Crosby vs Aledo in 5A DII State Championship at ATT Stadium

[PNGIndian75]

I am glad to see Crosby still carrying the flag for our district 12-5A. I think they have a chance at win but Aledo is aweful strong on both sides of the ball. Still nice to see a team from our own district in the State Championship Game. I will be watching from OHIO.

 

[IndianFan]

Pretty amazing given that 125A just wasn’t that tough.

Crosby’s only hope is to have their top 2 guys healthy and making big plays.

But Aledo is tough across the lineup so Crosby is definitely the big underdog.

 

[1989NDN]

How is it that year in and year out Aledo has OL kids 6'4" to 6'6" weighing 275 lbs - 290 lbs and one D-I RB or D-I WR, or both? On defense, they usually have some decent size. This from an ISD of 6500 students? What are they feeding those kids? Are families just magically moving into the Aledo ISD and they have giant OL kids and D-I RBs and WRs? If Crosby can avoid TOs and hang tough for 4Qs, I think they will have a shot to leave the DFW Metroplex with a state championship. I guess PN-G's district isn't too shabby after all. Ha-ha.

Go Indians. Peace.

 

[Justafan]

How is it that year in and year out Aledo has OL kids 6'4" to 6'6" weighing 275 lbs - 290 lbs and one D-I RB or D-I WR, or both? On defense, they usually have some decent size. This from an ISD of 6500 students? What are they feeding those kids? Are families just magically moving into the Aledo ISD and they have giant OL kids and D-I RBs and WRs? If Crosby can avoid TOs and hang tough for 4Qs, I think they will have a shot to leave the DFW Metroplex with a state championship. I guess PN-G's district isn't too shabby after all. Ha-ha.

Go Indians. Peace.

Winning does that. Aledo is close enough to DFW so parent want to give their kids a chance to be recognized as they usually play 16 games every year. Winning breeds a program.

 

[Justafan]

If we’d ever develop a defense PNG could go 3 or 4 rounds every year and parents would want their kids to play for PNG.

 

[IndianFan]

If we’d ever develop a defense PNG could go 3 or 4 rounds every year and parents would want their kids to play for PNG.

I think there is a lot of truth in that. At least 2-3 rounds. With a better defense they would have likely won the district and whipped FBM this season. Crosby and Nederland would have been less of a threat as well if they had met in the playoffs again. It wouldn't have been out of the question to be the team facing Aledo.

With the offense that Coach Faircloth installed here that is a threat to score on anyone, a defense would make a huge difference. But the issue is that PN-G does not have a multitude of big and fast players, But there's more to it than that. Any high school program intent on being a success every year must first address fundamentals of play. If that's successfully addressed a team has a much better chance no matter the competition. If not then winning against any good team will be a longshot. There's no arguing against that. If you can't block and tackle with great success, you're not going to win much no matter how many yards your skill players produce at times.

I know high school football is not like college or the NFL in that there is not a huge budget to bring well-known assistants on staff. And coaching in high school is not a dedicated career unless maybe you're the HC\AD. Assistant coaches are teachers with a side job of coaching and a passion for coaching. But those guys can learn new systems and techniques to pass on to the players. I sure would like to be a fly on the wall to see how programs like Carthage, Aledo. Mart, Refugio, Katy, Southlake Carroll, etc manage to be great year in and year out.

No doubt we don't have the number of players as those big schools pull from, but neither does Carthage, Aledo, Mart or many other smaller schools. If PN-G could rediscover the fundamental, technique oriented defensive play that made the 70's great, and continue to produce on offense, every year would be a possibility of making one of those magical playoff runs.

 

[HJJ97NDN]

To me, every year I think we have one or two kids that could play both ways and make a big difference. This is the part I don't understand, why not put the best 11 players on the field at all times. Varsity is big boy football and it is not a time to worry about if jimmy is getting enough playing time. Im not saying to not involve other kids, because depth is a good thing.

 

[1989NDN]

I agree with HJJ97NDN...play the best 11 kids on offense, defense, and special teams. I don't care if kids go both ways or if they play in all three phases of the game. These kids are 15-18 year olds. They will not drop dead from fatigue if they play offense, defense, and on special teams. Put the best 11 kids on the field and let it rip. If the other kids or parents do not like it, then my response is, go get better and compete for a spot on the field.

Go Indians. Peace.

 

[IndianFan]

Trahan doubling up at running back, and Corey Burt on the defensive line would have been great additions. Sosa playing some at linebacker seems Intriguing. All hypotheticals now with only Trahan back next year.

 

[HJJ97NDN]

Trahan doubling up at running back, and Corey Burt on the defensive line would have been great additions. Sosa playing some at linebacker seems Intriguing. All hypotheticals now with only Trahan back next year.

Believe it or not Trahan is exactly who i had in mind just as an example. The thing is while on offense they dont even have to play every play, depending on the play call and personnel.

 

[Justafan]

Where I grew up we had 22 players on varsity. Only thing I didn’t play my senior year was punt return!! Loved every min of it and still had energy after the game!

 

[PNGIndian75]

I think there is a lot of truth in that. At least 2-3 rounds. With a better defense they would have likely won the district and whipped FBM this season. Crosby and Nederland would have been less of a threat as well if they had met in the playoffs again. It wouldn't have been out of the question to be the team facing Aledo.

With the offense that Coach Faircloth installed here that is a threat to score on anyone, a defense would make a huge difference. But the issue is that PN-G does not have a multitude of big and fast players, But there's more to it than that. Any high school program intent on being a success every year must first address fundamentals of play. If that's successfully addressed a team has a much better chance no matter the competition. If not then winning against any good team will be a longshot. There's no arguing against that. If you can't block and tackle with great success, you're not going to win much no matter how many yards your skill players produce at times.

I know high school football is not like college or the NFL in that there is not a huge budget to bring well-known assistants on staff. And coaching in high school is not a dedicated career unless maybe you're the HC\AD. Assistant coaches are teachers with a side job of coaching and a passion for coaching. But those guys can learn new systems and techniques to pass on to the players. I sure would like to be a fly on the wall to see how programs like Carthage, Aledo. Mart, Refugio, Katy, Southlake Carroll, etc manage to be great year in and year out.

No doubt we don't have the number of players as those big schools pull from, but neither does Carthage, Aledo, Mart or many other smaller schools. If PN-G could rediscover the fundamental, technique oriented defensive play that made the 70's great, and continue to produce on offense, every year would be a possibility of making one of those magical playoff runs.

I totally agree Indian Fan, but a defense needs a defensive coordinator that knows defense and tackling techniques and knows how to teach them. Arm tackling against some of the fastest and strongest athletes that we face year and and year out using arm tackling techniques will never get us to the promised land. Go for the waist first and and grab ahold and work your way down to the ankles. Guess what, they are going down. Just my two cents for what it's worth. I am 63 years old and have been and avid Indian fan since my high school years and still follow them religiously since and still keep up with them every year to this day.

 

[PNGIndian75]

Crosby jumped out to 14 - 7 lead in 1st quarter and then Aledo took command and lead 35-14 at the half.

 

[Torino]

Aledo won 56-21.

 

[IndianFan]

Not surprised. Congrats to Crosby for getting there but this was a down year in terms of football quality. Teams did not prep or perform like they might have across the board. An asterisk might belong next to the winners this year.

 

[1989NDN]

Aledo recruits...OL kids standing 6'4" - 6'6" 250 lbs. - 295lbs. just happen to move in. Yeah, right. The same with the all-star RBs and WRs that find their way to Aledo just 30-minutes west/southwest of Dallas-Fort Worth. The broadcast crew for the state championship game mentioned that the QB transferred from San Diego, CA. The lead broadcaster and PA's Shea Walker had to bite holes in their lips to stop from constantly discussing the new transfers. At one point, the lead broadcaster mentioned that Aledo lost 40-something seniors last year. No big deal. They had one returning OL letterman. No big deal. Like magic at Disney World, a whole new set of big, strong, mobile OL, and a stud RB and WR arrive in Aledo. Throw in a transfer QB from Cali and viola, you have another state championship. Do not try to tell me that Aledo has a "program." They have a system that welcomes move-ins and transfers. They are not outworking anyone. They just reload on the OL and at the skilled positions. Tip of the cap to Crosby. At least it was their kids playing in the game. Not recent transfers. Great playoff run by Crosby knocking out Texas HS, Huntsville, FBM, and Liberty Hill. It's difficult to beat a recruited all-star team for the state championship. Nice season, Crosby. If PN-G is going to compete at the 5A level, the Indians need to hire a recruiting coordinator and find some studs in the transfer portal. PN-G HS does not have 1900-2000 students with five or six 6'6" 275 lbs OL kids walking the hallways. We will not find 6'4" 215 LBs walking the hallways. Or, wait until the enrollment numbers drop so that PN-G can play in 4A.

Go Indians. Peace.

 

[IndianFan]

Just watched the game replay on FS. Crosby represented well.

I don’t care for the smug behavior of Aledo’s players. If there is that much transferring going on then Aledo deserves an asterisk next to every championship that depended on a lot of transfer talent. Sounds like they are the Mater Dei HS of Texas (minus the catholic affiliation).

 

[Torino]

Recruiting is (or was) an important component to Aledo success. A HS friend of mine was on the coaching staff there about the time they were getting this dynasty started. Interesting stories. Not many players in HS now who lived there in the 6th grade. However, now the program sells itself without much overt recruiting.

 

[IndianFan]

It’s likely that many or all of the dynasty programs benefit from players coming in. Aledo, Carthage, Katy, Southlake Carroll, Austin Westlake, Lake Travis, etc. Ever wonder how a tiny town like Mart can always dominate year in and year out? Or Refugio? Can coaching make that much difference? We may never know.

 

[Torino]

Southlake Carroll didn't have a particularly strong defense, but considering that the defense had no returning lettermen this year it did pretty well.