Commentary: Bi-District Zephyr vs Medina

Instead of heading north as originally planned, my 73-year-old dad and I headed south for the Bi-District matchup between Zephyr and Medina. He loves sixman football and did not have a chance to go to many games during the regular season. I’m glad he loaded up and made the long drive with me to Eden.
 
We arrived to a very warm 77-degree evening. Both teams were already warming up when we arrived. Eden’s football field is pretty nice! Great lights and from a distance it looks like it sits on top of a hill.
 
I got my dad situated near the stands and went in search of someone to talk to. I found the assistant coaches from Medina first. I always find it entertaining when I find the assistant coaches first. They are always very nice but look at me like they are thinking, “I don’t think you really want to talk to me. The head coach is over there.” Oh but I do like to talk to the assistant coaches. Sometimes they provide insight that the Head coach does not. I did find Coach Faglie from Medina and Coach Williams from Zephyr about ten yards down the field talking to each other.
 
I introduced myself and shook both their hands. They made it fairly easy for me standing next to each other. Nice guys! I wished them luck and set off to grab my camera. I was particularly interested in the enormous blow-up helmets in the end zone. Both Zephyr and Medina have extremely large helmets for pre-game run through. I’m pretty sure the entire school population could fit in those things. Very impressive!
 
So it is at this time, I must educate you all a bit. As the game commenced, I noticed that there was some flash photography going on in the end zone. It is a common misconception that it is against UIL rules for flashes to be used. The use of a flash is not allowed at an indoor UIL event. Outdoor events are a little different. The refs and admin of the game are tasked with deciding whether or not flash photography is used in UIL outdoor events. Interesting, isn’t it? I normally introduce myself to the referee crew and ask questions about whether or not I can be on the field during pregame captain meetings at mid-field and how far off the out of bounds line they prefer me to stand. You’d be surprised at the different responses I receive to these questions. Most do not care. Others care a lot. The use of a flash will probably be added to those questions I ask before games, if I decide to use the flash. See? You learn something new every day!
 
The game was what one would expect of a Bi-District game. Medina made good use of the passing game to score early. Zephyr came roaring back down the field to match the Bobcats. It would be back and forth after the first quarter. Zephyr overcame four personal foul penalties in the first half and extended their lead going in at the half. When the final second ticked off the clock in the fourth quarter, the Bulldogs had outscored the Bobcats 58-32 and became Bi-District champions.
 
Both teams fought hard. Great tackling, hitting, and blocking. Offense seemed to be overshadowed by the defense on both sides most of the game. Zephyr will now face the May Tigers in the Area round in Region 3, Division I.  Medina had a great season and went home with only one loss for the 2017 season.
 
Observations from Eden and the Bi-District game:
 

• My dad enjoyed the game, but he told me he thinks he upset a lady from Medina. He has very specific ideas about who will win the State championship in Division I this year. It seems he gave his opinion to this nice lady after speaking with her for a while. After his opinion escaped, she stopped talking to him, left, and didn’t come back. If you are that lady and reading this, guess you can chalk it up to him knowing his own mind. And not being afraid to speak it. If he’s right about the team he thinks will win, I’ll be sure and let you all know. OR if you see him at a game with me, you can ask him yourself. He will tell you. I may have inherited some of that from him.
• The Zephyr fans can MAKE SOME NOISE! They have propane bottles painted maroon and grey and filled with something that makes all kinds of noise when shook violently. I stopped counting the containers at 20. And if you’ve read past commentary, you know I’ve gone on and on about how loud the Balmorhea horn sounds. I’m here to tell you it is not the loudest horn. The Zephyr horn takes up the entire bed of a pickup truck (yes, I took a picture). When the horn went off, I swear the folks in Paint Rock could hear it! That is the loudest horn I have ever heard! Well done, Bulldogs, well done!
• The Medina cheerleaders were nowhere to be found during pregame. After talking to a nice gentleman from the Bandera Bulletin, who oddly enough knows my sister – small world - I found out the girls had a basketball game earlier in the day and were still on the road trying to get to the game. They did arrive prior to kickoff and did a fabulous job of cheering on the Bobcats!
  

 
Next week is Turkey week!! I know you are all ready for a short break, but we will be back at on Friday and Saturday for the Area round of the playoffs (or Regional semifinals – same thing really). Pick a game and get there. Even if it’s not your team, go! Why? Because here in a few short weeks, football will be over, we will go into withdrawals, and will have to wait until August 2018 for it to come back again. I think that’s a pretty darned good reason to go and support 1A teams still competing to punch their ticket to the State game.
 
Enjoy your turkey, I know I will, and I’ll see you soon! Until then, Go Forward and do GOOD!