Can Lightening Strike Twice?
A year ago this week Denton Ryan and Highland Park played each other in the state semi-finals. My buddy Sam and I drove 4 hours to go to this game and we were not disappointed. A crazy game that had its up and downs and ended going Highland Parks way on route to the schools first state title since 2005 when they had Mathew Stafford running the show. Denton Ryan was in control of the game until their QB Spencer Saunders an Oklahoma State commit got hurt and tore his ACL.
With both teams coming back with the same main core of players on both sides. Same QB as last year both with their main targets back. This game will be a good one. Ryan is 14-0 and trying to get back the state championship for the first time since 2010 and trying to win their first title since 2002. Highland Park lost their first game of there but have not looked back running the show up until this point.
With the bias that comes from being from Dallas and my school always having to play Highland Park in the first round of every playoff for every sport gets old and you start to build a kind of "hate", "disgust", or "dislike" for this school. I am torn with who i want to win. I would love to see Denton Ryan run (throw) all over the Scouts and not have them win anymore. But, on the other hand it is always great to see a team win back to back State Titles. Which has happened quit often in recent years with the most recent being Bremond between the years of 2014-2016.
Even though i have moved, grown up, and dont even live in Texas anymore doesn't mean that what was taught to me as a young Texas football player hasn't stayed with it. Anyone from out of the state will never understand the crazy cult that is Texas High School Football. Let alone the crazy "November/December" Madness that is the play-offs.