Ten Years, Ten Best Games - #8: Cy Creek, 2009

A 2009 District 15-5A thriller checks in at #8 on the ten best games of the first decade of Cy Woods football.

October 9, 2009: Cy Woods 21, Cy Creek 20

Entering 2009, we knew that the road to a district title ran through Cy Creek. The year before, the Cougars completed a season to remember as they went from worst to first and advanced to the third round of the playoffs. They also beat us down that year. It was a tight game at halftime, but Lucas Devilliers went down with an injury and the Cougars went on to go nuts in the second half.

Before I start, I want to provide a little backstory.

I went to Hamilton for middle school, just before Cy Woods opened. I lived in Quail Forest, which is off Grant Road near the intersection with Louetta. This was a neighborhood that had been zoned to Cy-Fair for a long time, but when Woods opened, this neighborhood, along with Longwood, Lakewood Glen, Fairwood, Rock Creek (when it was just barely being populated), Lakewood Glen Trails, and Lakewood Oaks Estates, was re-zoned to Cy Woods.

Hamilton had always been divided between Cy-Fair and Cy Creek, but when Cy Woods opened, it ended up getting split in three. And then when Cy Ranch opened, those neighborhoods went back to Cy-Fair. That's how I ended up at Woods and my brother went to Cy-Fair; while some people I knew had older siblings who went to Cy-Fair, I was the opposite.

This game had a few bragging rights at stake, especially for those of us who went to Hamilton with some of the Creek players. Of course, we also had a little payback on our minds.

The Cougars had some outstanding players on their roster in 2009. Cameron Fleming ended up going to Stanford and won two Super Bowls with the Patriots. Chuckie Keeton started three years for them and went on to set records at Utah State. Ivan and Archie Muniz both signed with Mississippi State. Brent Mitcham, an old friend of mine, signed with Texas Tech. Will Hampton played four seasons at Northwestern and was a starter on their defensive line for parts of two seasons. Cy Creek had legit Division I talent on their squad in 2009. But the one guy I thought would be the best of all of them was their running back, Jermichael Selders. In my opinion, he was one of the five best players that Woods faced that season, even with Dallas Skyline trotting out a whole starting lineup of DI football players. So much unfulfilled promise...

Trying to dethrone Creek wouldn't be easy, especially with the firepower they possessed. This game was a 48-minute heavyweight fight and it took all hands in order for Woods to earn the victory.

Both teams scored in the first quarter; the Wildcats opened the scoring when Colton Huntsman connected with Isaiah Battle for a 32-yard touchdown pass. Selders scored the Cougars' touchdown right before the end of the quarter. Colton scored late in the second and gave Woods a 14-7 halftime lead.

Creek turned the tables to start the second half and scored twice to take a 20-13 lead into the fourth quarter; they missed an extra point, which always looms large. Unlike the previous year's encounter, however, there wouldn't be a sense of déjà vu. We could hang with those guys and we could beat them.

Both defenses held steady for the vast majority of the final 12 minutes, but the Wildcats finally broke through with a late march downfield that culminated with Huntsman diving in from four yards out with 45 seconds left in regulation. The always-reliable Andrew Klink hit the extra point to put Woods back in front and the outcome of this game rested in our defense's hands. The Cougars advanced into Wildcat territory but we held them back to force them into a long field goal attempt (it had to be from at least 45 yards out), which naturally fell short and would've been wide right had it had the requisite distance. Payback... earned. In a game where both teams scored three touchdowns, a missed extra point turned out to be the difference.

This game was just one of the many thrilling victories earned by the Cy Woods Wildcats during the course of the 2009 season. We rebounded from an ugly loss on Homecoming by knocking off Jersey Village, but this win over the defending district champions was a legit shot in the arm for us. 

Ten Years, Ten Best Games - #9: Katy Taylor, 2010

The next entry in this series is a playoff game that still stands as the most lopsided victory in Cy Woods football history.

After outlasting Eisenhower in the first round of the 2010 playoffs, the Cy Woods Wildcats traveled to Tully Stadium for the area round to take on the Katy Taylor Mustangs, who topped Chavez in their bi-district matchup.

It was business as usual for the Wildcats as they dominated the Mustangs in all facets of the game and disposed of them quickly and painfully. The Cats led 53-0 at halftime and cruised for the final 24 minutes on their way to a 67-7 victory. The Mustangs' only points came on a fumble recovery for a touchdown, so the Wildcat defense pitched a shutout. Just about every person who dressed for this game got to play... including a freshman named Samuel Stewart.

When a game is that out of hand, the final score usually speaks for itself. The 60-point margin of victory still stands as not just the most lopsided win in Cy Woods football history; it is also the most lopsided point differential in a Cy Woods game, regardless of the result. No doubt, Woods was on a mission that season... Taylor was just standing in the way and the buzzsaw claimed another victim.

Ten Years, Ten Best Games - #10: Cy Ranch, 2012

2018 marks the tenth anniversary of the inaugural varsity football season for the Cypress Woods Wildcats football program. In the build-up to the 2018 season, I will be taking a look at the games and the players that have shaped this football team.

This series will chronicle the ten best games in Cy Woods football history through the first ten years. First up is a game from 2012: the first overtime game in program history against a hated rival.

The 2012 season proved to be a year of transition for the Cypress Woods Wildcats. A new head coach took over, another outstanding senior class departed, and sadly, the early run of excellence came to a crashing halt. Cy Woods dropped their first three games of the season before rebounding with a couple of blowout victories over Cy Lakes and Cy Springs to rebuild some momentum. Unfortunately for them, the momentum that they built collapsed dramatically when Cy-Fair unleashed a merciless second-half torrent aided by some turnovers to condemn them to a 49-20 loss.

And so... with their playoff hopes on the line, the Cats faced off against their most hated rivals, who were surely out for revenge after Woods hung 68 points on them in the previous year's meeting. The Mustangs were firmly in the playoff hunt after rattling off three consecutive wins after dropping a 42-35 decision to Creek to open district play.

Business picked up in the second quarter when Mason Roberts, in his second start at quarterback for the Cats, kept the ball and got wrapped up but was never whistled down. He had the wherewithal to keep playing and outran everyone to the endzone for an 88-yard touchdown. Ranch managed to respond a minute later when their two professional baseball players, Bryce Johnson and Corbin Martin, connected on a touchdown pass. But, Sam Stewart put the Cats back in front with a 33-yard touchdown catch.

Mason got knocked out of commission by what sort of looked like a late hit right before halftime, so Woods had to throw in Nick Hooper, who had started all season as a wide receiver, behind center. This was the night that Nick Hooper became the Wildcats' quarterback of the present and the future. Trent Holmes helped carry his team to the finish line with an 80-yard touchdown and  Chase McLaughlin, who hadn't really played football until he was recruited to be the JV cardinal team kicker the year before, refused to wilt in the spotlight as he nailed the two biggest kicks of his career.

Ranch may have made it to the fourth round in 2012, but it's all good. Woods got one over on them.

Miles "OG" Ogunyomade saves the game

Cats win.

7-on-7 State Tournament Report/DCTF Predictions

Cy Woods took part in the Texas State 7-on-7 Football Tournament in College Station this past weekend and they dropped all four of their games. In pool play, they fell 33-31 to A&M Consolidated, 33-15 to Prestonwood Christian Academy, and 28-20 to Mesquite Poteet, making them the only winless team in Pool C. I did not attend on Friday because... I value my job.

The Cats faced Laredo Alexander in their first game in the consolation bracket on Saturday and lost 28-19. Not a weekend to remember, but hopefully they enjoyed the experience playing against some of the top teams from all over this great state. State championships aren't won playing touch football in June in t-shirts and shorts, but the tournament also serves as a barometer to where a team stands during the pre-season. Finish the summer workouts strong and get back to it once you get to put on the pads again.

Also, the state tournament is always my excuse to go on a long roadtrip.

The 2018 edition of Dave Campbell's Texas Football is now out and I was pleasantly surprised. The magazine believes that the Wildcats will end their three-year playoff drought as they have picked Woods to finish third in District 14-6A. As the largest school in the district, Cy Woods will play in the Division I bracket no matter what; they would be projected to take on Round Rock Cedar Ridge in bi-district if the prediction holds. DCTF is also predicting that the four playoff spots in 14-6A will be taken by Cy-Fair schools this season.

This half of Cy-Fair ISD (plus Bryan and Tomball Memorial) looks to be the more wide-open district than District 17-6A, which sounds like an understatement. The only serious challenger to Cy-Fair is probably going to be Cy Falls.

2018 District 14-6A projected order of finish, per Dave Campbell's Texas Football

1. Langham Creek (DI)

2. Cy Ranch (DII)

3. Cy Woods (DI)

4. Cy Springs (DII)
-------------------------

5. Tomball Memorial

6. Bryan

7. Cy Lakes

8. Bridgeland

9. Cy Park

I got mine as a subscriber. I believe that there are still copies of the Cy Woods special edition available for purchase for $20. Just ask Coach Faith.