Archive for September, 2011

Before I delve into this week’s predictions, I’ll mention a couple things about last night’s 52-27 loss that Burkburnett suffered.

I know the Eagles are good, but I think the Bulldogs didn’t play real well last night. This was my first time to watch them in person, and the defense resembled last year. Before tonight, in most of the games it had been better in 2011, but not last night.

I don’t really know what to expect in 6-3A now. If Graham gets its guys back, I think the Steers are the favorite. If not, then Burkburnett has a slim edge but is by no means unbeatable. Either way, it’s worth saying again that 6-3A is down this year.

Denton at WFHS – Denton is a formidable opponent capable of winning this game, but I think WFHS has more weapons and can make a few bigger plays to stay alive in 4-4A.

Rider at Lake Dallas – Lake Dallas probably has a more dangerous offense than Little Elm, who scored 51 points on the Raiders last week. I could definitely see Rider bouncing back with its best game of the season, but I’ll go with the home team.

Hirschi at Holliday – My pick is the Eagles, but as always in this matchup, if the Huskies can keep mistakes down and hit on a couple big plays, then they’ll have a chance in the end.

Bridgeport at Graham – The Steers could bounce back, but I can’t pick a team who: a) had 63 yards of offense last week; b) I couldn’t tell you who their QB is going to be; and c) has lost three straight and is playing an explosive team in the Bulls.

Windthorst at Henrietta – There aren’t many teams left on Windthorst’s schedule that can give it a game for more than two quarters. Munday is one of them, and the Bearcats are probably the other. I like the Trojans by 21 or more.

Jacksboro at Haskell – Neither team has looked that strong, so I’ll go with the bigger classification school. Jacksboro is the choice.

Seymour at Electra – The Tigers are much improved, and I think the score could be a little closer than in year’s past, but I expect the Panthers to win by double digits.

Stamford at Archer City – This one won’t be pretty. Stamford by 30 at least.

Quanah at Munday – I like the Moguls here. They have a few more weapons than the Indians. But I could see Quanah hanging around for a while.

Olney vs. Mason at Baird – The Punchers by as many as they want.

Era at Petrolia – If I remember correctly, the Pirates won this by a bunch last year. I expect more of the same this time around.

I’m a little bit late at looking at last week, but I thought there were some interesting things that went on.

* First, Andy and I talk about it in this week’s podcast, but I think the balance has shifted in 6-3A a little. If the district started today, I’d have to give Burkburnett the nod over Graham.

Part of that had to do with Graham’s dismal output in Borger (63 yards). And the Steers are hurting right now in different places. If you told me Brian Sides and Garrett Johnston would be healthy for the entire district, my mind might change. We’ll see. But I still think Burk-Graham is for the 6-3A title.

* Brutal week for 6-3A besides the Bulldogs. The other four teams managed a combined eight points in losses. Can’t remember this 3A district being as down before. I bet Pampa wishes it was in it.

* Crazy, crazy 4-4A opening week (also discussed in-depth on podcast). We’ll have to see if Rider and WFHS bounce back this Friday.

* The two biggest non-district area games turned out to be the best. Burkburnett won on the last play in a thriller against Mineral Wells, while City View almost came back from 25 down at the half.

* I think the Mustangs are a playoff team. I would feel better saying that if they’d had won on Friday, but it’s hard for me to pick Alvord, Nocona and Jacksboro ahead of them right now at least.

* A game that interests me this week is Quanah at Munday. Can the Indians hang with the explosive Moguls? A dominant Munday win will bode well for the start of district.

* It’s still hard for me to think the Moguls will gave Windthorst a real close game. Guess we’ll have to wait and see in a month.

* Archer City is so beat up and struggling, it’s tough for me to think the Wildcats will make the playoffs. I’d pick Electra right now if I had to. Didn’t see Olney beating them by 20+. Makes that Petrolia win over AC not seem as big of a deal now.

* Next week I’ll blog my thought on each district, making predictions now and compare them to what I picked in late August. I think there will be some changes, but not too many.

Major league baseball changed its schedule to finish on Wednesday this year and probably as the suits hoped the final day will have all eyes focused on baseball.

I’m rooting for the Rays to get in ahead of the Red Sox so I’d love to see the fighting Showalters in Baltimore pull a stunner against Jon Lester and the Sox.

This Boston collapse has been amazing to follow. The Red Sox started 2-10, then were the best team in baseball for the next several months until the calendar turned to September. Now they look like the bunch that started off 2-10.

I follow the NL much less than the AL but the Braves have also faded down the stretch, while the Cardinals are streaking toward the finish line.

There’s a good chance at least one of these races may need an extension to Thursday.

The most entertaining game of Week 3 on the Sunday Ticket was Patriots vs. Bills. The Bills were the team to cheer for in my house with their underdog status, Ryan Fitzpatrick’s presence on my fantasy team and because David Nelson plays for the Bills.

But I’m still not sure how much to trust them when I rank the top teams in the AFC and NFC.

I didn’t write about NFL for my weekly column in print so I’m posting some random thoughts and my rankings here.

The team Id have to bump out of my projected playoffs in the AFC to make room for the Bills has to be the Steelers or Jets. And I like the Raiders more than I do the Bills because of their division and front four on defense. So through three games I’m leaving the Bills out.

Yes, the Bills rallied past the Raiders at home last week. But I still think of the Pats and Raiders as slightly better than the Bills.

My AFC top six is Ravens (2-1), my preseason Super Bowl pick has two good outings and a clunker; Texans (2-1); Patriots (2-1); Raiders (2-1); Chargers (2-1, ugly win over Chiefs); Jets (2-1). 

This leaves out both the Bills and the Steelers (2-1).

No tiebreaker was needed this week as Jeff Gregg, the Seymour radio announcer who taped a podcast a couple weeks ago with me, won it by getting 13 of 16 games correct.

I was in a three-way tie with AreaFootballFan and One-Legged Fade 41 for second place with 12 right. Everyone missed the Rider pick, and only one person had Olney winning.

Here are your season totals:

1. AreaFootballFan — 64

2t. Me — 62

2t. One-Legged Fade 41 — 62

4. Keystoner — 59

“Dance the Night Away”

Richard Carter

The Disco Rico at P2 Saturday

No this isn’t a Van Halen themed blog, even though I was just at the Mr. Fairchild jam place, and yes they could play a Van Halen song, since they have the more than impressive professor Lionel de Barge playing guitar for them, but they refuse to, and somehow that just seems wrong. Okay, maybe it’s only disappointing.

The lyric is from a Chris Roberson song. He is the acoustic playing and singing genius of the amazing Dr. Phil Good and the Let’s Get it On’s. I believe that is the way they are now writing it. They played a four-hour set in Bryan College Station this weekend and are set to release their first CD in October. Represent! The guys said the event went over well, and the sky is the limit.

But, I digress because what I want to write about is the lessening of the ruthless summer temperatures as we slide into the rain and the leaves and the cool of the fall time. It’s time for dancing under trees to good outdoor live music while the leaves swirl around you and the person you are dancing with. That’s cool.

FallsFest is just around the corner, and there are already rumors spreading that a member of Bowling for Soup will be a judge for the Battle of the Bands. I can’t say if that is true or not, but considering they used to ask me to judge those things, I would have to wonder. We shall see.  I hear from the members of Slab Rat that there will be lots of people on the stage helping them out playing their opening set to KC and the Sunshine Band, and the includes a horn section, a banjo player and background singers. You can probably guess who those people are, and it will be good. I don’t think the band member size will be as large as the 15-member headliner but who knows?

There will be some moving and a grooving and dancing to the beat and all that, so make plans to get there early.

On that same night, you can also check out the fabulous instrumental sounds of The Jason Brown Band with a new Jeff Beck song in tow. There will also be a younger instrumental band playing called Broadcasting on all Frequencies, and they are always worth checking out.

Back to where I am sitting and writing this, a girl is playing a folk song with the lyric “Give Me Novocain,” because some times the world can be a total pain.

Speaking of outdoor live music events, you should make every attempt to go to the Downtown Culture Crawl this Thursday from 5 am to 9 am. All of the bands are on their own this year, and so the only confirmed bands that i know about are Kory Rogers and David Thompson and the guys from Dr. Phil Good and the Let’s Get it Ons. Also the owner of The Spot will be selling pizzas in front of Alley Cat Collective. My friends from Shantell will be playing at the Pub, their first show there, opening for the always fabulous Jac Damsel. I know lots of good bands that will be there, and it’s free and it supports the guys who are trying to bring downtown back. So go and check it out, already.

Well, we’ve got District 4-4A starting this week and a bunch of teams’ last non-district games before the bye.

Not a ton of great matchups on paper, but there could still be some great games. Here are my picks:

Little Elm at Rider — I understand Little Elm’s offense can be pretty impressive. I also understand the Lobos are probably the third or fourth best team Rider has faced (Cooper, Amarillo and maybe Kennedale). Rider wins by double digits.

WFHS at The Colony — The Coyotes made an impressive defensive turnaround last week. But The Colony is much, much better than Bishop Lynch. This is a huge game for WFHS, but I just don’t think it has enough. The Colony by 12.

Mineral Wells at Burkburnett — A total toss-up. I’ll lean toward the Rams but a Burk win wouldn’t surprise me in the least.

Decatur at Iowa Park — I like Decatur here, but a Hawks win wouldn’t surprise me.

Graham at Borger — The bus ride there will be long, but I’m sure the Steers are hungry to get out on the field

Vernon at Pampa — Hard to pick against Pampa after it already has beaten Iowa Park and Hirschi. Bet they wish they were in 6-3A this year.

Bowie at Whitesboro — I should probably pick Bowie after its big win a week ago, but this Whitesboro team isn’t too shabby. And it was a close game  last year.

City View at Muenster Sacred Heart — A very tough game for the Mustangs, but one I think they can win if they play well.

Nocona at Paradise — I was all set to go with the Indians, but I think they’ll need all their guns against Paradise. And with Tate Fenoglio possibly missing offensive snaps because of an arm injury, I’ll give the edge to the Panthers.

Haskell at Quanah — Indians should win this tune-up easily before facing off with Munday next week.

Archer City at Olney — Depending on who comes back for Archer City, this game could be close. The Wildcats will win it, though.

Windthorst at Petrolia — Trojans are playing really well right now, not that that’s a surprise. They’ll win easily, even though the Pirates are better this year.

De Leon at Seymour — I have no idea who’s going to be Seymour’s QB tonight. I have a very good idea that it won’t matter. Panthers by a bunch.

Munday at Roscoe — The Plowboys were a formidable opponent a few years ago, but Roscoe isn’t what it used to be. Moguls by at least four scores.

Electra vs. West Texas Stinnett — Electra’s non-district schedule gets tougher as we go along. Stinnett is another tough one (it scored 70 in this game last year), and I’ll be surprised if it stays close.

Raise your hand if you saw the WFHS shutout coming? I see no hands raised. You’d be lying if you said you did.

The Coyotes’ 23-0 victory over Bishop Lynch was probably the most surprising result from Week 3, simple because the Coyotes were a few days removed from giving up 70 points to Frisco Wakeland.

The win did come at the perfect time for WFHS. It opens district this week against The Colony is a game that is important for any kind of Coyote playoff chances.

Other weekend thoughts:

* Throckmorton and City View are the area’s only two unbeatens left. The first one is not surprising. The second one is.

* Riding the winless train are Iowa Park, Olney, Gold-Burg and Christ Academy.

* I really think Windthorst can score 50 points on mostly anybody if they play their starters past halftime. Sixty-five against Seymour was pretty impressive.

* The possible third-place team in 6-3A this week (remember, I’m giving Graham and Burkburnett nods) is Bowie, who had a nice OT win at Breckenridge. Only 6-3A victory this week as four others lost decisively and Graham had a bye.

* Glad to hear Burkburnett’s Isaiha Barnes is doing better after a scary trip to the ER. For more details, read the story published on our website. It seems like Burkburnett has had more serious injuries than everyone combined the past 3-4 years.

* District is coming real soon (this week for 4-4A), but it can’t come soon enough. I’m tired of comparing scores to size up district. Want the real ones to count soon.

* Good wins for WFHS, Bowie, Nocona, City View, Quanah, Jacksboro and Newcastle. Tough losses for Iowa Park (which still can’t seem to make a PAT), Holliday, Seymour and Archer City.

It came down to a tiebreaker in this week’s “Sack Zach” as Keystoner won by picking 13 of 15 games correctly, edging out AreaFootballFan.

I was right behind them with 12 correct (along  with three others), missing the WFHS, Bowie and Stamford wins. And everybody missed the Bowie-Breckenridge game.

The season totals are:

1. AreaFootballFan 52

2. Me 50

3. One-Legged Fade 41 49

4. Keystoner 48

ACL

Richard Carter

ricci amador is the new drummer for white knuckle

So, late this week, some friends took me out to eat to tell me all about ACL this weekend in Austin, and how they were going, and how much they were looking forward to it, and how cool it was going to be and blah, blah, blah.

And, I appropriately rolled my eyes, because no one wants to go to a pricey three day, all-day music festival with loads of hipsters and hippies and preppies and a bunch of people that any right minded individual would likely care less being around.

So big deal, right? And, then they told me the names of the bands that they would be getting to see, and I started to feel a little green with envy. And according to some other friends, a lot of really good bands were added over the last two months or so that made a semi-decent festival into a really good one.

Live bands and performers include Big Boi, Foster the People, Nas, Damian Marley, Kanye, Cut Copy, Fitz and the Tantrums, Cee-Lo, Chromeo and Sunday Fleet Foxes.

Now, I could care less about Arcade Fire and Coldplay, but still, that’s a lot of really good bands and there’s even more. The point is that KC and the Sunshine Band doesn’t even compare with the ACL stuff on the lesser stage.

Sure, Austin is not all that far away and everything. But, it would still be nice to be able to drive no longer than four miles away to be able to go see a band that I care about. Once or twice a year it happens, but it’s never the bands I really care about a whole lot.

Anywho, The Pretty Reckless is playing soon in Dallas, and some of my friends are all going to see Soundgarden with Mastodon opening up. That should be an amazingly good show that people will be talking about for a while.

I had the opportunity to talk with the three members of the Jason Brown Band earlier this week, and it was a total blast to talk with such well-travelled musicians who were such an integral part of music in Wichita Falls during the ‘80s and to the present. All of them are good guys and I am looking forward to seeing them play at the Pub in early October. By the way, these “geezers” will be playing with MSU freshman and sophomores who comprise another instrumental band called Broadcasting on All Frequencies. I’ve written about those guys in the past, and it should be a nice evening of music with no vocals.

Well, it was bad news to hear from drummer Michael Christmas that he had left White Knuckle last week. Their new drummer will be Ricci Amador who was with twicebroken and is now with BlueLightSpecial and also White Knuckle. If you think about it, he was really the most natural person to drum with them.

It’s not clear who Christmas is going to drum with next but considering that he has mad talent and that he also appreciates some sick dance music, I would like to hear him play with a harder edged dance group. Maybe try out with Dev’s touring band. I mean, seriously, I could see Christmas drumming in a sick grooved version of “Like a G6.”

Well, it rarely happens, but I was able to hold off all of about 20 people who picked last week’s games, missing only the Graham-Abilene Wylie matchup.

One-Legged Fade 41 and David CLubb both got 13 right, and Fade 41 actually only was wrong on one game as he didn’t get the Thursday Decatur pick in time. He missed Quanah-Anson.

Here are the season totals:

1. AreaFootballFan: 39 (don’t forget — he’s the defending champ)

2t. One-Legged Fade 41 and Me: 38

4. Keystoner: 35

A lot to talk about after the third week of high school football is in the books.

Not so many surprising scores this week (I only missed Graham in “Sack Zach” – speaking of which I hope to straighten out the bugs with that pretty soon), but still some interesting things to dissect. Here are my thoughts:

* I bet I don’t see a more defensive game this year than the 397 yards of offense that Iowa Park and Holliday combined for. Somebody asked me if it was more good defense or bad offense. I definitely think more good defense, although both offenses have improvements to make. And IP needs to start making PATs.

* I have no doubt Scott Ponder will get things going soon, but it’s hard to figure out the Hawks’ identity on offense. Are they a running team or passing team? Are they more of a screen passing team or do they prefer taking more shots downfield? What do they do best?

* On last week’s predictions, I said it’d be hard for me to believe WFHS can go 0-10. I might have to rethink that after the Coyotes gave up 70 points and more than 600 yards of total offense in a loss to Frisco Wakeland.

* You can read more about this in Wednesday’s 2A/A roundup, but there were some different QBs taking snaps this week than normal. Seymour’s Zach Barton, Archer City’s Weston Wuthrich, Electra’s Tyler Coats and Olney’s Blake Turner all missed Friday with injuries.

* With Seymour, they got a great game from backup QB Tanner Gillispie. But the Seymour coaches reported stats wrong in Saturday’s paper. Gillispie had 290 total yards of offense (rushing/passing), not 290 rushing. Still pretty impressive, though.

* Hard to forecast who makes the playoffs in the 3-2A race besides Holliday right now. Henrietta got creamed by Boyd, and while off to a great start, City View has definitely succeeded with an easier schedule. I was a little surprised Petrolia was tied with the Mustangs in the fourth quarter. Nocona’s looking up, and Alvord is a question mark to me. It is hard for me to see Jacksboro making it, but that’s about the only one.

* After taking care of the ball pretty well against Ponder, it sounded like Hirschi was back to its fumbling ways versus Decatur.

* Really good wins for Vernon, Holliday, Quanah, Seymour, Nocona and Munday.

 * Tough losses for Rider, Iowa Park, Electra and Petrolia.

* Looking forward to Windthorst-Seymour this week. It was a great game a year ago, and I expect something along the same lines this time around, too.

“Brother Sharp”

Richard Carter

Brother Sharp at the Spot playing the venue's first Friday acoustic night

It is long been clear that one of the area’s best hangouts to listen to live music is The Spot, across the street from Sikes Mall. On Friday, Sept. 2, I dropped by to listen to the first of their Friday night shows featuring guitarist Joe Harris and singer Justin Wright. Guitarist Phillip Harrell couldn’t make it that night, so the acoustic Brother Sharp was actually a duo.

While I am not a huge fan of the covers that the duo was doing, I did enjoy how they played them. Harris is a really solid guitarist who plays cleanly with good definition. His forte is lead guitar, but since Harrell was not there he was playing chords and slipping in the occasional lead whenever he could. I enjoyed the show and hung out with them during their set break.

Last Thursday was the every other week open mic at The Spot, run by David Thompson. There’s always an interesting group of people who show up for these open mics where players get three songs or 15 minutes. And if there’s time, people can play longer or play a second time. It’s a cool opportunity to get to hear people try out their original music or play some covers in a unique fashion. It’s always loud, but considering the applause after the numbers, the crowd is definitely hearing stuff they like.

The following Friday, Sept 9 was the second Friday night show by three of the five members of Dr. Philgood and the Let’s Get It On’s. Chris Roberson played acoustic guitar and sang, Stephen Welch and Phil Pendley switched off between electric guitar and drums. They were missing DJ Marcus and bassist Mike Daly but I think that their songs are written well enough that they sound great played with various members. I think what I am trying to say is that depending on whoever plays the music, a listener gets to hear new things in that song. A less than full band actually serves to emphasize elements that might not normally get heard.

If you have not yet heard Dr. Philgood, I suggest you check them out. I mean, the worst possible thing is to discover an area band after they relocate to some other city. Needless to say they will have a CD out in the next month or so, and they are in talks with Backdoor Theatre to have a band night.

With the departure of the Hangar shows, it’s rare to hear groups play in all-ages situations, and Dr. Philgood does that about half the time. They’re melodic with good musicianship while being song driven. And they’re great guys to boot.

The other cool thing about Friday was that there was an art opening at the MSU gallery from 6 to 8 p.m. One of the things we used to do in the big city was to hit a cool art opening and launch the evening from there. For example, go from an art show to a place like The Spot to hear a very cool area band, have a slice, and then go on to clubs or whatnot and maybe end up back at The Spot later that night from 2 a.m. to 4 a.m. and then try to wake up in time for work the next day.

Anywho, we don’t have a lot of cool places to hang out that are smoke free and only admit over 21. My friends in Austin and Dallas always want to go to the Spot when they are in town, so don’t let it be our area’s best kept secret.

I had not been to Amarillo since David Nelson and Blake Szymanski were Rider Raiders. That Rider team needed a Nelson interception, one of the few times I saw him play defense, to beat Palo Duro in a tight game.

The game between Rider and Amarillo is 38 minutes away from kickoff, but this old Dick Bivins Stadium has a very new feel. The end zone ticket booths and concession stands and walkways have all been upgraded. The press box is another upgrade, although that only matters to myself and Richard Moore, the radio guy. It has a Pennington Field look to it.

Memorial Stadium could use some of these modern upgrades.

It has a chance to make a good first impression on visitors to our city who are involved in high school sports.

Well, I managed to bounce back last week after a horrible Week Zero. Maybe it was because I had a week of games to go by. Or maybe because I had less time to stew over my selections. Or maybe I just needed a wakeup call.

Whatever it was, let’s hope I continue the roll for this week, which features a lot of area vs. area matchups. Here are my picks:

Decatur at Hirschi – The Huskies definitely earned their win against Ponder, driving the field to force OT and then making a couple big plays. But Hirschi was a +5 in the turnover department against a fairly new 2A team and still almost lost. Decatur is a lot better than Ponder and should beat the Huskies by double digits.

Frisco Wakeland at WFHS – Nick mentioned in our weekly TRN video that he thought WFHS could go 0-10. I’ll be really surprised if that happens, but I’m picking Wakeland in this one.

Rider at Amarillo – Two tough games already. A 4+ hour drive before the game against a solid 5A team. I just think it’s a little much for the Raiders to handle.

Holliday at Iowa Park – The Hawks are making progress and an IP win here shouldn’t surprise me the least. But the Eagles are the more polished team right now and I like them in a close one (Random thought: I’ve picked against the home team in the two big games I’ve covered — Holliday at Windthorst and Brownwood at Graham — and have been right on both).

Abilene Wylie at Graham – Graham rarely loses at home, having its 12-game streak broken last week. And the Steers haven’t lost to Wylie at Newton Field since 1999. I expect Graham to bounce back.

Childress at Vernon – I know I’ve picked them to win before (against Sweetwater this year; Hirschi last year) but I think the streak ends against Childress, a team who was lucky to beat fellow 6-3A squad Bowie last week.

Jacksboro at Bowie – Not sure how good Bowie is yet, but I do know they crushed the Tigers last year and I expect a big Jackrabbit win this time around.

Petrolia at City View – The Pirates’ win was a big surprise last week, but the Mustangs are on a roll and have more weapons. If Petrolia wins this one, I’ll jump on their bandwagon. Heck, I’ll drive the dang thing. But I like the home team by 10-17.

Boyd at Henrietta – I think Boyd is somewhere in between fellow 5-2A Div. I teams Pottsoboro (who Henrietta lost to) and Paradise (who it beat). Boyd owns this series though and I like them, although a Henrietta win wouldn’t be a shocker.

Archer City at Nocona – Was really interested in this one until both teams laid eggs last week. I think we’ll learn a lot about Nocona in this one. I’ll take the Indians, but I know Josh Castles’ side will be looking to bounce back.

Quanah at Anson – Maybe a trap game for Quanah after a big Hamlin win. All I know is the Indians beat Hamlin, who beat Anson by about 2o to start the year. That’s why I’m taking the Indians.

Seymour vs. Collinsville – I’m high on the Panthers right now, but this is their biggest test yet. I thought it would be a close game last year (Seymour won 46-13), and since I feel that way again, I will go with Seymour.

Olney at Windthorst – Trojans by as many as they want. They scored 70 last year on the Cubs.

Jim Ned at Munday – Moguls are back on track and should take this one easily.

Electra at Alvord – A pretty interesting game, but I think Alvord is the deeper team and they are the pick. Now if Electra wins, that’s a HUGE victory for the Tigers.

As I will write in Wednesday’s Class 2A/A roundup, a loss the first week — even if it’s a bad one — is nothing to freak out about.

Petrolia lost real bad to Muenster Sacred Heart in its opener, but bounced back nicely by beating Archer City in the biggest surprise of the week.

Henrietta had a nice recovery and so did Quanah, which put the loss to Memphis behind it and edged Hamlin. So the lesson here is to don’t put much stock in the first week.

Other thoughts from the weekend:

* Sounds like WFHS played one heck of a first half against Lawton Mac, going up 10-0 to start the game. Also sounded like Mac just wore down the Coyotes running the ball in the second half.

* Graham’s QB situation is still one that interests me. Garrett Johnston had a pretty good start before getting hurt trying to make a tackle. Layne Bynum, last year’s starter, looked pretty good late, but with Brownwood up so much, I’m not sure the prevent defense it played didn’t help a little.

* That’s a game Hirschi needed to win badly. It’s good to snap a long road losing streak, even if they needed OT to do it. And Dominique Bobo is locked in as the team’s quarterback.

* Also glad to see Dee Paul back on the field. Concussions aren’t much fun. I was told Devin Chafin suffered one the other night against Bridgeport.

* Speaking of Burkburnett, you used to go to see the Bulldogs play and expect a game that lasts a little more than two hours. Now the games are taking at least three. Who would have thought Burk would have a 200-yard receiver in one game, either?

* After two weeks, District 6-3A is a combined 3-9.

* I know I said at the top that you shouldn’t put too much stock in one game, but after two games, you can sometimes see trends developing. And so it might be a long year for teams like Jacksboro and Olney. Guess we’ll wait and see.

* So my upset pick of Nocona was a bad one, maybe? Can I go and erase that in my predictions blog?

* Great wins by Rider, Henrietta, Petrolia, Quanah, Electra and Hirschi. Tough losses for Bowie, Vernon, Iowa Park, WFHS and Nocona.

“Windthorst is a heckuva football team and coach (Bill) Green runs a first-class operation,” Lavender said. “The Rowdies were up to the challenge played right with them (21-14) for a half.
“I love going over there. An opportunity to play under the lights, those hamburgers and sausage links, it was great. But they run that double wing and our guys have never seen that offense before and they play tough and wRowdy in Windthorst
The WFHS junior varsity team, the Rowdies, got a chance to play under the Friday night lights at one of the area’s best venues in Windthorst.
And they were playing one of the state’s best Class A programs. Predictably, the No. 9 Trojans won the game, 54-20, but Lavender loved the experience.
“Windthorst is a heckuva football team and coach (Bill) Green runs a first-class operation,” Lavender said. “The Rowdies were up to the challenge played right with them (21-14) for a half.
“I love going over there. An opportunity to play under the lights, those hamburgers and sausage links, it was great. But they run that double wing and our guys have never seen that offense before and they play tough and wear you down.”
Quarterback Zach Murphy and receiver Corey Robinson highlighted the Rowdies’ big-play attack.
Also, the WFHS freshman black team has more than 100 points in two wins this season.

A much better week for myself, but it was David Clubb who beat me out in a tiebreaker. We both got 14 of the 18 games correct (it looked like we had the same picks) but David bested me on the tiebreaker.

Shogirl deserves some credit — she was the only one who picked Petrolia to beat Archer City. Nice upset pick.

Here are the current standings after two weeks:

1. AreaFootballFan 27

2. One-legged Fade 41 25

3t. Keystoner 24

3t. Zach Duncan 24

Les Paul’s and .09′s.

Richard Carter

It Hurts to Be Dead (IHTBD) Thursday at the Pub

After chatting the other day with Brian Harris, the awesome guitar player for Queen for a Day and the Allmost Brothers, I discovered how to restring a Les Paul where it’s plays a lot more slinky. It’s actually pretty easy to do. But of course, me being me, I strung it with ‘09s rather than ‘10s, which is what he recommended and now it’s way too slinky. Brian, I hope you’re not reading this.

The good news that you should have gleaned from the previous paragraph is that one of my favorite guitarists, and also one of the more popular locally, has recovered from heart surgery enough to be back at work in Dallas. He played his first show back in Denton Sunday at 5 p.m. at Dan’s Silver Leaf and I am told it went well. He even showed off his scar!!! Harris is a great guy, and we need guitarists with his mad skills.

Btw, I am restringing my guitar early next week, Brian.

I got stuck trying to play drums earlier this week for Mr. Fairchild while they were preparing for their Friday show, which was to celebrate Iron Horse Pub co-owner Danny Ahern’s bday, by the way. Danny also has some great news, but he has to tell you. I am not saying a word.

Anywho, I was playing drums (rather badly) and digging what the Fairchild guys were throwing down. They introduced a Rolling Stones cover last night, “Miss You” that just blew everyone away with former drummer Rob Kirkland playing harp. According to guitarist Jon Richerson on Sunday, everyone in the place was dancing like there was no tomorrow.

I was at the Pub Thursday listening to a new band called Alliance (with Jeff Catlin of Lycergus and Coffin Crusher) and also the three-piece I.H.T.B.D. Alliance is basically your fun pop rock cover band and got a nice response. I didn’t get to see them much because I couldn’t get into the room. There were a few people I had not seen for a while, if you know what I mean.

When IHTBD (It Hurts to be Dead) went on, I was back at the sound booth with sound guy Christian Keep listening on. I have not heard the band since it went from a quartet to a trio, and I was quite surprised and impressed with how they have changed their music to suit their individual and collective talents. It couldn’t have been easy to lose the tasteful melody lines that Roger used to play, but I didn’t miss them Thursday night.

I moved to the front next to Brandon Graham (former guitarist and singer for the Advance), and we both liked the dynamic interaction between bass and drums, which were extremely tight. I wished that the smoke around had not been so thick, but for the four songs I was there, I was also really impressed with Sean’s guitar lines, and how he brought guitar and voice into each of the songs. It’s really masterful how the band has arranged each song for maximum effect. The musicians managed to create a mood that also moved with authority and strength. According to Sean, they have a little more recording to do, but there should be a CD out before too long. It should be well worth checking out.

Well, I couldn’t have been more off on last week’s picks. I think I’m last in the newspaper and a few people beat me on “Sack Zach.” But I’m ready for a comeback.

It started last night by picking Lawton Mac to beat WFHS. Let’s see if it continues tonight.

* Kennedale at Rider — What do the Raiders have for an encore after their comeback? My gut says another win against a pretty good 3A team. Kennedale isn’t shabby, but it isn’t Abilene Cooper, either. Rider by 10.

* Hirschi at Ponder — What are research guys (meaning me and Andy) poured through past seasons, we realized Hirschi hadn’t won on the road since Diamond Hill-Jarvis in 2007. I was there, and the thing I remember most is going through a metal detector when I entered the stadium. Ponder is a start-up 2A program that shouldn’t hang with the Huskies, unless Hirschi fumbles in double digits again. Hirschi by 14.

* Brownwood at Graham — I’ve learned DB Brian Sides is out with an ankle injury, and I also feel a little curious about the Steers’ QB situation. They’re going with the hot hand, so I guess junior Garrett Johnston gets the nod. The Lions aren’t nearly the team they were a year ago, but I like their chance of winning this toss-up just a little bit better.

* Bridgeport at Burkburnett — The Bulldogs could make another statement win in 2011 by beating Bridgeport, but the Bulls have had their number the past three years. Probably another shootout, but the guess here is Burk barely comes up short.

* Iowa Park at Pilot Point — Here’s a fun little fact. I picked three teams last week (IP, Vernon and Henrietta) that combined to score ZERO points. The Hawks’ loss to Pampa may have been the biggest surprise in Week Zero, and until they show me some offense, I have to pick the home team.

* Bowie at Childress — The Jackrabbits get a much easier team this week, and I like their chances of handing Dylan Stark his first win.

* Vernon at Altus — I’m not going to sit here and tell you I know how good Altus is. Because I don’t and the Oklahoma season starts tonight. I do know this — Altus has won this game the past couple years and Vernon is 1-20 since 2009. Advantage Altus.

* Breckenridge at Holliday — I really believe in the Eagles this year, and they should be fired up after how bad the Buckaroos won last year (42-10). Still, something tells me to go with Breckenridge.

* Paradise at Henrietta — The Bearcats over the past three games: 6 points in the season finale against Alvord that decided district seeding; 0 points in a playoff loss to Hamilton; 0 points in the 2011 opener vs. Pottsboro. That adds up to six reasons why I like Paradise.

* Nocona at Muenster — If I had to pick an upset game, this one would be it. The Indians had a pretty good showing against Whitewright. Muenster is very talented and I’ll play it safe and choose the Hornets since they are at home, but a Nocona win wouldn’t shock me.

* Godley at Jacksboro — This should be an easy Godley runaway. Still a little surprised how bad Jacksboro played in the first half against Seymour last week.

* Perrin-Whitt at City View — The Mustangs by however many they want. You know it’s bad when Chico beats you by 31 points.

* Petrolia at Archer City — A Wildcats rout should be expected.

* WFHS JV at Windthorst — Trojans win this one going away. We’ll see how much QB Joe Hoegger plays.

* Munday at Olney — Even if Dee Paul doesn’t play, it’s still tough to think the Cubs have a good shot at winning after losing at Tolar last week.

* Seymour at Lubbock Christian — Panthers win big.

* Hamlin at Quanah — This will be a tough one for the Indians. I can see the Pied Pipers pulling away.

* Memphis at Electra — An intersting game after Memphis beat Quanah last week. I liked what the Tigers did in the opener, so I’ll stay with them.