93Mustang wrote:I think we should let Bennett stick around to see what he can do versus a K-State-like non-conference schedule with a good nucleus of players returning.
With that contract extension, you've got your wish.
And if you want to talk about turnarounds, look at Dallas' Woodrow Wilson High. Wow. (from Friday's DMN)
Wins have Woodrow fans coming out of the woodwork
By ELIZABETH LANGTON / The Dallas Morning News
When Sally Shaw's son played football for Woodrow Wilson High School a few years ago, victories were scarce.
"We'd cheer if they just completed a pass," Mrs. Shaw said. "We had to create excitement for any little positive thing."
These days, the Wildcats are generating their own roar.
The team is undefeated. It won the district title. The players face Wylie Friday night in a second-round playoff game. Senior Sergio Kindle is considered the state's top college recruit.
The community has rallied around the Lakewood-area school.
Such achievement on the football field is unprecedented in Woodrow's 77-year history.
There were a few high points. The 1969 team went to the state semifinals. The school has graduated two Heisman Trophy winners - Davey O'Brien in 1935 and Tim Brown in 1984.
But the program never sustained success. The Wildcats lost their only playoff game during Mr. O'Brien's tenure and won only four games in Mr. Brown's four seasons. Until 2003, the team had never made consecutive post-season appearances.
The climb started in 2002, when the Wildcats entered the playoffs for only the second time since the storied 1969 season.
In 2003 and 2004, the team advanced to the second week. Last year, the Wildcats defeated the area's top-ranked team, Hebron, in the first round.
As a result, new Wildcats fans emerged and old ones resurfaced.
Matthew admits he and his friends barely acknowledged the football team before last season. On the rare occasion they attended a game, the boys spent more time talking and eyeballing cheerleaders than following the action.
But at last week's playoff game against Lake Dallas, Matthew and about a dozen pals focused intently at the field. They cheered and screamed and threw their fists into the air. They rattled water bottles and milk jugs filled with coins.
"This year we've come religiously," Matthew said. "We're definitely watching the game. Now we're standing the whole time."
Mrs. Shaw is a second-generation Woodrow graduate. Both of her parents went there. She met her husband there. Her youngest daughter, Merritt, will be the 18th member of the extended family to graduate from Woodrow.
For 12 years, Mrs. Shaw has attended Woodrow games to watch her son play football and her daughters dance with the drill team. Though fans have always supported the team, the winning streak has increased the excitement level, she said.
"People were still at those games when we were losing 50 to 3," she said. "But when you have something like a winning football team, it unites. We all have that common feeling of success."
Mrs. Shaw's mother, Elaine Loyd, still comes to an occasional game. And Mrs. Shaw and her husband, Craig, plan to keep attending even after Merritt graduates this spring.
"People are there who don't have children at Woodrow; they're just neighbors," she said. "Last week I saw people I graduated with who I hadn't seen in years."
Kyle Rains, 1976 graduate and co-founder of the Woodrow alumni association, has been attending Woodrow games for 30 years. Though the school has always drawn big crowds, "our superstar Sergio" has ignited some dormant fans, he said. Woodrow sold out its side of the stands for the Oct. 21 homecoming game.
"I've never seen this many people coming out for any Dallas school," Mr. Rains said.
Woodrow draws its support from the community surrounding it. Though geographically inner city, it feels more like a small town. Children grow up there and then stay to raise their families.
New Woodrow principal Ruth Vail graduated in 1991. Her father also attended Woodrow, and her 10-year-old daughter is on track to go there.
Football coach Bobby Estes credits the involvement of community residents, many who don't have children currently attending the school, for the team's large fan base.
Alumni and parents of current and former players regularly show up for team practices, Mr. Estes said, and parents of graduates still appear at the stadium gates to greet the players.
Drs. Vic Vines and Monty Montgomery donate their time to the team, even though their children have graduated. Mr. Brown mentors players and served as honorary captain for the homecoming game.
Such actions send a strong message to his players, Mr. Estes said.
"That doesn't happen at every school," he said. "The kids here at Woodrow feel a tremendous sense of ownership. They're playing not just for themselves but for the community."
