Posted 9:29 am Tuesday, September 04, 2012
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No. 1: John Tyler ranked tops in state
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After one game, the John Tyler Lions have achieved top billing in Class 4A football.
The Lions jetted to the No. 1 spot in the Texas Associated Press state football poll, which was released Monday by the AP's Dallas bureau.
The Lions, who defeated Lufkin 35-21 on Friday, received 20 of the 23 first-place votes by writers and broadcasters around the state.
JT was No. 3 in the preseason poll released Aug. 16 but jumped to the top spot after No. 1 Denton Guyer fell to Cedar Hill (54-28) and No. 2 Cedar Park lost to Austin Westlake (21-7).
JT, Denton Guyer, and Cedar Park were all playing Class 5A teams.
The Lions were last ranked No. 1 in 1997, when JT was in Class 5A. That 1997 team included current John Tyler coach Ricklan Holmes.
Holmes was making his debut as head coach ironically against a Lufkin team that knocked JT out of the No. 1 spot in 1997. The Lions had held the top ranking through eight weeks of the season.
JT is also the top team in polls by Dave Campbell's Texas Football magazine and theoldcoach.com.
Aledo, which received the other three first-place votes, is the new No. 2 team in 4A, followed by Pearland Dawson, Leander and Angleton. Aledo, Leander and Angleton all opened with victories, while Pearland Dawson has yet to play.
Guyer fell to seventh, while Cedar Park is eighth.
Others in the top 10 include No. 6 Corpus Christi Calallen, No. 9 Kerrville Tivy and No. 10 Nederland.
Sulphur Springs, fresh off a 35-34 overtime victory over Robert E. Lee, is No. 16. Jacksonville is No. 23.
The Lions hit the road this weekend to play Lancaster, a 35-21 winner over Tylerite Joe Prud'homme's Fort Worth Nolan Catholic team, the defending TAPPS Division I state champion.
The game has a 7:30 p.m. kickoff.
Against Lufkin, quarterback Greg Ward accounted for all five scores, tossing four touchdown passes (80, 81, 58, 38) and running in the pigskin from 30 yards.
The victory was the school's 648th win, moving the Lions into 10th place on the all-time Texas High School list, according to Joe Lee Smith's Texashighschoolfootballhistory.com. They are one win ahead of 11th-place Longview and five ahead of No. 12 Lufkin. Hondo is No. 9 with 655 wins, while Highland Park leads with 745.
In Class 5A, Lake Travis took over No. 1 after previously top-ranked Southlake Carroll fell to Allen 24-0.
Longview is No. 19.
La Marque takes over No. 1 in Class 3A after Stephenville lost to Monterrey Tech, Mexico, 27-17.
Coldspring-Oakhurst is No. 2.
Carthage, after falling to Jacksonville 34-30, fell to ninth from third. The Bulldogs are tied with Gilmer as the Buckeyes entered the poll after a 31-17 victory over Atlanta. Kilgore is No. 14 after its 42-0 victory over Crockett.
In Class 2A, Refugio received all 21 first-place votes to top the poll. Cameron Yoe is second. Tatum is fifth after its 41-21 victory over Arp, while Corsicana Mildred enters the poll at No. 9. Daingerfield, which lost to Gladewater 31-14, fell from third to 10th. Arp is No. 14.
Mart is still No. 1 in Class 1A, but it is a tight race ahead of Stamford and Munday. Tenaha, which lost to Joaquin, 22-6, dropped from No. 4 to No. 11. Alto is No. 13, followed by San Augustine at No. 14.
Also, Mount Enterprise is tied for 24th, while Carlisle is No. 26.
Staff writer Harold Wilson contributed to this story.
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