Gilmer (4-3, 1-1) for the second week in a row faces a team with an identical record, the Longview Spring Hill Panthers (4-3, 1-1).
The good news is that the Panthers have not beaten the Buckeyes in 10 years, last pulling off a 41-21 victory in 2000, Traylor’s first year as head coach here.
The bad news is that the long-ago loss WAS on Gilmer’s home turf at Buckeye Stadium where Friday night’s game will be played and where two of this season’s three losses have occurred after an 8-year stretch of that never happening.
What’s more significant, though, is the fact that Spring Hill has a new program under a new head coach, Bill Poe, the 33-year-old former offensive coordinator for longtime state high school football power Southlake Carroll.
“What a great job Bill Poe’s done,” said Traylor.
“He has that great senior group and it all starts with the quarterback, Dylan Brown. He’s a heckuva player and he’ll be back this week.”
BROWN leads the team in rushing (57 carries, 360 yards, two touchdowns) while completing 94 of 180 passes for 1,443 yards, 18 touchdowns and only five interceptions.
Brown suffered a concussion against Henderson on Oct. 8. Landry Lee, his backup, played well in the Panthers’ 33-7 win at home over the Gladewater Bears last Friday night.
“I’m happy for Landry. Landry has come to our camps, and he’s a great kid,” said the Gilmer mentor.
Going over the other skill players, Traylor said, “Dylan Dozier’s done a good job at running back. Ryan Lacy’s a really good receiver. (Alex) Voelzke’s a good receiver. (Dalton) Huffman’s a good receiver and (Tyler) Zapata’s a good receiver.
On the offensive line, left tackle Logan Wallis (6-4, 285) is “very good.”
He said on defense “that’s where they’ve gotten a lot better,” crediting former Gilmer coach Joey Hector for much of the improvement.
He said the Spring Hill defense will look like a mirror image of that of the Buckeyes.
“They look just like us,” said Traylor.
“It starts with their linebacker, Nathan Griffin. He’s very good.
“25’s a good linebacker, Jansen Ferrill.”
Voelzke’s a good linebacker as well. So is Jacob Minyard.
Lacy plays well at safety and so does Trevor Caldarera.
“They just shut down (Gladewater’s Corey) Davis on defense” holding him to only 90 yards on 19 carries.
“They’re a good football team,” he concluded. “They’re a much better football team than us right now. So we’ve got a lot of work to do this week.”
AND WHILE some might think it gives Spring Hill an unfair advantage to have Hector on its coaching staff, Gilmer also has former Spring Hill head coach Robert Bero on staff here.
As for the game falling on Yamboree weekend, “In Gilmer that’s just one of the deals you’ve gotta battle. I’d be lying if I say it’s not a pain,” said Traylor.
“I think me being from here helps handle it, but it’s still a pain.”
THE BUCKEYES could have a couple of their starters back in action this week, although some of the others will definitely still be out.
Quarterback Luke Turner, not surprisingly, is the Buckeyes’ leader in total offense.
He has completed 129 of 201 passes for 1,480 yards and 11 touchdowns with 10 interceptions. And he has rushed for 538 yards on 115 carries and scored 16 touchdowns.
On defense, the leading tackler is Dakota Cannon, who missed the Carthage game due to injury, with 54 tackles.
Coach Poe said Tuesday, “The Buckeyes are very, very well-coached. They’ve done a very good job all year long of playing sound technique, both offensively and defensively and you can include special teams in that as well.
“They’re a good football team. I think they, you know, in their minds they’ve probably had a couple of lapses, but I think they’ve overcome that adversity and played hard and got after it all year long.
“So we’ve got our hands full. Friday night is going to be a big ball game for both programs and I think it’s going to be a great game that’s going to be a whole lot of fun.”
THE ENTHUSIASM for the game was evident in Poe’s voice, which may be one of the reasons the Panthers are one of the surprise teams of this area in 2010 so far.
“To me, I think the key factor that I and our staff try to bring in is just energy and enthusiasm and just having fun with the game and being competitive.
“And when we have energy and enthusiasm, our competitive spirits become better and we become more aggressive and I think that’s been the biggest issue—just having the belief that if we go and compete and fight as hard as we can, we’ve always got a chance. We’re going to give ourselves a chance.”
Poe, a former high school (McKinney) and college (Hardin-Simmons) quarterback, obviously specializes in offense. He said he has hired people he trusts to take care of the defensive side of the ball “to come up with a game plan we can execute to put our kids in the best position to win the ball game.”
An Internet search of “Coach Bill Poe” brought up a DVD he authored called the “In/Out Passing Concept” available on the site AmericanFootballMonthly.com.
“That’s what I’ve been doing for pretty much the whole time I’ve been in coaching,” he said of his offensive specialization.
“It’s been a good transition,” he said of his first head coaching job. “It’s been an adjustment for me. There’s so much more involved in being the head football coach and the athletic director at the same time. Now I’ve got to be able to look at the big picture ... to make sure that everyone is working together collectively to achieve a common goal, and just making sure that everyone’s on the same page and making sure there’s a program heading in the right direction.”
POE SAID that, while he had never partaken in it himself, he had heard of the Yamboree and was looking forward to the atmosphere associated with the fall festival, which would only add to the excitement and hoopla surrounding high school football on any night in Texas and bring “more people from the community out to the game.”
He then repeated his view that it would be a “great” and “exciting” game.
Other games on tap in the “District of Doom” include Carthage at Henderson in a clash which will leave only one unbeaten team in District 16-3A along with Pittsburg at Gladewater. Both those teams are looking for their first district win.
GILMER BUCKEYES SEASON TO DATE:
Atlanta, won 63-28
Tatum, lost 47-41
Jacksonville, lost 43-36
Liberty-Eylau, won 28-12
Daingerfield, won 39-18
Gladewater, won 36-35
Carthage, lost 38-21
SPRING HILL PANTHERS SEASON TO DATE:
Lindale, lost 44-27
Athens, lost 28-19
White Oak, won 40-35
New Boston, won 28-27
Van, won 38-7
Henderson, lost 34-25
Gladewater, won 33-6
Bounty Hunter of the Week: Adam Witcher
Special Teams Player of the Week: Hurashio Morgan
Scout Team Players of the Week:
Anthony Villafuerte, Offense; Devonte Brooks, Defense
October 22- Spring Hill
Mascot: Panthers
Colors: Blue/Silver/White
District: 16-3A
Enrollment: 524
2010 Record: 4-3, 1-1 district
2009 Record: 3-6, 2-3 district
Last meeting: 2009, Gilmer won 66-14
Series Record: Gilmer leads 12-2
Head Coach: Bill Poe (1st season)
Returning Starters: 7 Offense/7 Defense
Did you know? The Buckeyes’ 684 total yards against the Panthers in 2006 is the most in team history.
BUCKEYE TICKET LINE:
903-841-7777
LUNCH WITH THE COACH:
Noon Wednesdays, Buckeyes Booster Club meets at Gilmer Country Club
LIVE WEBCAST:
www.gilmerbuckeyes.com/page10.html
VIDEO REPLAYS:
Gilmer Cable TV, Ch. 2, 9 a.m., 7 p.m. Saturdays
Etex, Ch. 1, 10 a.m. Saturdays, 6 p.m. Wednesdays
(These channels also carry the audio of the games live.)
BUCKEYES BLOG:
GilmerBuckeyes.blogspot.com
JOE DODD's NOTES:
October 22- Spring Hill
Mascot: Panthers
Colors: Royal Blue & White
District: 16-3A
Enrollment: 524
2009 Record: 4-6, 2-3 district
2010 Record: 4-3
Week 0: lost @ Lindale 27-44
Week 1: lost to Athens 19-28
Week 2: defeated White Oak 40-35
Week 3: defeated New Boston 28-27
Week 4: won @ Van 38-7
Week 6: lost @ Henderson 25-34
Week 7: defeated Gladewater 33-6
Total Points For: 210
Average Points For Per Game: 30
Total Points Against: 181
Average Points Against Per Game: 25.9
Head Coach: Bill Poe (1st season, 4-3, 4-3 overall)
Returning Starters: 7 Offense/7 Defense
Offensive Formation: Spread
Defensive Formation: Multiple
1-A and 1-AA Prospects:
Dylan Brown - QB, 5'7, 175, 4.6
Logan Wallis - OL, 6'5, 300, 5.4
Nathan Griffin - LB, 6'0, 215, 4.7
Alex Voelzke - DE, 6'5, 215, 5.0
Ryan Lacy - WR/DB, 5'11, 160, 4.6
Ashton Everett - RB/LB, 5'7, 170, 4.7
Historical Stats, Records, and Program Information
YEAR W-L-T COACH
2000 10-3-0 Steve Gaddis
2001 10-2-0 Steve Gaddis
2002 12-2-0 Steve Gaddis
2003 9-2-0 Steve Gaddis
2004 8-4-0 Steve Gaddis
2005 4-6-0 Robert Bero
2006 6-5-0 Robert Bero
2007 7-4-0 Robert Bero
2008 3-7-0 Robert Bero 2009 4-6-0 Robert Bero 2010 4-3-0 Bill Poe
BY DECADES W- L- T
1940-49 66-18-7
1950-59 49-45-4
1960-69 66-29-6
1970-79 50-47-3
1980-89 42-58-2
1990-99 65-38-1
2000-09 71-39-0 2010 4-3
TOTAL: 415-279-23 17-11-0
Undefeated Seasons: 1 (1946)
Winless Seasons: 0
Best Record: 12-2, Regional Champions, 2002
Last District Championship: 2003
Last Playoff Appearance: 2007
Playoff Record: 11-15-0
SERIES HISTORY
Last meeting: 2009, Gilmer won 66-14
Series Record: Gilmer leads 12-2-0
All-Time Scores
7 - 1950 - 6
37 - 1984 - 0
48 - 1985 - 0
7 - 1986 - 17
24 - 1987 – 8 21 - 1998 - 14
52 - 1999 - 26
21 - 2000 - 41
21 - 2001 - 18
28 - 2004 – 11 55 – 2006 – 7 65 – 2007 – 7 55 – 2008 – 7 66 – 2008 – 14
STREAKS
Gilmer has an 8 game winning streak during Yamboree (last loss: 35-14 to Daingerfield, 2000)
Gilmer has a 6 game winning streak over Spring Hill (last loss: 41-21 in 2000)
Gilmer has a 115 consecutive games scoring streak (last shutout: 10-0 @ Longview to Pleasant Grove, 2001)
NOTES
Gilmer is 9-1 under Jeff Traylor during Yamboree games. Daingerfield beat the Buckeyes 35-14 in a Yamboree game in 2000, Traylor’s first year at Gilmer.
The Buckeyes’ 684 total yards against the Panthers in 2006 is the most in team history.
Jeff Traylor is 116-20 at Gilmer (85.3%)
Gilmer’s Jeff Traylor’s 85.3% winning percentage is the 5th best among all active coaches in Texas
Gilmer has won more games (116) than any other 3A team in the state since 2000
Gilmer has either won the state championship or lost in the playoffs to the eventual state champion in 6 of the past 7 years
Gilmer is 94-13 under Jeff Traylor in regular season games (87.9%)
Gilmer is 94-10 overall since 2003 (90.4%)
Gilmer is 72-5 (93.7%) in regular season games since 2003
Gilmer is averaging 443 total yards per game
Gilmer's 462 offensive plays consist of 214 passing attempts (46.3%) and 248 rushing attempts (53.7%)
Gilmer averages 229.6 yards per game passing (51.8%) and 213.4 yards per game rushing (48.2%)
Gilmer QB Luke Turner is averaging 288.3 total yards per game
Gilmer QB Luke Turner needs 20 passing yards to reach 1,500 for the season
Gilmer RB Gus Johnson needs 138 total yards to reach 1,000 for the season
Gilmer RB Gus Johnson needs 428 rushing yards to reach 1,000 for the season
In Gilmer’s 3 losses the Buckeyes had 15 turnovers
In Gilmer’s 4 wins the Buckeyes had 5 turnovers
Gilmer has receiving touchdowns by 7 different players
Gilmer had rushing touchdowns by 3 different players
Gilmer is a 12 point favorite over Spring Hill according to PigskinPrep.com


