SHEFFIELD & THOMPSON | Kilgore defensive back, Gladewater Lady Bear earn Whataburger / ETB Players of the Week!
All season long – from the jump – Kilgore High School’s Ja’Kalen Sheffield and his Bulldogs’ teammates on defense have been the masters of the takeaway.
It started on Aug. 31, with four interceptions of Carthage quarterback Jett Surratt, and it’s continued throughout all the games of the Ragin’ Red’s 2024 season, including the most recent: a 38-13 win over La Vernia at New Caney last weekend, a win that’s sending the Bulldogs to the UIL 4A-Division I State Championship this Friday.
And basketball season has started, in earnest, and Gladewater’s Peytin Thompson also looks to play a big role for the Lady Bears this season.
For their efforts last week, Dec. 9 through Dec. 14, Kilgore’s Ja’Kalen Sheffield and Peytin Thompson of Gladewater are the Whataburger / ETBlitz.com Players of the Week.
Thompson and her Lady Bears teammates journeyed to Gary last week for a tournament, and Gladewater’s girls got three good games from Peytin, winning two of them.
Thompson, a multi-sport standout at GHS who had a major part in the girls’ track team success last year, scored 10 points, grabbed four rebounds and had two steals in their 45-32 loss to Zavalla. But she also had 17 points, five rebounds and four steals in a 49-36 win over Beckville, and 13 points, four rebounds and three assists in a 49-22 blowout of host-team Gary.
Even more importantly, the Lady Bears got off to a good start in District 16-3A, the all-ETBlitz district, if you will, beating Arp in Arp in the district opener for both teams last Tuesday.
Gladewater was to host West Rusk on Tuesday, after this article hit ETBlitz.com, and will be on the road at Troup on Friday, starting with subvarsity at 5 p.m. After that, they’ll take a break and play in the Hawkins Tournament on Dec. 26-28.
Congratulations, Peytin, on being named the Whataburger / ETBlitz.com girls Player of the Week. We’ll see you soon with your prizes!
Now, let’s talk about a young man who’s been one of the unsung heroes for Kilgore football all season.
Ja’Kalen Sheffield is one of the Bulldogs’ defensive leaders, no doubt.
Like several members of this 2024 KHS football team, the defensive back that wears No. 7 isn’t lucky for the opposition. In fact, he’s deadly.
Sheffield is among the team leaders in tackles (La’Perrion Graves has 149; Sheffield and Lakeyleon Graves each have 124), but he leads the team in interceptions (seven, as mentioned before), and also leads in pass break-ups (14). He’s got 72 solo tackles this season, made one tackle for loss, and one of his interceptions was for a touchdown (in the playoff win over Navasota in Corsicana).
Sheffield has seven of Kilgore’s 24 interceptions, just an unbelievable feat. His latest was in the second half of the Bulldogs’ win over La Vernia, where La Vernia’s only pass completion of the entire game was made by the punter, for 31 yards on a fake punt. Sheffield and the Bulldogs’ defense held La Vernia to 1-of-8 passes for just those 31 yards.
The Bulldogs get ready for a big challenge in Celina (15-0) this Friday at 3 p.m. at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, but congratulations, Ja’Kalen, for being the Whataburger / ETBlitz.com boys Player of the week for Dec. 9-14.
We’ve got some prizes for Ja’Kalen, too, and Whataburger has prizes every day: the food they serve, any time you want it.
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So if you’re hungry, why settle for anything else? Go check out Whataburger. You’ll be glad you did.
Here, for your convenience, are links to the stories all of the student athletes who’ve won our players of the week award this school year:
- WHATABURGER / ETBLITZ.COM PLAYERS OF THE WEEK | Tatum’s Scott, Sabine’s Sparks win first honors of the school year!
- OVERTON’S STILL, TATUM’S FOSTER | They’re the Whataburger / ETBlitz Players of the Week!
- WHITE OAK’S LUDLOW, HENDERSON’S STANDLEY | They’re the Whataburger / ETBlitz.com Players of the Week!
- AND THE HONORS GO TO… | Tatum’s Scott and LC’s Wheat, the Whataburger / ETBlitz.com Players of the Week!
- THE WHATABURGER / ETBLITZ PLAYERS OF THE WEEK | White Oak’s Addison McClanahan, Troup’s Bryce Wallum!
- IT’S ELLE, DODSON! | They’re the Whataburger / ETBlitz.com Players of the Week!
- THE WHATABURGER / ETBLITZ.COM PLAYERS OF THE WEEK | Hey, it’s JT and Overton’s Skyler Colvin
- KAYSON & KARLY! | Kilgore’s Brooks, Tatum’s Stroud the Whataburger / ETBlitz Players of the Week!
- ARP’S SMITH, WHITE OAK’S McCLANAHAN! | They’re the Whataburger / ETBlitz.com Players of the Week!
- OVERTON’S STILL, WHITE OAK’S SIMS | Brilliant performances to win Whataburger / ETBlitz Players of the Week Awards
- WR’S MATA, GLADEWATER’S WATTS | Next-level performances to capture the Whataburger / ETBlitz.com Players of the Week!
- GILMER’S WILSON, KILGORE’S GRAVES | The Whataburger / ETBlitz.com Players of the Week!
- WHATABURGER / ETBLITZ.COM PLAYERS OF THE WEEK? | They’re Overton’s Furlow, Arp’s Birdsong!
- WHATABURGER / ETBLITZ PLAYERS OF THE WEEK | How ’bout Kilgore’s Jayden Sanders & Tatum’s Aundrea Bradley?!!
- SABINE’S McNATT, TROUP’S JORDAN | Whataburger / ETB Players of the week; McNatt’s fourth!
Again, congratulations to Ja’Kalen Sheffield and to Peytin Thompson, and we’ll be back next week with another two East Texas athletes who’ll be named the Whataburger / ETBlitz.com Players of the Week!