Centerville must build on big win
In 16 seasons as a coach with the Centerville Tigers, Kyle Hardee thinks his Tigers' come-from-behind 19-18 win at Marlin last week was the biggest game he has witnessed at the school.
So, what have you done for us lately?
That's the way it is in high school football when the playoffs are approaching, and with that upset victory, the Tigers' got an early start on the postseason.
"Our playoffs start a week early is what it boils down to," Hardee said.
It actually started in the fourth period of a game that's intensity exceeded most postseason contests.
Marlin led 18-7 with 9:30 left in the game after Charles Hitchens ran in from six yards out. Centerville came back with Devin Smith hitting Kraig Bates for a 12-yard score with 6:54 left to finish off an 85-yard drive.
The Tigers stopped Marlin on a fourth-and-three play at the Centerville 18 and drove for the game-winner. A fourth-down pass interference call on the Bulldogs kept the drive alive and Smith capped the rally with a 12-yard run.
If you like your games dripping with dramatics, this was your kind of contest. The game-winning run came with 18 seconds left.
The victory was a monumental upset. The Harris Ratings had Marlin as a 30-point favorite.
Until Mart beat them on the Panthers' path to a state championship last year, Marlin had not lost a district game since 1998 and most of that run was in 3A. The odds were long against them losing two in a row at home. State-ranked Teague beat the Bulldogs in overtime the previous week.
"I tell the kids that if you want to do something great, you've got to want it really badly," said Hardee, who is in his third season as head coach at Centerville. "You've got to believe it and that goes deeper than just saying it."
Coming from two scores down with under eight minutes remaining showed that the Tigers are true believers.
They have overcome a rash of injuries on a 24-man squad, including the loss of Clay Hardee for the season with a torn knee ligament.
Now, they have to have a repeat performance.
To get to the playoffs, the Tigers have to beat Riesel. Mart couldn't help them against Marlin, despite a victory over the Bulldogs at Waco ISD Stadium on Thursday.
If Riesel wins at Centerville, Marlin is headed to the playoffs. The Bulldogs' 70-19 win over Riesel earlier in the season would give them the tiebreaker.
The motivation is clearly in Centerville's corner, but you might not know it by the way Riesel has played. The Indians, who have the smallest enrollment in the district, also overcame injuries and have been consistently competitive in three seasons under coach Robbie Edwards. He has led the restoration of a competitive spirit to a struggling program, despite a surprise move up from 1A to 2A when the UIL last realigned.
"[Riesel] took it as a challenge that they could come in and compete in 2A," Hardee said. "They rushed for 300 yards versus Mart and if you've seen Mart's defense, that's impressive."
22-2A is one of several Brazos Valley districts that still hasn't determined who is going to the playoffs in which classification. If Centerville wins, that will bump Teague to Division I. Otherwise, Marlin gets that spot.
Everybody in 19-3A will be looking at Madisonville, where the Mustangs go for the outright title against upstart Mexia. Both of those teams are playoff bound. Assuming Westwood and Palestine both win (or lose) the Mexia-Madisonville contest decides which of the Palestine-area teams advances. A Mustang win sends Westwood to the postseason. A Blackcat victory lets Palestine keep playing.
Here are the other playoff scenarios:
13-5A: No pressure here. A&M Consolidated has the top Division I spot and Bryan has the second spot in that division. Temple tops Division II with Killeen Ellison also advancing.
18-4A: Brenham plays in Division I. Waller at Livingston determines the order in Division II.
18-3A: Nothing can change. Liberty Hill will play in Division I. Rockdale scouts this week secure in the knowledge that the idle Tigers will head up Division II. Cameron is the other D-II team.
23-3A: Navasota at La Grange decides the final playoff spot. If Navasota wins, the Rattlers take the Division I spot. If the Leopards win, it goes to Caldwell, who has already clinched a playoff spot and will play bi-district in either Division I or II. Top-ranked Giddings is in and will be the top Division II team.
26-2A: Hempstead gets the Division I spot. The district championship game, with Lexington at Franklin, determines the order of play in Division II.
25-1A: Normangee goes Division I. Bremond leads Division II with Chilton also advancing in D-II, despite a game against Bremond this week.
27-1A: Granger will play on as a Division I entry. Thorndale, idle this week, will go Division II, but Milano could move up in seeding with a win this week. The Eagles need the victory to be sure they advance. If Burton upsets Granger, the Panthers still need a Milano loss.
16-A 6-man Division I: Two teams advance. Calvert has clinched first and Lometa has the strong inside track on second. The only way Buckholts could overtake the Hornets is if Buckholts shocks Calvert and Lometa falls at home to Cherokee.
TAPPS Division IV District 3: Waco Texas Christian at St. Joseph determines bi-district seeding as well as the district championship, but both teams have clinched postseason spots.
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Here are this week's picks with the Harris Ratings' favorites in parentheses. Last week: 13-4 (.765); Season: 131-42 (.757):
Harker Heights at A&M Consolidated - Tigers keep rolling. Consol, 38-17
Killeen Shoemaker at Bryan - Vikings give Shoe the boot. Bryan, 24-7
Liberty Hill (31) at Cameron - Not over the Hill. Liberty Hill, 42-24
Mexia at Madisonville (24) - Mustang run to the top. Madisonville, 46-34
Navasota (7) at La Grange - Rattlers get back to playoffs. Navasota, 29-21
Bellville at Caldwell (17) - Hornets hit the playoff road. Caldwell, 46-32
Teague (45) at Leon - Lions are big cats. Teague, 38-14
Riesel at Centerville (17) - Tigers' tale not told yet. Centerville, 26-22
Hearne (4) at New Waverly - Good teams without playoffs. Hearne, 28-24
Lexington at Franklin - For the 26-2A title. Franklin 32-24
Trinity (2) at Somerville - A strong Yegua finish. Somerville, 30-22
Chilton at Bremond (11) - Tigers shut down former champs. Bremond, 32-6
Iola at Dawson (11) - Dog gone close finish. Dawson, 20-19
Normangee (45) at Wortham - Panthers leap ahead. Normangee, 42-18
Milano (20) at Holland - Eagles make playoffs. Milano, 28-7
Burton at Granger (35) - District champs wrap up. Granger, 32-14
Buckholts at Calvert (45) - District champs mop up. Calvert, 52-6
Waco Texas Christian at St. Joseph - District title showdown. Texas Christian, 32-29
Brazos Christian at Tyler All Saints - Eagles finish on the road. Brazos Christian, 35-31
Allen Academy at Tomball Rosehill (45) - Rosehill smells victory. Rosehill, 56-12
• David Campbell's e-mail is david.campbell@theeagle.com.