With only 10 days left in the Texas High School Football regular season, West Texas High is on the cusp of school history.
To make a milestone moment happen, the Comanches must first battle Hamilton in the UIL Class 2A Division I state semifinals at 6 p.m. on Thursday at Hawk Stadium in Iowa Park.
The Comanches are making just their third appearance in a state semifinal and the first since 1995. WT High has never competed for a state championship, so to think things have been exciting around Stinnett as of late is an understatement.
The rest of this story is only for subscribers.
“There has been a major buzz around here, for sure,” said Jeff Smith, WT High head coach. “We have all believed this year and that’s how we prepare. We have great support behind us, and we want to make this school and community proud.”
Since Ryan Marwitz took over at Hamilton four years ago, he has done nothing but bring the Bulldogs (12-2 overall) success. Hamilton had never advanced to the UIL state semifinals until last year, and now, Hamilton is making a second straight appearance.
“It’s exciting for this community,” said Marwitz, who is 39-14 at Hamilton. “The community is loving this and there is nothing like playing in December. We have a lot of experience compared to last year, and it’s awesome to have this shot.”
WT High tied a school-record set in 1989 for wins (14) last week, following a 48-20 thumping of Cisco in the state quarterfinals. The Comanches’ magical season has yet to come without a blemish at 14-0 and WT High has been rolling in throughout four playoff wins. During those victories, over the likes of Abernathy, Hawley, New Home and the aforementioned Loboes, the Comanches have averaged 38.2 points a game, and have only allowed 20 points per contest.
While the offensive line deserves a lot of credit, quarterback Cayde Winters makes WT High go. Like a Rubik’s Cube, not one defense has been able to figure out this 5-foot-9, stocky, shifty fullback playing the signal caller. In the season so far, Winters is posting some incredible numbers. Through 14 games, Winters has 2,605 rushing yards with 44 touchdowns. He’s also thrown for 1,302 yards with another 17 touchdowns.
In the playoffs alone, Winters has tallied 831 rushing yards with 13 touchdowns.
Those numbers have caught the attention of Marwitz.
“West Texas High is a really good team on film,” Marwitz said. “They have great size, and they are very physical. This quarterback (Cayde) Winters) runs hard behind those guys and is very scary when he gets loose. They come at you fast and defensively. They are very aggressive.”
Winters is also a talented linebacker, with 65 tackles on the year. Complementing Winters in the backfield is Kelby Sherwood, who has rushed for 1,325 yards and 17 touchdowns, and sophomore Zach Bryant is a deep threat when needed.
From Smith’s perspective, Hamilton has been rolling since two early season losses to Crawford (14-12) on Sept. 12, and San Saba (17-14) back on Sept. 26. Since then, the District 5-2A Division I champions have rattled off nine straight wins to earn this trip back to the semifinals.
Leading the way for Hamilton is versatile running back Halston Haile. Haile has rushed for 1,400 yards and racked up 550 receiving yards, with a combined 21 touchdowns. Quarterback Carson Roberts is very capable, throwing for 1,750 yards with 30 touchdowns, and receiver Deven Eanes has collected 1,100 yards receiving with 11 touchdowns.
On the defensive side, Marwitz’s son in freshman linebacker Easton, has had a tremendous first year on varsity with 120 tackles.
“Hamilton reminds me a lot of Panhandle,” Smith said. “They have explosive players at the skill position and they are very solid upfront. They love to throw it downfield when they can, and they can mash it. They do a lot of things very well and they are coached the right way. For us, we just have to keep believing and do what we’ve done to get here. We have to shorten the game, control the clock and limit possessions.”