Highland Park Sports Club

by Kirk Dooley

Here’s a statistic you should ponder as the Scots prepare to host the Sunset Bison this Friday:
Five weeks ago HP defeated Bryan Adams 62-0. Two weeks later Bryan Adams defeated Sunset, 76-0.
Wow. You do the math.
The Scots, now ranked fourth in state, have three more district games – Sunset, Lancaster and Mansfield Timberview. Playing the state’s seventh-ranked team, Lancaster, seven days after facing Sunset is like speeding down the Tollway and throwing your car into reverse.
The Bison (which is singular and plural, by the way) have played four district games and lost to Samuell (32-0), Bryan Adams (76-0), Lancaster (73-0 and Timberview (84-0).
Conversely, the Scots have beaten Bryan Adams (62-0), Woodrow Wilson (66-0), Mansfield Legacy 76-6) and Samuell (56-6).
In every district there is statistically a best team and a worst team and at some point they play each other. For district 6-5A Div. I that game will be this Friday at Highlander Stadium.
The Highland Park coaches are trying to keep the Scots focused on improving every week but when the competition is not challenging, it’s hard to determine how you are progressing. On the other hand, your backups get to play a lot and that makes for a happy locker room. And a memorable Senior Night.
The Sunset players are coming off a 84-0 loss to the third best team in the district. What are these young men thinking? How do they show up for practice every day and keep their spirits up?
Here’s a true story about life as the Sunset head coach. Last year Coach Chris Castillo had 12 guys show up for the first day of practice. Instead of folding his hand he went out into the school and into students’ homes trying to convince guys to come play football. They could even bring a friend. Castillo was also the campus athletic coordinator. One morning at 3:00 a.m.he got a call from the tennis coach saying that he needed a heart procedure. Castillo became the tennis coach for the rest of the year. Then the softball coach had to report for duty by the Army Reserves right as the playoffs were about to begin. Castillo became the softball coach also.
This past summer Castillo stepped down after three years and a 3-27 record in football. Although his record wasn’t impressive, the way he related to his athletes was. The new coach, Armando Gutierrez, is continuing the fight to pull the Bison out of the bottom of the standings but it’ll take some time. I admire guys like Castillo and Gutierrez, like I admire the Highland Park coaches. They’re all working to help turn boys into young men.
I’m pulling for the Sunset players to be able to experience the joy of victory instead of living in the agony of defeat. Next week, of course.
In the meantime the Scots will face a very fast and very talented Lancaster team next Friday in a game that will give the HP coaches a real gauge on where their team stands. Then a tough match against Timberview will vault HP into the playoffs where Frisco Lone Star, Denton Ryan, Shadow Creek and their cousins will be lying in wait.

by Kirk Dooley

Going into Friday’s game against Samuell we’re approaching the halfway point of the district race, two things are evident and neither one is surprising.
First, the Scots have two major rivals for the district championship – Lancaster and Mansfield Timberview. All three teams are 3-0 so far in district play and are the only teams with winning records.
The other is that Highland Park once again has a very good football team that is getting better every week. The return of receiver Drew Scott gives the Scots a tremendous weapon on the outside and the return of running back Hunter Heath gives the Scots a breakaway threat coming out of the backfield. The offensive line has been steady and strong, giving Chandler Morris the time he has needed to complete 122 of 169 passes for 1,887 yards and 21 touchdowns.
The Scots defense has been more fierce with the addition of defensive end Houston Hummel who leads the team in solo tackles with 13, followed by Andrew Bonnet (11), Prince Dorbah (10) and Cal Hirschey (10). Leading the Scots defense in tackle assists is Patrick Turner with 17, followed by Dorbah (13), Bonnet (12), Marshall Landwehr (12), John Beecherl (11) Hummel (11) and Andrew Washburne (10).
Dorbah is the sack master with four. Beecherl, Dorbah and Walker Cobb have snared an interception. Ford Frazar leads the team with five pass breakups, followed by Beecherl with four. This defense has allowed only one touchdown in the past three games, pitching district shutouts agains Bryan Adams (62-0) and Woodrow Wilson (66-0) and then holding Mansfield Legacy to six fourth quarter points in a 76-6 win.
Meanwhile you’ve got Lancaster, a state’s top 10 team with all kind of guns, averaging 69-0 in its three district games against Legacy, Samuell and Sunset. The Scots’ collision with the Tigers is set for Nov. 1 in Lancaster. In the meantime, HP faces Samuell this week and Sunset next Friday.
What to expect from Samuell? They’ve won two games – Spruce, 13-7 and Sunset, 32-0. But they’ve lost their last two games by an average of 61-0. The Spartans’ leading runner is De’Marcus Jones with 322 yards, their quarterback, Romie White, has thrown for 192 yards and two touchdowns. Jones is the leading receiver with 65 yards and one touchdown. Brandon Dotson has 58 receiving yards and a score.
This could a game where the HP reserves get some valuable playing time. But the HP starters shouldn’t forget what it is like to play an entire game because when HP visits Lancaster, they’ll play all night long.
Still, experience tells us that if the Scots lose any starters to injuries in the playoffs, having backups who have solid district reps unde their belts helps in the team’s efforts to advance.
It’s just an insurance policy the Scots hope they never need to cash in, but experienced backups who have become starters during the playoffs have been instrumental in the Scots three straight state championships.
That’s why they call it a team.

by Kirk Dooley Blog

Last year your local back-to-back state champions were picked to finish second in district 6-5A DI.
Rival Mansfield Legacy was predicted to win the district championship and some sportswriters prognosticated that the Broncos would go all the way and win the state title. Highland Park was good but the Scots were basically a statistical afterthought. Runners-up at best.
Legacy was led by a wizard quarterback/safety named Jalen Catalon who was a mixture of Michael Vick, RG3, Kyler Murray and Jett Duffey (who led Mansfield Lake Ridge to the state finals in 2015). Catalon had led his team to the 5A DII state semifinals in 2017 while the Scots were winning their second ring. But in the first game last year tragedy struck early. Catalon suffered a catastrophic knee injury and lost for the season. The proud Broncos fought all season but didn’t have the leader to take them to the promised land. When the Scots played them at Vernon Newsome Stadium, HP drowned the Broncos, 28-7, in a bizarre downpour. Drew Scott scored the first touchdown in that game.
It’s different this year. The 4-1 Scots host the 0-5 Broncos in front of a Highlander Stadium homecoming crowd. On paper the Scots should dominate. The offense is averaging 64 points per game in district and the defense has not allowed a point. Coach Randy Allen has his team approaching this game like any other. He knows that Legacy has a proud history. They have the athletes. They have the coaching. They have playoff experience and they have pride. Like the Scots, the Broncos have had some key injuries and like the Scots, they are getting some of their top players back. Plus they’ve had two weeks to prepare for the Scots.
Lurking down the road for HP are state-ranked Lancaster (Nov. 1) and area ranked Timberview (Nov. 8) to give the Scots some true playoff-like challenges. But every game in district counts so there’s no need to look ahead. Especially this Friday.
While the Scots looked good with Drew Scott and Hunter Heath back from injuries, I was despondent over David Sherer being knocked out of the Bryan Adams game. He had just caught a Brayden Schager third-quarter pass and scampered 16 yards for a touchdown and it was the most dazzling run I’ve seen this year. Who was this guy?! I loved watching him dart through the secondary. A few minutes later he was laying on the sideline with a broken collar bone, out for the season. That’s truly a tough break.
This Friday at halftime of the homecoming game the school will be presented with the 2018 Lone Star Cup. And Coach Randy Allen will be honored for becoming the third winningest coach in Texas high school football history.
If you enjoy watching Scots football and you like history, it all comes together this Friday.
I’ll leave you with a trivia question. During halftime one of the 1969 HP captains, Paul Flowers, will be introduced. What special gifts does he have in common with Coach Randy Allen?