Argyle Athletics Booster Club, Argyle H.S. TX

Last night's game in Frisco was one of those dreaded "learning experiences" for the Argyle Eagles, as they lost to Frisco Wakeland by a final score of 45-26.  For the record, I don't ever recall enjoying a "learning experience" very much.

The Wakeland Wolverines amassed over 500 yards of total offense led by the 200 yard rushing night from one of their running backs.  The Eagles' offense struggled to develop a tempo all night as the Wolverines defense held the Eagles to under 200 total yards. 

 "We just didn't have the right mindset coming into tonight's game and I wasn't able to get us ready to play,"  said Coach Rodgers in his post-game comments.   "That being said, losing a game like this in non-district is not always the worst thing that could happen," he continued.  "Next week's practice should be pretty intense.  I expect it will get our kid's attention.  We were all reminded tonight that we're not good enough to win unless we play with high energy, intensity and focus."

Even on a tough night where a lot of things didn't go well, there were some bright spots.  Quarterback JJ Harp had a couple of jaw-dropping plays as he scrambled away from pressure to find receivers downfield.  His first touchdown pass on the second play from scrimmage was highlight reel stuff, as he found Justin McGuffey in the end zone for a 41 yard TD. 

Senior linebacker Patrick Dawkins had several good open field tackles and delivered the hit of the game as he planted a Wakeland receiver who had made a nice catch just beyond the line of scrimmage.  Ben Parks' 37 yard field goal would have been good from 50 yards or more, and Brady Brown caught 10 passes - most of them in traffic -  for 74 tough yards .  Senior wideout Matt Handler added another TD reception to continue his strong showing this year.   Junior running back Kyle Frizzell displayed a knack for breaking tackles and running hard as he averaged over 4 yards a carry.

But Frisco Wakeland's speed tonight was too much for Argyle to manage as they had four touchdowns of 40 yards or more.  That being said, I'm reminded of the 2005 Eagles that struggled early in the season against teams with superior speed.  Coaching adjustments were made and the players adapted as the defense stepped up and became a swarming - gang tackling - fly to the football defense.  As you might recall, that team made it to the state championship game. 

Of course, it's way too soon to start talking about that as the Eagles have to get ready for the always speedy Whitewright Tigers next Friday.  Whitewright will feature one of the state's fastest running backs in Jeremy  Brown.  The Whitewright vs Argyle seems to always come down to the last play.  Last year, Argyle beat Whitewright 21-19 after losing to them the prior two years by a combined 3 points.

Kickoff will be at 7:30 in Eagle stadium.  Come early to get your seat, as a big crowd should be on hand to watch this emerging rivalry.