REFUGIO BOBCATS PROWLING FOR STATE TITLE - LUVTHEMCATS's Blog

REFUGIO BOBCATS PROWLING FOR STATE TITLE - LUVTHEMCATS's Blog - Victoria Advocate http://community.victoriaadvocate.com/home/Blog/LUVTHEMCATS Weekly commentary on how the game looked from the stands. Maybe a little background on some of the players or coaches or fans. A fan's journey as she follows her favorite high school football team through district play and into the playoffs Weekly commentary on how the game looked from the stands. Maybe a little background on some of the players or coaches or fans. A fan's journey as she follows her favorite high school football team through district play and into the playoffs en-us BOBCATS ON THE ROAD AGAIN http://community.victoriaadvocate.com/home/Blog/LUVTHEMCATS/9563 http://community.victoriaadvocate.com/home/Blog/LUVTHEMCATS/9563 I haven't been on in a while...why is it that everything happens all at one time?  It would be so much more fun if I could just spread everything out and enjoy each activity singly. Well.....we're driving to San Antonio tomorrow night to watch our Bobcats play the Dilley Wolves in Gustafson Stadium.  It's a very nice stadium, but it's just so far away.  It just somehow seems unfair when I see other local teams are either playing at home or close to it.  I guess that's just one of the pitfalls of 2A football. The 'Cats had a pretty flat game last week.  I really don't know that I should even use the word "pretty" for what happened last week.  That was one of the UGLIEST games I've ever had occasion to see....and I've seen some pretty ugly games in my lifetime!  I guess a win's a win, though, so we'll take it and move on.  All I know is that if they play that way this week, we won't have to worry about watching them play another game this season.  I told a friend of mine (and I hope this doesn't offend anyone) that last week's game was uglier than hairy armpits on prom night.  Words can't even describe the trainwreck we watched last week.  Tidehaven was a MUCH better team than their record indicated.  I'm not making excuses for our team, either, but the refs SUCKED.  Even someone else who referees said the same thing.  There were numerous penalties that occurred right in front of the ref on our sideline that weren't even called, so I'd imagine the same was true on the Tidehaven side....and not just those committed by Tidehaven.  I'm sure we had our share of ugliness over there.  The one high point was that my "borrowed child" had an interception during the game.  It was his first ever in high school and may be his last as it's his senior year.  I'm just glad that he finally got one...and it was BEAUTIFUL!  Too bad our offense couldn't seem to do anything with it, though. Anyway.......Dilley's the next step in the 'Cats path to the state finals.  I pray that both teams are injury free and all fans are safe driving to and from the game...but I hope the 'Cats come out with the victory I know they can secure!  The defense has worked particularly strenuously this week and I've gotten a promise from a player on that defense that we'll see the squad play up to the level we've become accustomed to.  I hope this is so because I'd hate to drive 2.5 hours to watch another trainwreck. GO, 'CATS, GO!!!  ALL THE WAY TO STATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! On the road again...... http://community.victoriaadvocate.com/home/Blog/LUVTHEMCATS/9221 http://community.victoriaadvocate.com/home/Blog/LUVTHEMCATS/9221 It's FINALLY Friday!!!!!!!!!  I love high school football season!  I just don't think it'll be the same when my kiddo isn't playing next year, so I'm soaking up all of it this season.  I relish the cool (cold) nights, the crisp snap in the air, the smell of coffee in the concession stand (if you're lucky enough to find it there) and the excitement in the stands that keeps you warm even when you can't feel your fingers anymore.  Man, it's the best! This week we go just down the road to play the Odem Owls.  Odem is head-coached by a former Refugio assistant and their defensive coordinator is also a former Refugio defensive coordinator.  That makes for some interesting drama, maybe, huh?  This is Coach Carroll's first year at the helm, so I don't even know what to expect.  I know what the scouting report says....I'd be looking for a pretty lopsided score here. Our offense is improving weekly.  As most of you already know, we lost our entire backfield to graduation last May, so we're supposedly in a "rebuilding" phase.  Honey, this must have been a manufactured home 'cause we're just about ready to move in!  :) Seriously, we have two great QBs that Coach Herring plays alternately.  They have two very different, distinct styles.  Hendley (JR) is very cerebral about his play.  He sometimes overthinks things in the pocket, necessitating him to "MOVE, PLEASE!"  He has a great arm and can throw the ball long but not always with total accuracy.  Hey, this is high school football, though, not the dang NFL!  Of course, the way the Cowboys have been playing lately, Refugio should be in the NFL because they'd have beaten Dallas handily!  Anyway, back to the topic at hand.  Perez(Soph) is our other QB.  Perez is smash mouth football all the way.  Whereas Hendley appears to want to avoid the hit (who wouldn't?), Perez seems to relish the hit.  He gives as good as he gets.  He shows remarkable poise in the pocket to me and I find it hard to believe he's only a sophomore.  His handoffs and pitches are smooth, crisp and deliberate.  He can pass as well, but tends to throw play action passes or sideline passes to get that 5 yards or so we need.  What he seems to LOVE, though, is bulling right up the middle for a 5-6 yard gain.  He doesn't seem to do it so that he can appear like the "studly" QB, either.  When he can't find an open man or the coaches have determined that the other team is weak up the middle, Perez calls his own number and it's almost always beautiful to watch. I guess you can tell whose style I prefer, huh?  It's no disrespect to Hendley whatsoever; I just like in your face, "take this", feel my footprint type football.  It's like watching ballet and a roller derby on a split screen when you watch Refugio football.  Hendley's no ballerina and I've seen him take a good hard hit (once or twice), but he's much more the showbiz type QB.  Perez is more the "show up" type of QB.  It keeps opposing defenses wondering and I love that! Okay, it's time for me to get ready to go to work.  I'm sure I'll add something after the game or in the morning.  I just want to see a good, clean game with no injuries.  Refugio's been pretty lucky this season.  We have one player (Ramirez #12) who has a strained knee, but he should be back next week.  Espindola seems none the worse for wear after that tough hit last week as well.  This team is raring to go and we, the fans, are straining at the bit to watch them strut their stuff. Come on down to Owl Stadium in Odem and watch a little Friday night excitement.  Word of caution, though, they have a fairly small visitor's section so get there early if you wanna good seat!  GO, 'CATS, GO!!!  ALL THE WAY TO STATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Bobcats Maul Bulldogs http://community.victoriaadvocate.com/home/Blog/LUVTHEMCATS/9146 http://community.victoriaadvocate.com/home/Blog/LUVTHEMCATS/9146 I wrote an entire novella here, but it got lost in the posting process somehow.  I'm not going to try and recreate it.  Let me just say that Refugio played a good game last night and they continue to improve every week. Christian Espindola--you are one tough guy!  Christian, who is a senior WR on the team, took what I believe to be an early hit from a Banquete player while he was leaping for a thrown ball.  Of course there was no penalty, but everyone knew it was an ugly hit, intentional or not.  Christian lay on the ground for about 5 or 10 seconds before he moved, but it seemed much longer.  This guy got up and walked off the field under his own steam.  3 plays later he's back in the game. There's no "quit" in this player.  There's no "quit" in this team. We play the Odem Owls next week in Odem.  They're coached by two former Refugio assistants, so you can imagine what this will be like. Come on out to the game; it's worth the price of admission! GO, 'CATS, GO!!!  ALL THE WAY TO STATE!!!!!!!!!!! What have I done? http://community.victoriaadvocate.com/home/Blog/LUVTHEMCATS/9140 http://community.victoriaadvocate.com/home/Blog/LUVTHEMCATS/9140 Okay, I've never done this before so who knows if it'll work out or if anyone will even read this.  All I know is that no one uses the discussion forums to talk about their favorite teams this year and I miss that interaction.  I decided that since this is my last year to watch Bobcat football as a "parental unit", I'd post my observations somewhere to see if I'm feeling the same way other fans feel.  This first blog will be really long so I can lay a foundation, but I promise to be a much shorter blogger after this. Tonight we play our first district game of the year against Banquete.  Banquete is new to our district but not new to our team.  The Bobcats trounced them last year in the first round of the playoffs, so I'm thinking there might be a little "grudge match" in the works here.  This team likes a little conflict because they step up their play to meet the challenge.  Last year, George West and Skidmore-Tynan provided that challenge.  George West has moved on to another district and I don't even want to talk about Skidmark until I have to, so I guess Banquete's taking up where George West left off. The Bulldogs have a good team by all accounts.  They like to run the ball up the middle, but they mix it up with some passing as well.  My "kid" came in after getting the scouting report and just grinned.  "They play the kind of ball I love to defend against.  This is gonna be FUN."  He's been on the varsity defensive squad for three years and I love to watch him run out of the tunnel and onto the field at the beginning of every game.  I didn't give birth to him but I told him that makes me love him even more....because I don't have to forget the pain of childbirth!  He's been a blessing in our lives and I hate that this is his last year of high school because I'm going to miss him so much when he starts the next chapter of his life.  Thankfully, Bobcat football has shown him the path he wants to follow and he plans to become a teacher/coach.  He may not make a ton of money, but I think he'll be totally fulfilled in every other way.  He loves this game with a passion and he's shown incredible strength in overcoming tragedy in his life to get where he is today.  I know that no matter what he does after high school, he'll succeed.  That's none of my doing; I'm not taking any credit.  I was simply a woman who was lucky enough to have him come into my life and teach me as much or more than I was ever able to teach him.  All I want him to know is that families are formed in many different ways but they are nevertheless family and I thank God every day (even when I want to strangle him!) that I had a Bobcat in my life. Okay, enough mushy stuff!  It's Football Friday and time to kick a little hiney! Refugio's defense is amazing.  It was pretty intimidating last year, but they're even better this year.  Last year's defensive squad had some huge plays and great playmakers.  Dylan Klare, Bo Adams and Bobby Arcand anchor the defense and they do very well.  Jacob Garcia, Corey Brown, Jourdan Ortiz (Papi) and company just add to their power.  They haven't been making the big plays this year (yet), but they've played CONSISTENTLY GOOD defense and that's what wins games. Our offensive line is big, fast and smart.  We had one senior graduate, but it remained otherwise intact.  They provide great protection for an almost completely new backfield.  Kyle Hendley and Aaron Perez trade off at quarterback and each brings a unique style to the field.  Corey Brown, Terrance Smith, Jourdan Ortiz and Christian Espindola are young and talented and improve markedly every week.  We're ranked 3rd in the state and they're a big part of why we're so highly ranked so early.  But I have to admit I'm biased and firmly believe the defense is really the reason for such a high rank this early in the season.  Time will tell. Okay, I'm done for now.  It's time to leave for the game and I don't want to miss a thing!  I'll have a few words after the game, I'm sure....... GO, 'CATS, GO!!!!  ALL THE WAY TO STATE!!!!!!!!!!!!! 28.304123 -97.275322