2024 LUFKIN PANTHER VARSITY FOOTBALL DISCUSSION TOPIC

[LufkinPack]

Outlaw would probably be disappointed with how the whole football program has worked out 

[PackAttack]

44 minutes ago, LufkinPack said:

Outlaw would probably be disappointed with how the whole football program has worked out 

Ya Think?  In his whole career as a coach, once he established a program, he never had a bad year. Even his first year as Panther coach, although he went 4-6 they made the playoffs as the 3rd place team, and lost to Killeen Ellison in the 1st round 48-26.  He never had a losing season afterward. He was 57-21 at Sherman and 84-20 at Arkadelphia with 2 State Titles. To think that Quick coached and experienced all that with him in all those places too.  John Outlaw was just one of a kind coach, when I see where things have gone since his passing, I'm just thankful to have been around to experience those great football years. There is just no comparison at all to where things have ended up the last three seasons. Not sure it would ever have happen with Outlaw, he would have found a way.

[LufkinPack]

Just now, PackAttack said:

Ya Think

🤣💀

[PackAttack]

Lufkin Daily News/Edwin Quarles

Summer strength and conditioning and sport-specific skills workouts are ongoing for area high schools and Lufkin has been seeing well over 100 athletes show up on a daily basis.

The University Interscholastic League began to loosen some of the rules for summer workouts in 2020 due to lost time during Covid.

In the past, summer workouts were limited to strength and conditioning, but due to lost time, UIL began allowing athletes to work on sport-specific skills during the summer.

The UIL rules now allow up to two hours of strength and conditioning sessions per day, Monday through Friday. Sport-specific skill workouts may be conducted in addition, and students can attend up to 90 minutes per day of instruction with no more than 60 minutes per day in a given sport, Monday through Friday.

Quick said being able to work on sport-specific skills during the summer helps get athletes out more.

“You know the weight room gets old and it’s hard to go in there every single day. You’d spend all spring in there and get to the summer and do the same thing,” Quick said. “But being able to take 30 minutes a day and do skills and work football makes a difference. You’re throwing and working with them on hand placement and other stuff.

https://lufkindailynews.com/sports/high_school/panthers-getting-in-summer-workouts/article_6d4f4eb4-aada-5212-92d9-8abddf58e095.html

“You can’t do a whole lot, but you can do a lot more than you used to and it gets you a little bit ahead when you get to August.”

Quick said the adding of the skills work helps motivate athletes to get out of the house.

“It gets kids out of bed in the summer. The weight room will get some kids, those that really love the weight room, but when you work skills, they know if they aren’t there somebody is taking their reps,” Quick said.

The number of athletes showing up are around 130-135 a day Quick said.

“The numbers aren’t bad, and the upperclassmen and senior guys have been really good about showing up,” Quick said. “We’ve got some that haven’t missed a day and they take a lot of pride and they want to be on that list that says they didn’t miss a day this summer.”

Photo by Joel Andrews/Lufkin Daily News

 

[timeout!]

3 hours ago, Pack13 said:

I feel with the district and raw talent this is a playoff team. It will be a good team. Good programs make playoff runs each year and wait for teams like this to push for state. 
 

Im looking forward to seeing this team compete. I do think other teams will give them plenty of push. It’s not freshman year anymore. Some of these schools have done an excellent job developing and building athletes where Lufkin has not. 

This is true for quality programs. I mentioned before that I would feel more comfortable about this team, if we had made one or two playoff runs. It would've given us the necessary experience to know what it takes to win in the playoffs. Instead we are going into the year looking to make the playoffs for the first time in 3 years.  I know the guys are wanting much more than just getting there. It's just a different beast from regular season games. Teams are much better and the stakes are higher. 

[timeout!]

2 hours ago, PackAttack said:

Ya Think?  In his whole career as a coach, once he established a program, he never had a bad year. Even his first year as Panther coach, although he went 4-6 they made the playoffs as the 3rd place team, and lost to Killeen Ellison in the 1st round 48-26.  He never had a losing season afterward. He was 57-21 at Sherman and 84-20 at Arkadelphia with 2 State Titles. To think that Quick coached and experienced all that with him in all those places too.  John Outlaw was just one of a kind coach, when I see where things have gone since his passing, I'm just thankful to have been around to experience those great football years. There is just no comparison at all to where things have ended up the last three seasons. Not sure it would ever have happen with Outlaw, he would have found a way.

Good coordinators don't always make good head coaches. We see it at every level of football. I think this could be one of those situations. 

[PackAttack]

18 hours ago, timeout! said:

Good coordinators don't always make good head coaches. We see it at every level of football. I think this could be one of those situations. 

If you look at head coaches who have been successful most of their careers, having that success is not only predicated on their personal experiences and instincts. Its them also choosing the right support group of good coordinators and assistants to surround them. Sometimes friendships are hard in the coaching business if you want to stay successful. I believe this to be some of the case here, and maybe not allowing younger coaches to interject new thinking and progressive ways into the program.  I have had a conversations here and there with two or three of our former coaches. Its a mixed bag. My belief is Quick is an excellent Xs and Os coach.  Someone that relies on people he has coached with a long time.  If not for his dismal playoff success here (6-9) his coaching record is quite decent at 85-50, a 63% winning percentage. 

We all knew he had some big shoes to fill behind Outlaw, and it's probably unfair to even make that comparison. I've always wondered what would have transpired if he had gone elsewhere to coach, without the Outlaw expectations.  Frankly, most of us just thought he would replicate Outlaw's success.  To his defense, Quick has not always had the luxury of a supportive Superintendent. Outlaw had two great ones, David Sharp and Roy Knight. Quick is on his 4th Superintendent, Knight was the first, then Goffney, Torres and now the brand new Superintendent Hockenberry. To me Quick's loyalty to certain people on his staff is his thorn. He has a chance to improve on playoff wins this year, and he is 15 wins from 100 in his career at Lufkin.  One thing for sure, when he decides to hang up his clipboard, that will finally be the end of the Outlaw era. Even though John has been gone since 2011, his finger prints have remained with this program through Quick, and the district in general.  Its as if some folks just can't move on. It's crazy.  The Seniors playing this year were only 4 or 5 years old when Outlaw passed away.  They think about John Outlaw like some folks think about Abe Martin.  Just a name, no connection at all.  It's been 23 years since McNeal and Lufkin winning a football title.  Twenty years since Jorvorskie wore his #7, 18 years since DEZ was throwing up Xs here. 

We have expected a lot out of Quick because he was part of all that winning, 30 years of coaching with Outlaw.  You talk to any former Lufkin player who played defense when Quick was DC. They will tell you how good and tough a coach he was, and they loved to play for him. Never heard a single bad thing about him from any player during those playoff years. They say Intense, tough but fair.  

So, I'm hoping he can find a little of that Outlaw swagger this season and make this thing happen again. If not, then I know how to be disappointed again too, we have all had practice with that the last 3 seasons.

[timeout!]

12 hours ago, PackAttack said:

If you look at head coaches who have been successful most of their careers, having that success is not only predicated on their personal experiences and instincts. Its them also choosing the right support group of good coordinators and assistants to surround them. Sometimes friendships are hard in the coaching business if you want to stay successful. I believe this to be some of the case here, and maybe not allowing younger coaches to interject new thinking and progressive ways into the program.  I have had a conversations here and there with two or three of our former coaches. Its a mixed bag. My belief is Quick is an excellent Xs and Os coach.  Someone that relies on people he has coached with a long time.  If not for his dismal playoff success here (6-9) his coaching record is quite decent at 85-50, a 63% winning percentage. 

We all knew he had some big shoes to fill behind Outlaw, and it's probably unfair to even make that comparison. I've always wondered what would have transpired if he had gone elsewhere to coach, without the Outlaw expectations.  Frankly, most of us just thought he would replicate Outlaw's success.  To his defense, Quick has not always had the luxury of a supportive Superintendent. Outlaw had two great ones, David Sharp and Roy Knight. Quick is on his 4th Superintendent, Knight was the first, then Goffney, Torres and now the brand new Superintendent Hockenberry. To me Quick's loyalty to certain people on his staff is his thorn. He has a chance to improve on playoff wins this year, and he is 15 wins from 100 in his career at Lufkin.  One thing for sure, when he decides to hang up his clipboard, that will finally be the end of the Outlaw era. Even though John has been gone since 2011, his finger prints have remained with this program through Quick, and the district in general.  Its as if some folks just can't move on. It's crazy.  The Seniors playing this year were only 4 or 5 years old when Outlaw passed away.  They think about John Outlaw like some folks think about Abe Martin.  Just a name, no connection at all.  It's been 23 years since McNeal and Lufkin winning a football title.  Twenty years since Jorvorskie wore his #7, 18 years since DEZ was throwing up Xs here. 

We have expected a lot out of Quick because he was part of all that winning, 30 years of coaching with Outlaw.  You talk to any former Lufkin player who played defense when Quick was DC. They will tell you how good and tough a coach he was, and they loved to play for him. Never heard a single bad thing about him from any player during those playoff years. They say Intense, tough but fair.  

So, I'm hoping he can find a little of that Outlaw swagger this season and make this thing happen again. If not, then I know how to be disappointed again too, we have all had practice with that the last 3 seasons.

Well said PA. I don't think Quick is a horrible coach. I think his loyalty and unwillingness to change has prob hindered him. I do wonder what he could've done with a change of scenery. I know he liked this area and laid his roots here. But sometimes change is good. Get away from a place and get a new perspective on things. I've said many times on this board. I have yet to meet a former player, coach or anyone that worked with Quick, that had anything negative to say about him. Talk to any of his former players and they will defend that man til the end.

I do feel one reason he may have stuck around these parts for so long. Is to leave the program in a better place than what it was when he took over. I'd like to see him make one more championship run here. And then call it quits and let someone else take over. 

[PackAttack]

 The UIL has set new guidelines to follow for outdoor practices, and it goes beyond just measuring the temperature outside.

https://perryweather.com/resources/2024-2025-uil-heat-stress-guidelines/

It's all based on the wet bulb global temperature index, which measures heat stress in direct sunlight.

WBGT estimates the effect of temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and solar radiation using a combination of temperatures from three thermometers.

Not sure how we made it back in the day, without all this new social information.  It's obvious for anyone growing up in East Texas or Texas in general, it's hot in the Summertime, and it's real hot when football practice begins in August.  Frankly it is much more uncomfortable for me in the morning with all the humidity than it is later in the day, and while it may be hotter temp-wise the humidity is lower. Thus I have always liked later in the day work.  Hydrating and Electrolytes are the key to it all.  I think our trainers and coaches have always done a credible job of heat protecting the kids at practice. 

The answer is maybe providing A/C in the indoor practice buildings, because you won't need to worry about this in the fall most of the time. Baseball/Softball might be a different story later in their seasons.

 

[PackAttack]

This is the updated 5A Division I Football Classification Districts:

 

[PackAttack]

This is the 5A DI Region III Football breakdown :

 

[PackAttack]

Who are your playoff teams from each district in Region III?  Best chance for Regional Final?

For me teams with best opportunity to reach the Region III 5A Finals are PAM, Lufkin, CS, AMC and Crosby.

[MrBuddyGarrity]

4 minutes ago, PackAttack said:

Who are your playoff teams from each district in Region III?  Best chance for Regional Final?

For me teams with best opportunity to reach the Region III 5A Finals are PAM, Lufkin, CS, AMC and Crosby.

In no particular order: 

Pflugerville Weiss

Port Arthur Memorial 

Lufkin

College Station 

La Porte 

[Pack13]

42 minutes ago, PackAttack said:

This is the 5A DI Region III Football breakdown :

 

First round isn’t going to be hard. It gets a little more interesting after about the 3rd. 

[PackAttack]

Have a dilemma for August 23rd, either go to Cynthia Woods to see Sammy Haggar "Jump" (Van Halen) or watch the Panthers scrimmage in Huntsville?? Hmmmm. LOL

 

[PackAttack]

The 2023 DCTF Texas high school football 5A Division I Region III Outlook, projecting district finishes, bi-district matchups and regional champs with teams like Port Arthur Memorial, College Station, A&M Consolidated, Pflugerville Weiss and Lufkin!!!

DCTF left off the Lufkin Mascot?????   Smithson Valley is in Region IV????  They like the Ball Tornados???

 

[PackAttack]

DCTF has said little specific information about Lufkin other than they will finish 2nd in district, they did mentioned Zion Williams going to LSU.   Makes me SMH as to which side of the fence is responsible for this lack of information.  Of course most of what DCTF puts out there for HS teams are what is sent to them on a form from the coaches, because they frankly don't have the resources to scout every team in Texas.  I think DCTF are just like us Panther fans, taking a wait and see posture. The last couple times DCTF did put Lufkin higher in the rankings they went phffffsssst in the playoffs, so maybe for DCTF to take safe a neutral approach is more appropriate until proven otherwise.

[PackAttack]

[PackAttack]

[PackAttack]

[PackAttack]

[MrBuddyGarrity]

That's Matt Stepp prediction. 

 

Only thing I'd change is #1 and #3 in District 12 (swap em). 

[PackAttack]

One point, I am so intrigued by the prospect potential of the Lufkin offensive backfield this year.  We go from a not-so-mobile QB the last 2 two years and a P5 RB in Young, to a QB with possible DI prospects and 4.5 speed Johnson and a committee of really good RBs with some size and speed in Phillips, Chinn, Lil Hoop, Taylor and Waters. All may have an opportunity to touch the ball during games.  If these guys are used correctly, this could be a dynamic group.

[PackAttack]

10 minutes ago, MrBuddyGarrity said:

That's Matt Stepp prediction. 

 

Only thing I'd change is #1 and #3 in District 12 (swap em). 

I agree. College Station has a great program. We had them for 4 years, the first two in 2018 and 2019 we beat them, but in 2020 and 2021 they cleaned our plow.   We have missed the playoffs three years straight, yet we have beaten AMC the last two years.  We beat their sub varsity teams too.

[timeout!]

11 hours ago, PackAttack said:

I agree. College Station has a great program. We had them for 4 years, the first two in 2018 and 2019 we beat them, but in 2020 and 2021 they cleaned our plow.   We have missed the playoffs three years straight, yet we have beaten AMC the last two years.  We beat their sub varsity teams too.

For whatever reason. They just didn't match up well with Lufkin. I remember back in our old district with the Magnolia schools. We never matched up well with Magnolia high, even when we had good teams. They always gave us fits for some reason.  You get hose type of matchups with certain programs.