Something new, something old and something blue?…
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The Kennedale Wildcats will be hitting the turf soon for the beginning of what was once called summer ?2-a-days?. In those olden days, school didn?t start until after Labor Day. Football had an 8 or 9 game season and everything was wrapped up by the first week of November. Yes, this writer is an old guy. {{more: continue …}}?
from three months to five months of football …?
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Texas is football crazy and so the more the better. Seasons became 10 game seasons and then the playoffs were expanded from the top two teams in each district to include 3 teams and then 4 teams from each district so byes could be eliminated. As it is now, even the average team has at least an 11 game season.??For the Wildcats of today, the season can last up to five months, at least for one of the better teams. The season can actually be divided into four parts.? First is practice and scrimmages which all begins August 6. Second is pre-district play which begins August 31 followed by the third part, district play which starts October 5 for Kennedale.? Finally, there is post season play or what is known as the playoffs which begins in the middle of November and continues into December.?
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Consistent playoff contender …?
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Kennedale came late to post season play with its first taste under Danny Yokeley in 1984 when Wildcats lost to Eastland 37-21 in first round action. (Note: while the playoffs in Texas date back to the 40’s, Kennedale didn’t field a team until the middle of the 1950’s).? Kennedale was in and out of the playoffs over the next 15 years but hit its stride in 2001 when the Cats made the state quarterfinals under Richard Barrett. It has not missed the playoffs in seventeen years.
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The Wildcats maxed out their schedule last year by going 16 games, losing out to Carthage in the state 4A finals. In over-all playoff competition, Kennedale is 28-23.
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2018 schedule after re-districting?
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For the next two years, Kennedale’s schedule is set with some boss teams up front and a lot of unknowns in district play.?
For something new, Kennedale is playing FTW Dunbar HS, FTW Western Hills HS and FTW Benbrook HS this year in 4A District 6. (FTWISD?s all 5A district last year was split up allowing schools with smaller enrollment to drop down into class 4A). Also, new for Kennedale is a scrimmage against 5A FW Southwest and pre-district games against #6 4A Midlothian Heritage and #18 4A Decatur.?
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Gone from 2017 are 5A Sherman, 4A Terrell, 5A WF Rider, 4A DII West Orange Stark. But something old remains with the scrimmage against Waco La Vega, a team currently listed at #4 in Class 4A; 4A Alvarado, a longtime nemesis of Kennedale; and old foes, Springtown, Castleberry, Lake Worth and Diamond Hill.
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?something blue …
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Something blue is previously mentioned Midlothian Heritage, school colors include blue. This game is picked to be one of the best during Week 2 this year. Not only because Heritage is rated #6 while Kennedale is ranked #7 but because these two team have met twice in the playoff the last two years with dramatic shoot-out style football. Kennedale won both by two points in? those instant classic match-ups with the Wildcats winning both by scores of? 49-47 and 45-43.?
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See the full schedule at?2018
