Home > Denton RC High School

Category Archives: Ryan

Ryan’s J.T. Williams holds offers from North Texas, Houston

Ryan Class of 2014 defensive end J.T. Williams, seen here scoring against Cedar Hill in the the playoffs last year, has picked up two offers so far from North Texas and Houston. (Mike Mezuel II/For the Denton Record-Chronicle)

Despite the the carnival-like activities going around Ryan today during “Raider Day” (where was this when I was in high school?), there was some notable events that occurred today off East McKinney Street.

I confirmed with defensive coordinator David Thomas that Class of 2014 defensive tackle J.T. Williams currently has two offers from North Texas and Houston.

Continue reading →

Scotty Young, La. Tech’s starting QB

 

Finally, after three years, Scotty Young will have his chance to be a starting quarterback at the Football Bowl Subdivision level.

Continue reading →

Austin Jackson on Jackie Robinson

Today, Major League Baseball commemorates the 66th anniversary of former Brooklyn Dodgers great Jackie Robinson, the first player to break the color barrier 66 years ago on this date.

Around the league, everybody will wear the No. 42 on their jerseys as those around the league pay their respects to a man who changed baseball and professional sports.

Ryan alumnus and Detroit Tigers center fielder Austin Jackson spoke on Robinson’s impact on the game.

Jackson’s also tearing it up through the team’s first 12 games of the season. Detroit’s lead-off batter is currently batting .386 with a home run and 5 RBIs.

 

Ryan freshman pitcher released from hospital

After being hit in the head with a line drive on Friday, Ryan freshman pitcher Josh Mears has been released from the hospital and is back home, his father said on Monday.

Rob Mears said his 15-year old son was released from Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital on Sunday. Josh Mears was originally supposed to have a CT Scan done on Sunday but doctors opted against it and any other tests.

Josh Mears suffered a fractured right orbital bone after being hit with a line drive in Ryan’s freshman game against Coppell on Friday.

The elder Mears said it will take at least six weeks for his son’s orbital bones to recover. Doctors have asked the Ryan freshman to avoid physical activity for at least the rest of the school year.

Ryan freshman pitcher appears OK after line drive to the head

Ryan freshman pitcher Josh Mears is in guarded condition at Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital on Saturday after being hit in the head by a line drive.

Mears was pitching for Ryan’s freshman team against Coppell on Friday night when a line drive hit Mears just above his right eye, Ryan head freshman baseball coach Tim Rainey said.

Rob Mears, Josh’s father, said on Saturday his son suffered a fractured right orbital bone and his eye is swollen shut.

“It wasn’t until I walked up on him that I realized how bad it was,” Rob Mears said. “It was bad. He looks like Rocky Balboa after the fight.”

Mears said his son will most likely stay in intensive care at Harris Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth at least until Sunday but things should turn out OK.

Guarded condition is somewhere between stable condition and serious condition, according to those at the hospital.

The game was delayed for about 20 minutes in the top of the third inning. Rainey said the paramedics arrived about five minutes after the emergency call was made and a stretcher took Mears off the field and to the hospital.

Rainey said it appeared Mears slightly deflected the ball with his glove before it hit him in the head. However, Rob Mears said he didn’t think the glove deflected the hit because the seams of the baseball is indented under his eye.

“[It was] just a scary situation, all the way around,” Rainey said. “Any time that happens, whatever the injury is, you’re lucky to be able to get up and walk away from it.”

The varsity team was the only one to play at Ryan, while the JV and varsity teams were at Coppell on Friday.

It’s  scary stuff, and it’s something that doesn’t happen very often. In 2007, Mike Coolbaugh was coaching the AA Tulsa Drillers when he was killed by a line drive in the first-base coaches box. 

Based on what Josh’s dad said on Saturday, it seems like everything will be fine from here on out. He was conversing fine today and they took him out of his bed and placed him in a chair. He’ll stay in intensive care at least until Sunday before he gets moved to a room.

We’ll be keeping up with Josh and his condition, and we’ll have more about it in Sunday’s paper.

Class 3A’s Argyle ranked No.4 in state polls

After losing to Frisco Lone Star 2-1 on March 26, the Argyle Eagles have quickly rinsed the taste of the lone district defeat from its mouths with back-to-back drubbings of Aubrey and Celina.

In the Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association polls, Argyle is ranked No.4 in Class 3A, the lone area team to earn a ranking in any classification. The Eagles outscored its last two opponents by a combined score of 19-0.

In Class 5A, Flower Mound is ranked No.8. The Jaguars are still undefeated in District 5-5A, a district filled with some of the top talent in the state. Unfortunately for Ryan and the rest of 5-5A, the Jags have opened up a three-game lead over Flower Mound Marcus and Coppell.

Ryan plays Lewisville and hopes not to fall eight games back from the top spot in district play and three games back of the final playoff spot. While Lewisville is only slightly above Ryan in the cellar, it’s going to be a difficult task for the Raiders.

 

Baseball Polls: Argyle at No.5 in Class 3A

In the Texas HS Baseball Coaches Association poll that was released today, the Argyle Eagles landed a spot in the middle of the Class 3A Rankings.

The Eagles are slotted No. 5 in 3A in the latest poll. Lake Dallas received some votes for the Class 4A poll but couldn’t crack the Top 10.

Flower Mound Marcus, the team that rolled through Ryan on Tuesday night, is ranked No.3 in Class 5A. Marcus (15-1) had Ryan overmatched on Tuesday night. Right-handed pitcher Conner Dotson pitched a no-hitter against Ryan. The Raiders were luckily to get a bat on the ball against Dotson, who will probably inflict the same anguish on the rest of District 5-5A that he did against Ryan.

Unfortunately for the Raiders, they will still have to face Marcus two more times this season.

Looking at the rankings, there weren’t any other local teams in the Top 10 in their respective classes. If you want to peek at them yourself, here’s where the state polls can be found. Just click on the small “polls” link on the left side.

 

The Fantastic Four: No.3 Ryan vs. Denton

comments ()

 

Ryan head coach Bryce Overstreet's ejection in a crosstown game against Denton proved to be the spark the Raiders needed to advance to the Class 4A state tournament (David Minton/Denton Record-Chronicle)

Originally when I was mapping this thing out, the top three games of 2012 looked a little different. Then, I decided to call an audible when I was looking through the archives of the games I’ve been at this year.

When I thought about it a little more, I knew Ryan and Denton’s District 4-4A basketball game had to be ranked as the third best game of 2012.

Continue reading →

The Art of the All-State Team

comments ()

When I woke up yesterday morning and saw that Ryan junior defensive lineman Nolan Robinson made the Associated Press Class 5A All-State Team, I was half-way surprised.

Now the story ran in today’s paper and it’s online, if anybody’s inclined to check it out.

Robinson finished the regular season with 55 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, two sacks, and a defensive touchdown. Those numbers showed he had a good season, but I don’t know if they were enough to merit an all-state selection.

Continue reading →

Weekend recap: Argyle and Guyer advance, Ryan and LD ousted

comments ()

Ryan quarterback Mitchell Bridges throws against L.D. Bell in a bi-district playoff football action at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington on Nov. 17. (Brad Loper/The Dallas Morning News)

After two rounds of the playoffs, Argyle and Guyer remain as the lone area teams left in the state football playoffs. Ryan and Lake Dallas were knocked out of the postseason after two thrilling games. Adam Boedeker and I break down what happened this weekend.

Cedar Hill 48, Ryan 35

BB: Those Ryan Raiders have had a knack all year of proving me and just about everybody else wrong.

And they were about 13 points away from shocking just about everybody and defeating a strong Cedar Hill squad with one of the most talented offenses in the area.

I had originally thought this game wouldn’t be close, that Cedar Hill would overpower Ryan early on and run away with the win. That didn’t happen.

Instead, Ryan (6-5) countered the Longhorns after every touchdown and when the Raiders trailed by 21 at halftime, they didn’t collapse. Ryan outscored Cedar Hill in the second half, but Ryan’s first half was just too much to overcome.

An onside kick by Cedar Hill after its first touchdown, and a Ryan fumble on a kickoff late the second quarter gave Cedar Hill the ball at the Ryan 14 and they scored in two plays.

Conventional wisdom says if Cedar Hill doesn’t score those two TDs, Ryan ends up tied with Cedar Hill in the fourth quarter. But Cedar Hill’s offense was just too good.

AB: First off, big-time kudos to Joey Florence and the Ryan Raiders for a season that not many saw coming. This Ryan team just seemed to bond really well together and play with great chemistry and genuine love for one another, something that might not have exactly been the case last year.

After seeing Cedar Hill trounce Guyer and an inexperienced defense still trying to find its way early in the season, I knew the firepower the Longhorns had offensively, but having seen them four times in three years, I also know they can fail to show up at times in big games, which I figured would have to happen for Ryan to have a shot. Turns out, Ryan had a shot just playing them straight up, and though I never saw him play I think Mitchell Bridges could be one of my favorite players in our area. Dude seems like an awfully gritty guy that can also hold his own at the quarterback position. Continue reading →