WAKE UP! ON ETBLITZ | Countdown to Overton-Collinsville is on, and the debut of the FAN CAM
EDITOR’S NOTE: It’s Wake Up! Monday edition – yes, it is, no matter how hard you don’t want it to be. It is Monday. But go by Cozy Coffee Station on your way to work or school, and if you don’t live in Kilgore or Gilmer, make a point of driving there sometime to try it, because they really have something special. Nobody is a one-time customer at Cozy Coffee Station; it’s just not done. See ‘em online at Home | Cozy Coffee Station, or look ‘em up on Facebook or Instagram based on the two locations: 110 Midtown Plaza in Kilgore, or 755 Highway 271 North in Gilmer.
Round Rock, here we come
A lot of us, and when I say “us,” I mean East Texas, will be making the trek to Round Rock either Wednesday or super-early Thursday morning to see the Overton High School Mustangs try to get win No. 32 this season, this time over the Collinsville Pirates.
And win No. 32 is more important than any other win this season, because this is for the state championship.
The two programs meet Thursday at 9 a.m. at Dell Diamond in Round Rock, and I, for one, am pumped: I’m excited for the Overton kids and their coaches, and their fans; I’m excited to be back at an event like this, period – I’ve covered several in my 31-year career; and probably also on the list is Dell Diamond itself.
For some reason, don’t know why, the 4A version of the state championship game used to be played at Disch-Falk, on the University of Texas campus, while all the other games were played at Dell. So I’ve covered games at D-F, but I’ve never covered a game at Dell. Go figure. This will be my first.
Overton’s not alone
The title games this year have an East Texas feel, because there are quite a few teams from here that will be playing this week.
In addition to Overton, Liberty-Eylau, a team from Texarkana, is playing for the 3A-Division I championship on Thursday night at 7 p.m. against Corpus Christi London. On Friday morning, in the first game of the day at 9 a.m., Spring Hill (Longview) is facing Wimberley for the 4A-DII title. And in the game right after that, in the noon window on Friday, Pleasant Grove, also from Texarkana, faces Corpus Christi Calallen for the 4A-DI championship.
Texarkana and Corpus Christi are going to battle in two different games this week.
Oh, and then we have the rhyme game: Thrall vs. Wall. That’s the 3A-DII title game on Thursday at 4 p.m.
The University Interscholastic League (UIL) runs this entire shindig, and the website is really cool. If you haven’t seen it, you should, and here’s the link: Baseball State Tournament — University Interscholastic League (UIL).
Also, this is fun: here’s the link to Dell Diamond’s site featuring tournament information: UIL Baseball Tournament | Express. They also have a pretty helpful parking graphic there.
Dell is the home of the Round Rock Express, and if you want to check out their regular website, maybe look at finding a time to go to a game, here you go: Round Rock Express | MiLB.com.
The debut of the FAN CAM
Thursday is also the debut of something we’ve been waiting to roll out for about a month, but we wanted it to be something special, something memorable, and the state title game definitely qualifies.
On Thursday, if you’re a fan in the stands at Dell Diamond, and you’re rooting for Overton, we want you to take what I’d call a “group selfie” with you and your friends, or family, and send it to us. Send us your best two photos and a short video, no more than say 20 seconds, to social@etblitz.com.
Remember on the video: no profanity, or we can’t use it.
Several will be chosen to appear in a new ad promotion: the ETBLITZ.COM FAN CAM, presented by Kilgore-Gilmer Eye Care Centers. It’s gonna be cool, and I know that because – well, we don’t put anything on this site that’s not cool. You guys will absolutely love it.
For this game, since Overton plays at 9 a.m. Thursday, let’s say have your videos and photos to us at that email, again social@etblitz.com, by Friday at noon. We’ll narrow it down and then debut the Fan Cam on Friday evening.
We’re getting it ready to really roll it out for football and volleyball this fall, so this is our test run. In the fall, we’ll have a special number that you’ll be able to just send your photos and videos to in a text, and you’ll also still be able to email them.
It’s kind of a living, breathing post card, if you think about it, and thank Kilgore-Gilmer Eye Care Centers, because they’re the ones who are helping make this happen.
Hope you guys have a great Monday. We’ll have more on Overton-Collinsville here in just a bit.
