be at this time,” he added.
“I thought our screen game clicked pretty well,” he said. “We knew (quarterback) Austin (Craig) was a shifty little runner, and he showed that.
“I was very pleased with the secondary, as young as they are,” he added. “They tackled very well, and I thought we closed on the ball well.”
Jacksonville had the only score of the scrimmage, set up by a long pass play against the second-team defense.
“(Former Kemp player) Stone (Francis) ran him down at the 8, and it took them four plays to get in,” Cantrell said.
“Our freshmen and junior varsity really got after it,” he added. “We’ve got some kids down there who can play, and that was real exciting to see.”