Yoemen Sports Network

Just about about month after the Yoemen were named the preseason number one team in the state by Dave Campbell’s Texas Football, another publication has followed suit. TheOldCoach.com’s Friday Night Football magazine (FNF) was recently released and also has Cameron as the number one team in 3A division one.

The magazine mentioned that “with 15 starters back from a regional finalist squad, expect such success to continue” for Cameron. Quarterback Zack Andress and Iverson Westbrook were mentioned as playmakers on the offense, while Levi May and Garrett Roeder were two returners mentioned on defense.

Centex Blaze continues to grow

A Cameron based select basketball organization has recently completed their second year of play.  Matthus Lopez, a C.H. Yoe High graduate, launched the Centex Blaze in 2016.  In its inaugural season, there was one lone varsity girls team.  In 2017, that has ballooned up to six total boys and girls teams with players from Cameron, Milano, Hearne and Thorndale.  

“The purpose of the organization is to better develop players' skills and knowledge of the game all while improving life skills such as teamwork, accountability, respect, and triumph,” said Lopez.  Each summer we are able to utilize practice facilities and raise enough money (with the help of our communities) to be able to compete in tournaments mostly in Austin, Georgetown, Round Rock, and San Antonio.”

My series on the top Yoemen games since 2010 kicked off last week with Malakoff (2015), Wall (2013) and Mineola (2014), and I’m sure this got the blood flowing in many readers. I will say this list is highly subjective and if you asked 10 different people, you would probably get 10 totally different responses.

When ranking these games, I look at several different components. A few of those include the quality of the opponent, how well both teams played throughout the entire game, and how big the game was to the program as a whole. Now, let's move on to the next three games up on my list.

10. Malakoff (2016)

The Calvert Trojans were put into a tough spot when head football coach and athletic director John Cherry left his post in May for Richland Springs after just one year with the program.

Fast forward a little over a month later and the search for the new man to lead the tradition rich program had come to an end. The selection was Cameron Yoe wide receivers and track coach Chris Bennett.

“I had coached against Calvert, and year in and and year out they had good athletes and were well-coached,” said the new Trojans coach. “The community support was there and they had good kids. For some reason, I had always heard bad stories about Calvert, but every time I had played against them they would knock the crap out of you and then reach their hand out and pick you up. I see Cameron-esk type kids in a 6-man program.”

Cameron youth baseball sends four to state

The youth softball and baseball teams in Cameron are having plenty of success this summer. A week after softball sent three teams to the state tournament, the boys matched that effort as four teams will be competing for the title of the best in Texas.

The first team to clinch their spot was the Cameron Astros out of the six and under t-ball division. The Astros won the 8-team district tournament at Temple and got by the likes of Rogers (2), Belton (3), Westphalia (2) and Rosebud. Next week’s state tourney will be in Belton.

In the eight and under coach pitch division, the Cameron Yankees (1st) and Cameron Rangers (2nd) both advanced out of district. Included in the Temple tournament were Harker Heights (2), Lampasas (2), Temple (2) and one other Cameron team. The state tournament will be at Blooming Grove.

Today marks the start of my personal top 13 Yoemen football games since 2010. I originally planned on including 10 games, but there would have been a number of outstanding games left off the list. This week features games 13 through 10, with three games to be featured weekly until number one is revealed.

13. Malakoff (2015)

I am starting out my top 13 games since 2010 with what was the most improbable comeback during that span. In this area round game, Cameron had trailed 32-7 in the second quarter, and pretty much all Yoe fans were left speechless. However, Coach Rick Rhoades and his players stayed composed, ending the game on a 38-12 run to pull out the 45-44 win.

With practice beginning in less than a month, some important Yoe football dates has been made public. Below are some important events that you will want to have marked on your calendar.

Leadership Council Workouts (July 24-27)

Two weeks before two-a-day practice begins, leadership council led workouts will take place. These workouts do not involve coaches, but set the standard for what is expected once practice gets underway.

Yoemen Football Camp (July 31-August 3)

The annual Yoemen football camp will take place the week before practice begins. The camp is for incoming third through ninth graders. Campers will learn fundamentals of the game from the Yoemen coaching staff.

Meet the Coaches (August 3)

Cameron league softball sends 3 to state

This past week, the girls in the Cameron little league competed in district tournaments all across Central Texas. The results were positive, as a total of three teams will be moving on to the state tournament later this month. The first team to clinch their spot at state was the 6U Cameron Lil’ Ladies, which won the six-team district tourney over the likes of Rosebud, Temple (2) and Gatesville (2). The 18-team state tournament will begin on Monday in Axtell (N. 9th St.). In the 8U coach pitch division, the Cameron Thunder (1st) and Cameron Dirt Diamonds (2nd) both advanced to state by picking up wins over a pair of Rockdale teams. The coach pitch state tournament will also begin Monday from Temple’s Wilson Park (1909 Curtis Elliott Drive). Times for the first round games will be decided on Sunday during the coaches meeting.

Cameron hires new baseball coach

Yoe High Band continues trek through honor band competition

It was recently announced that the Yoe High Band had advanced past the regional and area rounds of competition for honor band and are now at the state level. Honor band is the state’s most prestigious award for concert bands and is the equivalent to a state marching championship. According to the Texas Music Educators Association’s website, there are a total of 13 schools at the state level. Cameron and Sunnyvale, Gunter, Van Alstyne, Mineola, Winnsboro, West Rusk, Canadian, Sonora, Shallowater, Jourdanton, Randolph and Florence are the other schools competing for the top spot in the state. Cameron is the only band from region eight left in the competition as Troy was eliminated after the area round of judging.

Heading into last week’s state 7-on-7 championships in College Station, Cameron was slated to be in one of the toughest pools in the entire draw with the likes of Celina, Needville and Abilene Wylie on the schedule. The Yoemen passed that test with flying colors, raising eyebrows with a perfect 3-0 mark.

“I was proud of the kids and they way they responded that first day,” said Yoe head football coach Tommy Brashear. “Their focus was good and they came out and started well. Sometimes we tend to get off to slow starts and that was something we had been working on. I was very happy the way they started with Celina.”

However, 7-on-7 is known to have its swing of high and lows. In the first round of championship play on Friday morning, the Yoemen fell to Wimberley in an overtime thriller, 28-27.

It was a game that went back-and-forth, with the Yoemen having their chances throughout.