Week 2 Scrimmage Outlooks

Madisonville @ Cameron - Thursday

Cameron’s final scrimmage of the season will take place from Yoe Field on Thursday when Madisonville travels to town. As far as a background on the Mustangs, it was a struggle most of the 2016 season with just a 3-8 overall record and bi-district playoff finish. With Rusty Nail now in his second year with the program, I would anticipate this team being vastly improved. Coach Tommy Brashear and the Yoemen will be looking for improvement from week one to week two. As you would expect in the opening scrimmage of the season, there were many positives and many things that can be worked out. As Brashear noted, it’s all about getting better each and every day, and the goal is to show that tonight. I will continually focus on two key points this week: 1. The establishment of a consistent rushing threat; 2. How will the Yoemen defensive line disrupt things up front.

Teague @ Troy - Thursday

Last year I had the opportunity to watch Teague scrimmage Robinson. I did not get to do that in 2017, but I did get some details from their opening scrimmage. As expected with a new offensive coordinator, the Lions are trying to be more versatile in how they gain yards and score points. The Heard brothers are both at receiver while a new quarterback adjusts to the system which is expected to feature more spread. They will have an opportunity to showcase some of those skills in this week’s scrimmage at Troy. For the Trojans to take a step forward, improvements on the defensive side of the ball are needed. Cameron has traditionally had their way with the Trojans’ secondary.

Lorena @ McGregor - Thursday

I was not surprised by anything that I saw from Lorena on Friday night. Those guys are consistently well-coached by Ray Biles and I believe their top 20 ranking and third straight district championship predictions are warranted. Last season, the expectations around McGregor were to get back into the playoffs. That did not happen and now they have a new head coach - Judd Thrash - in charge of the program. These times are especially important for the Bulldogs which are continually learning a new system.

Malakoff @ Sunnyvale - Thursday

Will Malakoff be in that conversation to repeat as region III champions? The Tigers lost plenty of dynamic athletes off of last season’s team which are generally very tough to replace. In a report from their opening scrimmage with 2A Kerens, they were outscored 1-0. Maybe the offense can get clicking against region II hopeful Sunnyvale. The Raiders suffered a disappointing area round loss to Farmersville last year, but it could be anyone’s region to win in 2017.

Mexia @ Rockdale - Thursday

Rockdale opened their scrimmage schedule versus top 5 ranked Giddings on the road last Friday night. This was the first time senior move-in quarterback Torry Locklin suited up for Jeff Miller, and reports have it going well as the Tigers had a 3-0 scoring advantage throughout the entire scrimmage. All three of those touchdowns came on long pass plays. The final tune-up of the year will take place in Rockdale with Mexia traveling to Milam County. Mexia is traditionally a tough opponent, but had a down 2016. The Blackcats finished with a 2-8 record and went winless in district.