2025 ETBLITZ FOOTBALL PREVIEW / HENDERSON | Meeks returns, and Lions fans, get ready for a ride | Presented by WHATABURGER
EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the eighth story in our series of 15 In 15: 15 Previews in 15 Days: coach Ricky Meeks and the Henderson High School Lions. Y’all enjoy!
HENDERSON – Ricky Joe Meeks has fond memories of this place.
He was hired on for his first job out of college back in 2007 as a freshman coach for his dad, Dickey Meeks’ staff, right here.
The elder Meeks, a legend in the coaching fraternity and an even better man, went on to guide Henderson to its first and only (thus far) state football championship in 2010. By that time, Ricky was his dad’s offensive coordinator.
When asked about his return as head coach of this once proud program, a smile creased the face of the new football boss and athletic director at Henderson High School.
He’s earned his own spurs in the coaching biz, since those bygone days, as a young assistant here. First, as a head coach for three years at Alto, followed by four years at Center.
“We were 1-9 my first year at Center,” Meeks recalled, “and then we won eight games for the next three years for the first time since the early ‘90s. We got things turned and had some pretty good seasons.”
Meeks is 47-31 as a head coach, 25-19 at Center after that 1-9 beginning.
On being back in this ‘neck of the woods’, Meeks responded, “This is an area we love and to come back to a place where we have really fond memories as a program with such a rich football tradition is exciting and challenging for me. I believe it’s a really good move for my family.”
Dickey passed in August, 2020. Since his dad was a coach, Meeks obviously grew up with coaching in his blood. “Yeah, I spent quite a few days in field houses and around the game.”
He remembers his dad warning him of changes he felt were coming, and sure enough they did.
After graduating from high school, he signed as a quarterback with SMU and eventually finished his playing career at Northwestern State University (in Natchitoches, La.). He remembers those heart-to-heart talks with his dad.
“He told me it’s going to be a lot different from what you’ve seen growing up in our field house. And he was right: there’s a lot of difference from when he was coaching and I was growing up,” Meeks said.
“It’s still about the kids, changing their lives through athletics. That’s why I do it and what I love about it.”
Meeks is the third head football coach Henderson has had in the last four years.
You know what they say: Anything easy isn’t worth having. And there’s nothing easy about Henderson’s 2025 schedule.
Meeks realizes the gauntlet he’ll face in Kilgore, Lindale, Pine Tree, Mabank, Palestine and Chapel Hill as the Lions navigate their 9-4A, Division I schedule. Three of the six district teams are ranked in Dave Campbell’s Texas Football’s preseason poll. We recognize that poll on ETBlitz.com, because it’s the most respected.
Before they even get to district, there are speed bumps on this road to success as the Lions kick off the Ricky Meeks Era against a couple of other ranked opponents on the road at Athens (Friday, Aug. 29) and a week later at Liberty-Eylau (Friday, Sept. 5).
See Henderson’s complete schedule below.
Meeks has added to an already very good Henderson football coaching staff by bringing former Chapel Hill and Rusk head coach Thomas Sitton on as his defensive coordinator, coaxing Chris Vallery from Longview, besides adding Jason Holman, formerly the head coach at Jacksonville, and Justin Horton.
Also, Michael Davis, formerly at Spring Hill, and Nick Smith, formerly the OC at Rusk.
Two years ago, Clay Baker – another former Lion himself – returned to coach his alma mater and followed a disappointing 2-8 season in 2023 with a 6-4 overall finish last year (3-3 in district, just missing the playoffs last November). That included an upset of Kilgore in Kilgore.
Henderson hasn’t made the playoffs since a 7-4 record now seven years ago in 2019. To be honest, it’s a fact most people around Henderson, the county seat of Rusk County, aren’t too proud of.
Last year’s Lions seemed to be turning the corner at least early, winning three of their four non-district games. They continued the trend with victories against Palestine, state-ranked Kilgore and Mabank before the results went sideways in consecutive losses to Pine Tree, Chapel Hill and Lindale to end the season with a thud.
But Henderson returns SO MUCH talent, though, offensively at skill positions. Running back Jesstin “Meaty’” Starling, wide receiver Lemarion ‘MarMar’ Coleman and quarterback Vince Howard, who Meeks feels is improving by leaps and bounds, are all back.
Starling packs a much bigger punch than his 5-feet-5, 170-pound appearance would lead you to believe.
“He’s small, but very mighty,” Meeks said. “Being around him in camp, I’m very impressed with his vision and explosive capabilities. He runs really well and had a great junior season (1,377 yards rushing).”
Add that to his sophomore stats of 1,042 yards and six touchdowns. His coach didn’t stop there, saying, “I’m not sure, but he may be getting close to breaking the all-time rushing record of Joe Wylie, who rushed for 3,730 yards (1967-’68), that’s 56 years ago by my count.”
Coleman (6-1, 190) is a talent as a wide receiver with 544 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns a year ago and outside linebacker defensively.
“I don’t see MarMar coming off the field for us. He does a lot of things. He’s kind of our Alpha in the locker room, pretty explosive, a dynamic skilled player with a lot of upside.”
Meanwhile, Howard (6-0, 170, senior) has 10 games as the returning starting quarterback and his coach ( a quarterback when he played) believes “Howard has really stepped up. The season last year had some ups and downs like every football season. He’s done what I think is a really good job of adapting to the changes we’ve implemented and he does a good job of being vocal with his teammates. That’s what you have to have as a quarterback. I’m excited to see him play and grow as a player.”
What he welcomes back as skill players offensively, the Lions will miss across the offensive line. “We’re going with a lot of guys that don’t have much experience there.”
The two that did play are left tackle Ryne Malone (6-3, 235, senior) and right tackle D’Kadyn Pellum (6-3, 250, junior). “Ryne and D’Kadyn got some snaps last year and Ryne is the only senior we have coming back that started on our O-line. We’re very inexperienced up front and will look to fill those holes, beginning with our scrimmages and our non-district schedule.”
Others expected to step up and contribute offensively are running backs Au’maz Jackson (5-8, 160, junior) and Jayden Bishop (6-0, 180, junior), who Meeks believes are both very talented, as well as receivers Brailon Walker (6-1, 160, junior) and Amauri Murphy (5-10, 165, senior), who should fit nicely in certain multiple personnel packages.
Defensively, the Lions return four starters from last year and will line up in an odd (3-4) front. “We feel that’s a scheme that can be adaptable to different offensive schemes we’ll see,” Meeks continued.
Coleman will be an outside linebacker, but Meeks considers Jordan Ervin (6-2, 240, senior) the backbone of the unit. “He’ll play linebacker for us. I think he was an outside ‘backer and defensive end in last year’s scheme of things.”
Ervin is available for offense and has already committed to Stephen F. Austin as an h-back/fullback.
Others, the Lions are expecting to contribute are Cory Harper (5-8, 160, senior) at cornerback; Macen Jones (5-10, 200, senior) as an inside linebacker; and Jabron Myers (6-0, 190, senior) an outside linebacker, along with Au’maz Jackson and Justin Howard (6-1, 170, junior) as safeties.
Ivan Navarro and Erick Garza, both juniors, should share kicking and punting duties.
Here is the Lions’ 2025 schedule, followed by our ETBlitz.com Henderson team poster. The team poster is a community ad that will be on every single Henderson football story on ETBlitz.com this fall. To be a business on the ETBlitz Henderson team poster this season, email Jenna Lucas at ads@etblitz.com. The cost is just $100, and gets your ad on the poster for as long as the Lions play.
