By Tom Waddill
Madisonville football coach Greg Morgan would have preferred a relaxing Senior Night and a game in which all of the Mustangs could play.
Instead, Madisonville will be battling for a District 19-3A title in the regular-season finale tonight when the red-hot Mexia Blackcats come to town.
Mexia (4-5 overall) has won three of its last four games. The Blackcats have beaten Groesbeck, Fairfield and Palestine. Their lone loss in 19-3A is to Palestine Westwood. Mexia rebounded from that game with an impressive 42-17 win over Palestine last week.
At 3-1 in district play, the Blackcats are still in the hunt for the 19-3A title.
Madisonville, which has won seven in a row, can close out a perfect run through the district with a victory tonight. The winner also earns a preferrable spot in the Class 3A state playoffs, which start next week.
High school football fans who make their way to Mustang Stadium tonight likely will be the lucky ones. They should be in for a thrill-a-minute ride.
“Mexia is playing its best football and we’re playing our best ball, so it should be quite the battle,” Morgan said after a brief walk-through practice Thursday. “Since district started, Mexia has played much better football. They seem to be peaking at the right time.
“We’re both in the playoffs already. We’re playing for seeding and trying to decide which title you’re going to have.”
Last year, the Mustangs had to beat the Blackcats by 13 points or more just to advance to the postseason. Morgan’s 2006 bunch pulled off the feat and punched its playoff ticket.
This year, the stakes are high again for both the Mustangs and Blackcats.
“If we win the district championship, we’ll more than likely play Crockett in the first round of the playoffs,” Morgan explained. “There’s an outside shot for Rusk, but Rusk has to beat Crockett by 15 or more to advance.”
A win by the Mustangs will send them to the Division II bracket as the top seed from 19-3A. Palestine Westwood would be the No. 2 team in Division II, while Mexia would advance to the Division I, or big school, playoffs.
If Mexia wins tonight, Palestine would earn the Division I berth, while the Blackcats advance as the top seed in Division II. Madisonville would be the second seed in the small-school bracket, and the Mustangs would clash with Diboll, the top seed from District 20-4A, in the bi-district round of the Division II playoffs.
The Mustangs say they aren’t worried about the playoffs yet. They’ve got some unfinished business to take care of before turning their attention to the next phase of the ’07 season.
“We’re really confident right now and we’re working to reach our peak,” senior linebacker Alonzo Whaley said. “It’s hard to handle us right now with the team performing at its best both on defense and offense.”
The Mustangs lost to Coldspring in week two of the season, but since then they have rolled over Rockdale, Crockett, Tarkington, Fairfield, Palestine Westwood, Palestine and Groesbeck.
Running back Chris Whaley, who is just a junior, caught fire when the district season started a month ago. In four games, the 6-foot-3, 228-pound speedster has rushed for 1,126 yards and 19 touchdowns. He set a school record when he scored seven times against Palestine late last month.
“Chris has really exploded here in district,” Morgan said. “We’ve diversified our offense a little more and teams are seeing a few new formations. Plus, all of our linemen are becoming familiar with the offense. It started to make sense to them. We hope that trend continues.”
The Mustangs believe in their star running back and the 31 seniors who will play their final game in front of the home crowd tonight.
“I haven’t seen anyone stop Chris since he’s played here,” Madisonville quarterback Greg Morgan said.
Whaley’s older brother Alonzo added, “I don’t think there’s a defense that can stop Chris. He’s so powerful now, plus he’s got lots of moves. He’s one of the best backs in the state.”
Center Gustavo Perez says the Blackcats are big, but he thinks the Mustangs have too many poten tweapons.
“They have big front lines, but we’re quick and strong,” Perez said. “Also, we haven’t lost at home yet. And for us seniors, this is our last game at home and I don’t think we’re going to have any letdowns.”
