Memorable Evening by John Adams, Advocate Sports Writer; 9/14/1976

Football coaches prefer for their players to play one game at a time.  And, once that game is played, it's best to forget it, according to coaches.

"We buried TCU in the grave at 7:30 p.m. Sunday," Southern Methodist coach Ron Meyer said following his team's opening victory Saturday.  "You can only enjoy a victory a sweet 24 hours."

You can bet that St. Paul of Shiner players did not forget their Saturday night victory after 24 hours.  In fact, they'll probably remember it for 24 years.

The game won't be so memorable because of the score, 56-12, in favor of St. Paul against Giddings State School in Giddings.  Nor will Eddie Matula's 163 yards rushing be long remembered.  He gains that kind of real estate regularly.

It wasn't how the game was played that was unusual; but how it ended.

"The game was called by a minor eruption with seven minutes to play," said St. Paul's second-year head coach Robert Fikac.

Giddings' players erpted after one of their teammates was injured when tackled on a fourth-quarter play, according to Fikac.

Although the tackle was rather routine (no penalties were called on the play), an apparently frustrated Giddings' team took to the offense -- without the football.

"They started hitting our kids with their helmets," said Fikac, "who was as surprised as his players by what happened."

Officials quelled the uprising quickly, however, and no St. Paul players was injured.  "They kept their helmets on," Fikac said of his startled players.

Fikac found out later that the injured Giddings' player was not hurt seriously:  "He had a sprained neck and was back at school Monday, according to their coach."

Normally, coaches would make a point to reschedule a team they beat 56-12, but Fikac says, "We won't schedule them again."

Last Saturday's unforuntate incident hasn't affected Fikac's optimism about the football season, however.

"We're improved over last year," he noted. "And I think we have a chance to go undefeated in non-district games.  St. Paul will face its toughest test this week against San Antonio St. Anthony, defending district champion in 4-A of the Texas Christian Interscholastic League.

One of the reasons for Fikac's optimism is the running of Matula, a 6-1, 175-pound junior who has passed the 2,000-yard rushing mark for his career.

Source:  Victoria Advocate, Victoria, Texas, Tuesday, September 14, 1976, page 13.

TCIL Tourney Opens Today; 2/12/1960

SAN ANTONIO (UPI) -- Defending champions Dallas Jesuit of Class AAA and Port Arthur Sacred Heart of Class AA were among the teams drawing first-round byes in the Texas Catholic Inerscholastic League basketball tournament opening here Friday.

Jesuit will not see action until 9 p.m. Friday when the Rangers will play the winner of a game between Houston St. Pius and Port Arthur Bishop Byrne.  Sacred Heart will be in action at the same time in another gym against the winner of a Fort Worth Laneri-Corpus Christi College Academy game.

In AAA, in addition to the St. Pius-Byrne game, Waco Reicher plays Galveston Kirwin, San Antonio Central Catholic plays Houston Marian and El Paso Cathedral meets Houston Mt. Carmel.  Houston St. Thomas, which also drew a bye, plays the winner of the Reicher-Kirwin game Friday night.

In Class AA in addition to the Laneri-Corpus Christi game, Laredo St. Joseph's meets Beaumont Blessed Sacrement, Brownsville St. Josep's meets San Antonio St. Anthony's and Amarillo Price College plays San Antonio St. John's.

Three other teams in addition to Sacred Heart drew AA byes.  San Antonio St. Peter Clavers plays the winner of the Laredo St. Joseph-Beaumont Blessed Sacred Heart game; San Antonio St. Gerard's meets the winner of the Brownsville St. Joseph-San Antonio St. Anthony game, and Victoria St. Joseph plays the winner of the Amarillo Price-San Antonio St. John's game.

Source:  Valley Morning Star, Harlingen, Texas, Friday, February 12, 1960, Page 10.

Two Favorites Established In TCIL Play; 2/16/1968

SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- San Antonio Antonian and Abilene Central Catholic have been established as the early favorites in the 30th annual Texas Catholic Interscholastic League state basketball tournament which opens here Friday.

Ten teams are entered in the two-division tourney which ends with championship games in Class AAA and Class AA Sunday.

Antonian is 25-7 and rates the nod in Class AAA.  Central Catholic brings a 22-10 mark into the Class AS competition.

Friday's tilts pit Corpus Chrisi Academy, 16-11, and Tyler Catholic, 13-11, at 8:30 a.m. and defending champion San Antonio St. Anthony's Seminary, 12-9, and Abilene at 10 a.m. in Class AA.

In Class AAA Port Arthur Bishop Byrne, 18-8, tangles with Houston Mount Carmel, 14-16, at 11:30 a.m. and Antonian faces Dallas Jesuit, 19-10.

Consolation games wind the day's play as the Class AA losers clash at 7 p.m. and the Class AAA losers vie at 8:30 p.m.

Source:  El Paso Times, El Paso, Texas, Friday, February 16, 1968, Page 23

SMA Wins State; 3/7/1974

The San Marcos Academy Bears, with a 21-5 season record, won the State Private School basketball championship with a 47-46 over Greenhill of Dallas.

The basketball tournament was the year's first athletic event in a planned schedule of state championship activities for Texas private schools.

The Bears won their berth in the finals by defeating Houston St. Pius 58-54.

Source:  The Seguin Gazette-Enterprise, Thursday, March 7, 1974, Page 13

Recent Scoring Moral Victory For Winless Club; 11/2/1955

KERRVILLE, Tex. (AP) -- This is one of the Schreiner Academy Rebels' better football years.

True, they haven't won a game, but they've scored in each of their five contests, which is a moral victory of sorts for the Rebels.

In fact, they haven't won a regularly scheduled game since they first fielded their high school team four years ago.  They got a tie, though.

Friday night the Rebels meet Rocksprings in their last chance this season to break the losing streak.  The Rebels' season ends then.

The losing streak has almost become a source of pride.  Carroll Abbott of the Kerrville Ties reports that the Rebels are pets of local grid fans.  As one local supporter puts it, it would almost be a shame if the boys win Friday.

Lost 23 Or 24

In their four-year streak, the Rebels understandably have failed to keep meticulous records.  It appears, however, that they have lost either 23 or 24 games, tying St. Edwards Academy of Austin 0-0 in 1953.  They held a pre-season, informal scrimmage and won 13-0 over the public high school B team one year, but the game was not on the regular schedule.

Schreiner is a private school.  The junior college eleven has a much better record.  From 1938-1942, it was considered one of the top 10 junior college teams in the nation.

Retain Eagerness

The high school team plays eagerly despite the losses and has run up 45 plays in 5 games this year while its opponents have counted 198.

Dr. Andrew Edington, former grid player and Schreiner president, started the high school football program in 1952 and takes part of the blame for the winless record.

"The long string of losses," he says, "might be attributed, in part to the administration in not being able to schedule a game we can win."

Source:  Corsicana Daily Sun, Corsicana, Texas, Wednesday, November 2, 1955, Page 15

TIL Tables Most Issues; 11/6/1950

AUSTIN, Nov. 6 (AP) -- A plan to give the Interscholastic League supervision over junior high school athletics has been tabled by the league advisory council.

The suggestion may be revived at Monday's session of the advisory body, or later.  It was tabled subject to further study.

Sunday the council rejected a proposal to admit private and parochial schools to league competition.

It also took the first step toward barring coaches from assisting in any all-star football or basketball game except that sponsored by the Texas High School Coaches Association.  It adopted that recommendation, subject to rewording of the proposition by the league executive committee.

The advisory council studies recommended rules and passes its suggestions along to the executive committee, usually for submission in  a referendum to the member schools.

A proposition to prohibit high school basketball players who are or have been competing for league honors from participating with any other but his school's team after the end of district play, was also laid on the table.  It was subject to recall.

A council spokesman said the action on all-star games was taken in an effort to prevent the exploitation of schoolboy athletes' reputations, and the using, for private purposes, of public-school, tax-supported facilities and personnel.

Action on the private school application came after the council heard Father Ringcamp of Catholic High School, San Antonio, present the case for such schools.  The action was based in part on the council members' poll of public schools of the state.  The polls showed 88 per cent opposed, 12 per cent qualifiedly favoring, the council spokesman said.

He added that the action was also based on belief of council members that state laws prohibiting the use of tax funds (which are used to support the league) for private schools would apply.

Some council members also expressed belief that private schools might find difficulty meeting strict eligibility rules of the league, the council spokesman said.

The council meeting was closed to the press.

Source:  Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Monday, November 6, 1950, page 21

Plowboys Defeat Cox School, 18-0; 10/1/1933

STEPHENVILLE, Sept. 30 - Playing consistent football, the John Tarleton Plowboys opened their season here Saturday afternoon by defeating the Cox Private School of Waco, 18-0.  The Plowboys, held in check in the first period by the lighter Waco club, hit their stride in the second.

Hebison, shifty back, broke through for the first counter.  Hebison was injured on the play and removed from the game.  Waco took to the air in the secon period opening the way for Thompson, Plowboy half, to intercept a pass and dash 40 yards for the second score.

Waco was unable to gain consistently through the air.  Bartley, one-armed fullback, starred with his long punts, and Taylor, halfback, proved a shifty ball carrier.  Waco earned four first downs to eight for the Plowboys.

Source:  Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Sunday, October 1, 1933, page 11.