Gilmer Buckeyes

By JOE DODD Six Gilmer football players were named to the Texas High School Coaches Association (THSCA) Academic All-State Team for the 2008 season. The team is selected by a point system that awards points for GPA, class rank and ACT or SAT score. Seniors Adam Martin and Jared Harborth were named to the Elite Team, representing the highest point total that can be achieved. To earn Elite team status, a student-athlete must have a GPA of 92 or above through his high school career, be a member of the team in good standing, and be of good moral character. Senior Hunter Harrison was named to the 2nd Team, while seniors Tyrone Fort, Hayden Holmes, and D.J. Stanley received Honorable Mention. “This is really what high school sports is supposed to be about,” said Gilmer head coach Jeff Traylor. “It's just a great testament to how many hours those kids practiced and still studied and kept their grades up. For us to have that many kids on the team is a great reflection of what kind of paren...

By JOE DODD Gilmer senior offensive lineman Dakota Hagler earned first team honors in the Associated Press Sports Editors Class 3A All-State Team released this week. Four other Buckeyes received honorable mention accolades. Hagler helped the Buckeyes to a 12-2 record this season, leading Gilmer with 110 pancake blocks, while grading out at 95 percent on his blocking assignments. “I was happy for Dakota,” said Gilmer head coach Jeff Traylor. “It’s a great honor for him, it is well deserved.” Hagler started on the offensive line as a sophomore before switching to the defensive line his junior year. Coaches then asked Hagler to move back to the offensive line his senior season. “He’s just a very unselfish team player. He’s always played wherever we needed him to go. He’d much rather play defense, but he just did what was best for the team. He was a team captain and had a great career at Gilmer.” Honorable mention nods went to senior defensive lineman Jonathan Rockwell, junior quarterback ...

By JOE DODD The Gilmer Buckeyes placed 29 players on the District 17-3A All-District team released this week. Stump Godfrey, Mikey Wilson and Gus Osborne received superlative honors, while 17 Buckeyes made the first team and nine more made the second team. Six other Gilmer players were named honorable mention. “When 35 of your kids get some kind of recognition, that's one heck of a year,” said Gilmer head coach Jeff Traylor, who was honored as Coach of the Year along with his staff. Godfrey, the Buckeyes' junior quarterback, shared district MVP honors with Chapel Hill running back Matthew Tucker. Godfrey passed for 2,883 yards and 34 touchdowns, while running for 885 yards and 18 touchdowns in leading the Buckeyes to a 12-2 record. Wilson, a junior linebacker, was named co-defensive MVP with Chapel Hill nose guard Kadarius Reeder. Wilson had 144 tackles for the Buckeyes and led the team in turnovers, collecting four interceptions and three fumble recoveries, to help the Buckeye...

Don't anyone get alarmed at the headline. This isn't about Coach Jeff Traylor. We can only hope that a similar story will be written about him in the year 2050 or so.

From the Longview News-Journal: Bulldogs outduel Buckeyes in playoff showdown Final - Carthage 31, Gilmer 28 From the Tyler Morning Telegraph: Carthage Holds Off Late Gilmer Rally From The Gilmer Mirror : Carthage ends Buckeyes' season in 31-28 thriller By JOE DODD Carthage Bulldogs' running back Dwight Smith ran over and around the Gilmer Buckeyes for 217 yards and three touchdowns, as the Bulldogs ended the Buckeyes' season with a 31-28 win in the Class 3A Division II Region III Final Saturday night at Homer Bryce Stadium on the campus of Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches. “It was just a great game between two teams and they just happened to win tonight,” said Gilmer head coach Jeff Traylor, who led his team to a 12-2 record this season. Before an estimated 12,000 fans, Smith led the Bulldogs to a commanding 17-point halftime lead over the Buckeyes, then scored the final Bulldogs' touchdown to help hold off a furious Buckeyes' rally in the second h...

By JOE DODD Gilmer head coach Jeff Traylor knows offensive football. His 2006 team set a class 3A state record by averaging 53.6 points per game. His 2007 team scored a school record 701 points. His 2008 team has scored more points than any other team in Class 3A. Since 2003, Traylor's Buckeyes have averaged more than 456 total yards per game. So when Traylor says, “Carthage is the best offensive team we've ever played.” Buckeye fans should be worried. “We have not played any team this good on offense, ever,” said Traylor of the Bulldogs, who have scored the second most points in Class 3A this season. “Coming from Coach Traylor, that means a lot,” said Carthage head coach Scott Surratt, who has guided the Bulldogs to an impressive 20-5 record in just his second season. Surratt knows a thing or two about offensive football himself, having served as Texas High's offensive coordinator from 1999 through 2006; winning eight consecutive district championships and a Class 4A state...

From the Houston Chronicle: Bellville falls to Giddings in Division II Region IV final From the Austin American-Statesman: Berry is Giddings' shoelace ace in win over Bellville From the Tyler Morning Telegraph: Gilmer, Carthage Face Off From the Longview News-Journal: Buckeyes, Bulldogs at a glance From KETK Tyler: Gilmer QB has them Stumped Darian 'Stump' Godfrey Wins and Wins From KYTX Tyler: Longview, Gilmer Will Have Their Hands Full in State Quarters From Dave Campbell's TEXAS FOOTBALL: Class 3A Round Four Games to Watch Gilmer/Carthage prediction from TexasFootball.com From KLTV Tyler: Buckeyes meeting high expectations again From the Panola Watchman: 3A game of the year approaches Bulldogs crush the Tigers dreams Sports Snapshots From The Gilmer Mirror : Buckeyes face Bulldogs at SFA Listen Live Saturday night Dec. 6 The Gilmer Buckeyes (12-1) will take on the Carthage Bulldogs (11-2) in the Class 3A Division II Region III Final (aka state quarterfinal round) on ...

THE FOLLOWING BUCKEYE BACKERS paid for this ad and 'approved this message': A” Bail Bonds-Bill & Janice Crowley Gilmer National Bank First National Bank Cloddie Henson, Farmer’s Ins. La Finca Wal-Mart Austin Bank Todd Tefteller, Attorney At Law H&D Hardware & Automotive Bowden Floral Gary Henson Auto Sales Swanner’s Custom Commodities Lazy B Western Wear Precision Pest Services Special Tee Threads & Accents Michael Martin, Attorney At Law Baker’s Cleaners Goudarzi & Young, L.L.P. Joe’s Place Stewart Ins. & Realty Yazell Chevrolet Gilmer Furniture Etex Communications Upshur Rural Electric Lori’s Eats & Sweets The Logo Robroy Industries Mary Ann Wylie Ins. Agency Hill Electric Company Tater Town Barber Shop Firstbank - Gilmer Jerald W. Walton, D.D.S. Gilmer Cable T.V. Wesley Bishop, D.D.S Mike Craig Ford-Mercury State Farm Insurance - Henry Troell Gilmer Eye Care Center John Dean, CPA C&C Trophy & Sign Co. Robertson Logging Stanfield’s Jeweler...

From Smoaky.com: Hunter Harrison interview From the Longview News-Journal: Buckeyes' victory sets up showdown with Carthage From the Tyler Morning Telegraph: Gilmer Buckeyes Skate Past West Orange-Stark From the Lufkin Daily News: Gilmer eliminates West Orange-Stark, 35-23 From The Orange Leader: Fast-break Buckeyes end great WO-S run Gilmer’s Joseph Crocker consoles West Orange-Stark’s James Haynes Saturday evening at Lufkin’s Abe Martin Stadium. The Buckeyes defeated the Mustangs 35-23, ending the WO-S season with a 10-1 record. Mark Pachuca / The Orange Leader Gilmer players show some class after beating WOS by consoling James Haynes and others who saw their season come to an end Saturday with a 35-23 loss in Lufkin. Gilmer was the better team on Saturday but the Stangs certainly had their chances to get back into it after being down 28-9 at the half. WOS ends the season 10-1 while Gilmer (12-1) moves on to play Carthage. OPEN LETTER TO THE TOWN OF GILMER AND ITS HIGH SCHOOL I...

Listen Live Saturday, Nov. 29 Backup Stream When the University Interscholastic League in February realigned the Gilmer Buckeyes as the northernmost high school football team in Class 3A’s Region III, fans knew the playoffs would no doubt bring some unfamiliar opponents to the table. So far the Buckeyes (11-1) have dispatched the Diboll Lumberjacks, 54-0, and the Mexia Blackcats, 50-36, in Carthage and Tyler respectively. Today, the road south takes the Army of Buckeyes to Abe Martin Stadium in Lufkin for another lesson in the geography of our vast state. Coming up from the southeastern corner of Texas to meet the Buckeyes at 2:30 p.m. will be the West Orange-Stark Mustangs (10-0), who are fresh from victories over Coldspring-Oakhurst, 36-8, and Caldwell, 37-7, in their first two games of the playoffs. Mustangs Head Coach Dan Hooks, after 28 seasons at the reins, has an overall record of 261-64-2. He, his staff and his teams have won two state titles and made four state title game appe...

Listen Live Saturday, Nov. 29 Backup Stream Buckeyes at a glance: Saturday, Nov. 29 Gilmer program rises under Traylor By JOE DODD When the Gilmer Buckeyes’ Jeff Traylor returned to his alma mater in 2000 as the school’s head coach, he hoped to return the program back to the glory years of 1924-1935 when Henry McClelland led the Buckeyes to an 89-28-8 record. Traylor’s 96-16 record and two trips to the state finals have restored Gilmer’s glory, and made Traylor the school’s winningest coach. In 1982 when Dan Hooks took over the head coaching duties in West Orange Stark, the Mustangs were starting their fifth season of high school football and trying to make a name for themselves. In his 28 seasons at the helm, Hooks has made West Orange Stark the most successful program in all of Texas high school football. The Mustangs winning percentage of .7943 is best among all schools at any classification. “They have an unbelievable history of being great,” marveled Traylor. “I want us to be like...

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Gilmer Buckeyes Black Flag Defense Season Statistics Rushing Allowed: 2,135 yards Passing Allowed: 1,199 yards Total Allowed: 3,325 yards Rushing Per Game: 177.9 yards Passing Per Game: 99.9 yards Total Per Game: 277.1 yards Points Allowed: 192 Points Per Game: 16.0 Gilmer Buckeyes 2008 Season Results Date Opponent Result 08/28/08 Jasper @ Tyler won: 56-28 09/05/08 Rains won: 77-21 09/12/08 Liberty-Eylau won: 28-14 09/19/08 @ Kilgore lost: 14-28 09/26/08 @ Daingerfield won: 49-18 10/10/08 Bullard* won: 48-12 10/17/08 @ Chapel Hill* won: 35-6 10/24/08 Spring Hill* won: 55-7 10/31/08 Gladewater* won: 43-8 11/07/08 @ Tatum* won: 48-14 11/14/08 Diboll @ Carthage won: 54-0 11/21/08 Mexia @ Tyler won: 50-36 Overall Record: 11-1 Total Points For: 557 Average Points For Per Game: 46.4 Total Points Against: 192 Average Points Against Per Game: 16.0 West Orange Stark Mustangs 2008 Season Results Date Opponent Result ...