WAKE UP! on ETBLITZ | Trio of key figures in East Texas football now in Texas High School Football HOF; reminder about Overton baseball; how’re the Rangers doing?
EDITOR’S NOTE: Wake Up! on ETBlitz.com’s Wednesday edition is all over the place, with a continued mention of Overton baseball in the playoffs; some famous people going into the Texas High School Sports Hall of Fame; and a look at how the Texas Rangers are doing – you know, the baseball team, not the law enforcement troupe. Cozy Coffee Station is who we thank for sponsoring Wake Up!, and the best way to thank them is to treat yourself to something special off their menu. Check it out here (Home | Cozy Coffee Station), and go pick it up in Kilgore, at 110 Midtown Plaza, or Gilmer, at 755 U.S. Highway 271. A tip from Mitch: it hit 90 degrees in East Texas yesterday. Try the key lime pie milkshake. You’ll be glad you did.
Traylor, Mahomes, Smoak among hall inductees
Back in 2023, I was sitting on the front row at the American Athletic Conference Media Day in Arlington, interviewing different coaches and listening as they gave their addresses to members of the media, with the ’23 football season about to kick off.
Three or four coaches had taken their turn when a very familiar face stepped to the podium.
“What the heck are you doing here?,” he laughed.
It was former Gilmer High School head coach and athletic director Jeff Traylor, now the head coach at the University of Texas-San Antonio, who has done a phenomenal job at UTSA. But for a majority of my time here in East Texas, Traylor was known as the face of the Gilmer Buckeyes, winners of three state football championships under the man. The stadium in Gilmer is now named after him.
We both laughed at his question. And then he continued.
“The Kilgore Bulldogs,” he said. “Boy, we had some wars, didn’t we?”
I smiled. “They’re still having them.”
“You dang right, they are,” Traylor grinned.
Traylor, Kansas City Chiefs (and former Whitehouse High School) quarterback Patrick Mahomes, and many more were honored Saturday at Waco, going into the Texas High School Football Hall of Fame. The private ceremony was on the Baylor University campus, at the Mark & Paula Hurd Welcome Center.
We’ll talk about Mahomes in a minute.
David Smoak, the former TV sportscaster-turned-radio-host-turned-website guru, founder of the well-known site, Smoaky.com, was honored as the Dave Campbell Contributor To the Game. The San Antonio native was a sportscaster at KLTV in Tyler, among other stops, worked for the Associated Press, and is also an inductee in the East Texas Coaches Association’s Hall of Honor.
Traylor and former Newton coach Curtis Barbay were recipients of the Eddie Joseph Texas High School Football Hall of Fame Coaches Award, Barbay a posthumous honoree.
While at Gilmer, Traylor went 175-26 over 15 seasons; brought home 12 district championships; and won state titles in 2004, 2009, and 2014. The Buckeyes lost state championship games in 2007 and 2012, so under Gilmer, they played for five and won three.
Dr. Charles Breithaupt of the University Interscholastic League, soon to retire, is a hall of fame board member. Breithaupt blessed the food, the invocation, and Craig Way, the voice of the University of Texas Longhorns football program, MC’d the event.
Carthage head coach and athletic director Scott Surratt was presented a watch, along with the other state title-winning coaches from the 2024 season.
Mahomes was inducted into the hall as members of the decade of the 2010s, as all received gray jackets.
Other inductees: Alvin High’s Gary Keithley, an honoree from the 1969 and before era; Pat Thomas of Plano High School, the inductee from the decade of the 1970s; Brad Goebel of Cuero High School, the inductee from the ‘80s; John C. Norman of Midland Lee, the ‘90s inductee; and Robert Griffin III of Copperas Cove High, representing the decade of the ‘00s.
Now, Mahomes.
If you grew up in Texas, you’ve probably heard Mahomes was born and raised in Tyler, is the son of former Major League Baseball player Pat Mahomes, was a multi-sport athlete at Whitehouse High School and then went on to continue his education and football career at Texas Tech. He was a first-round pick by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2017, and has led them, under the helm of coach Andy Reid, to three Super Bowl victories.
In short, very deserving honorees.
A reminder about Overton baseball
You might have noticed that Overton High School baseball was our overwhelming choice as the Goudarzi & Young, LLP / ETBlitz.com Team of the Week for last week (THE MUSTANGS! | Overton baseball chosen the Goudarzi & Young / ETB Team of the Week!).
The Mustangs (25-6) open the third round, regional semifinals, of the UIL Class 2A-Division II playoffs series against Gary at Hallsville High School on Thursday.
The series is a best-of-three, with game one set for 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
Game two is Friday at 5. Game three would be 30 minutes after game two, if it’s needed to break a tie. Season ends, of course, for the loser of the series; the winner moves on to meet either Hemphill or Beckville.
A quick check-in with the Rangers
About a week after our last check-in with Major League Baseball’s Texas Rangers, they’ve improved their standing in the American League West Division!
The Seattle Mariners lead the AL West with a 22-18 record, and then it’s the Oakland Athletics (21-20), the Houston Astros (21-20), the Rangers (22-21) and the L.A. Angels (17-24) filling out the division. Texas is now just 1 ½ games out of first place, with plenty of time, of course, left in the season.
Texas beat the awful Colorado Rockies, who are just 7-35 on the season, on Tuesday, a 4-1 win. Jack Leiter got the win – Leiter went six innings and only gave up one earned run on two hits. He walked three and struck out five. Leiter is 3-2 on the year. Shawn Armstrong got the save (pitched an inning, didn’t allow a run, hit or walk, and struck out the side).
Today, Texas continues its home series against Colorado, a 7:05 p.m. start at Globe Life Field. And on Thursday, the big in-state series starts against Houston, also at Globe Life. Thursday’s game is also a 7:05 p.m. start and is scheduled to have Jacob deGrom on the mound for the Rangers against Houston’s Hunter Brown.
For tickets to a Rangers game, here you go: Rangers Ticket Information.
