The calendar turns to the end of August, and the football stadium lights click on, and it is time for games to begin. Each team holds high hopes for success, and the scrimmages come and go. All the rehearsals have been completed, and it is showtime for our area football talent.
Coach John Bachtel returns to the sidelines of the Fairfield Eagles and following a playoff season a year ago, the Eagles have some high hopes for continued success. Fairfield qualified for the area round with a win in a shootout against Orangefield (49-42) and lost to regional semifinalist Yoakum (56-26).
The Eagles return seven to the offensive side of the ball, most notably record setting quarterback Kohl Collins (3554 passing yards and 43 touchdowns) and his favorite target Finn Smith (1382 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns). Most of the yards began to build in the middle of the season, so the expectation is a prolific passing attack from the opening whistle. The running backs return some experience to the lineup with Darion Weaterall and Jason Brackens. Connor Colvert and Madden McElroy also should be major contributors to the offense. The offensive line had some losses due to graduation but the depth at each position should allow them to move the ball downfield.
Fairfield opens up at home against the Maypearl Panthers and then travels to Mexia and Brownsboro. They return home for their final two non-district games with the Buffalo Bison and the McGregor Bulldogs. Following the opening date on October 3, the Eagles open district 9-3A Division I play with the county rival. Fairfield travels to Teague and hosts winless Huntington from last year. They take road trips to Diboll and Palestine Westwood. The game against the Westwood Panthers was for the district title last season and primes itself for a repeat performance. They finish the regular season at home against Crockett.
The Teague Lions advanced to the second round of the playoffs last season with a win over Coldspring and an area round loss to the Hitchcock Bulldogs. Coach Zack Linscomb takes his team to this season with some questions to answer. They must replace a three-year starter, and the ball will be handed to Tripp Egbert to move the offense downfield. Ny’Land Coaster returns to the Lion backfield following a 1000-yard season. Jaden Cole will also see time in the Lions backfield and return some key lineman for this season. The defense returns some key players in defensive backs Braden Gauntt and Bryce Bates and will also see some snaps in the receiving corps. There will be some young players in the lineup, but they should be ready for another run at the postseason.
The Lions open at home against the New Waverly Bulldogs then take the long trip to Tolar for their first road trip of the season. The game against the Rattlers a year ago ended with a Tolar field goal at the buzzer. Teague returns home to battle the Ferris Yellowjackets and travel over to the next county to take on the Mexia Blackcats before hosting Bullard in the final non-district game. They will host the Fairfield Eagles in the district 9-3A Division I opener following the October 3 open date. A road trip to Crockett in the second district game sets the Lions up for two pivotal home district contests, Palestine Westwood on October 24 and then Huntington. They travel to Diboll to round out the regular season.
Perhaps the largest hill to climb belongs to the Wortham Bulldogs. They lost ten offensive starters due to graduation and a total of 15 seniors off the 2024 team. They defeated Clarksville in the bi-district round 76-30 before losing a heartbreaker on the last snap of the game to the Mount Enterprise Wildcats (32-28). Chad Coker returns to the Bulldog sideline for his seventh season as head coach and Wortham should still factor in the playoff chase even with losing all the seniors from a year ago.
Wortham returns Evan McCoslin to the Bulldog backfield and Josh Donnelson is one of the leading tacklers on the defensive side of the ball. Blake Hadden had a standout freshman season and will play on the offensive and defensive lines. The Bulldogs will have some growing pains to work through, but the young talent will work to get the job at hand completed and put the Bulldogs in line for a playoff spot.
The Bulldogs host Division I foes Valley Mills and Rio Vista in the first two weeks before taking to the road on September 12 to play the Leon Cougars. After the bye week, the Bulldogs open District 10-2A Division II play with a road trip to Frost and then host Bremond on October 3. The Bulldogs take to the road against Mart and Meridian and return home for the annual homecoming game against the Goldthwaite Eagles. A road trip to Chilton and then home for the regular season finale against Hubbard.
These teams have high hopes and are ready for the season and so is the Freestone County Times. Continue to look to the Times for top-notch award-winning coverage of all area sports teams in the regular season and the playoffs.
