FloMo Butt Dancers

While I have been completely occupied with Bentley University Football, I did attend the Mound Showdown last Friday with my son who was home on his bye week. After having given up 70 points to Southlake Carroll the previous week, FloMo buckled down and held the Marauders to a mere 63 points. (63-39 final)
The FloMo Jaguars, under the direction of Coach Cody Vanderford remind me of an expression my late Dad used to use: "They're all Flash and no Dash."
This video shows some of their 'Flash' and plenty of the Edward S. Marcus Marauders DASH!

Farewell

I delivered Jared to Training Camp at Bentley University and attended the parents meeting. When I shared how successful this Blog has been in keeping parents in the loop and shining the spotlight on our boys, I was asked - and agreed - to start a Bentley Football Parents Blog! So I'm out of here . . . Susan and I may be at the Battle of the Axe but will definitely be at the Mound Showdown, as Jared will be home that weekend when Bentley has a bye week.
It's been a heck of a ride, and I'm proud of what we did for our sons.

See It Here First - Marcus Marauder Stadium!

Here is the 'Visitor Elevation', looking west from Morriss Road, at the back of the Visitor stands, and across at the three story press box and Home stands. The Finished stadium will be a virtual copy of the Hebron and FloMo stadiums, with a seating capacity of 9,500.

I have offered to Coach Erwin my services to head up a committee to sell personalized bricks for a walkway on the home side in conjunction with soccer, band, cheer, and Marquette alumni. The money raised could be used to paint the logos on the field and to create a wall of honor to recognize football and soccer players (boys and girls) who have gone on to play college or professionally.

New Stadium

All the approvals have been granted for construction of the new Marcus Marauders Stadium on the site of the former practice/JV field. The stadium will be ready for the Fall 2010 season kickoff.

'Marcus Park' bites the dust

There was no wrecking ball or ceremonial implosion. Of course it isn't Reunion Arena or Texas Stadium. But the football field and its grandstand that has served Marcus High School and its feeder Middle Schools for over 20 years began to fall to demolition today. The site is being cleared for construction of the long awaited Marauder Stadium, scheduled to open in Fall of 2010.
The facility held many memories for parents who sat in the stands through Middle School games on Mondays and Tuesdays, and Sub-Varsity games on Thursday nights. It has hosted Homecoming Pep Rallies in recent years, was the site where Coach Kevin Kilgo's inaugural JV Red Team went 10-0 in 2008, and is where the character of many young men was developed through the years by Coaches Que Brittain, Randy Mayes, and Bryan Erwin along with their staffs.
One professional football career and numerous college careers were nurtured on this field, not only in evening games but in grinding practices throughout the seasons.

The facility also played host to boys and girls soccer matches and numerous cross country and track and field events through the years.

Personal Reflection: Did you know that a football field, including end zones and sidelines, has approximately 57,600 square feet of field turf? As I viewed the piles of field turf that had been mutilated by the demolition equipment, I couldn't help but think - where was the 'leadership' of the MFBC?

At $1 a square foot, souvenirs could have been sold to football and soccer alumni, parents, etc. The whole field might not have sold, but imagine the new equipment and supplies that could have been bought 'for the boys'. I did happen to notice that the 50 yard marker is still there. If I were half the man I was 20 years ago, I'd climb over the fence in face paint and dark clothes tonight and cut it out and take it home for my pool deck.

Three Marauders in MHS '09 Top 20

Three graduating Marcus Marauder football players were honored as members of the Class of 2009 Top 20 Graduates at the school's Academic Awards Banquet Tuesday evening. The three are Ernest Levert, ranked 14; Jared LeBon, at number 11; and Landon Banister, is 10th.
Ernest will attend Ohio State University, Landon will attend SMU, and Jared will attend Bentley University in Boston where he will be part of the Falcon's football team.

Stephen Hopkins, '10 - Commits to Michigan Wolverines

Marcus Running Back Stephen Hopkins was in Ann Arbor today for Michigan's Spring Game and made a commitment to join the Michigan Class of 2014! He will sign his Letter of Intent on February 3, 2010. Congratulations to Stephen and his parents Randy and Denise.

Beau Glover signs with William Jewell

Marauder LB Beau Glover has signed to play college football with William Jewell College located in Liberty, Missouri. The Cardinals compete in NAIA Heart of America Conference. Beau is the son of Mark and Penny Glover of Flower Mound. He was named All-District First Team, and was the recipient of this year's prestigious Chad Tinsley Award at the football banquet.

Although Beau's family lives south of FM1171, we were pleased to have him attend Marcus High School. Beau's grandfather Bob Rheudasil is one of the founders of the Town of Flower Mound and its first mayor, and he worked for Edward Marcus who donated the land to LISD on which MHS was built.

http://www.jewell.edu/william_jewell/gen/william_and_jewell_generated_pages/Athletics_m42.html

MHS Fullback Receives Christian Athlete Award

Marcus Fullback Jared LeBon was honored recently as one of 50 semi-finalists for Texas Male Christian Athlete of the Year by Lay Witnesses for Christ International, based in Hurst, Texas. The fifty semi-finalists were chosen from over 1400 nominees, and along with fifty female semi-finalists were honored at a Gala Banquet on Monday, February 16 at the DFW Airport Marriott.

Jared was presented with his Medal and Plaque by Olympian of the Century, Carl Lewis (left). Lewis Johnson, NBC Olympics Commentator, was the event's Master of Ceremonies.

Jared has been a member of FCA at Marcus for four years, and is a member of Life Teen at St. Ann Catholic Parish in Coppell. He has been an altar server at St. Ann for six years. In 1992 he traveled with his family to the Salt Lake City Olympic Games to serve as Catholic Missionaries.

Jared was nominated for the honor by his FCA Huddle Leader, Coach Fred Jones.

Rayome heads to ski country football

Marcus Senior Center Justin Rayome has signed a Letter of Intent to play college football at Fort Lewis College in beautiful Durango, Colorado. The Skyhawks compete in D-II.

Congratulations to Justin and the Rayome Family!

http://explore.fortlewis.edu/

No Mojo for Coach Erwin

After interviewing and apparently being offered the head coach position at Permian High School in Odessa, Coach Erwin has told his players he's declined the position and will stay on at Marcus.

Finley Commits to Harding

Marcus Captain WR Alex Finley joins the distinguished list of Marcus seniors who have committed to play college football by signing with Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas.

Harding University is a NCAA D-II and the Bisons compete in the Gulf South Conference.

Congratulations to A-Fin and the Finley Family!

http://www.hardingsports.com/

"Sid" Signs with Texas College in Tyler

Congratulations to Michael Sidberry Jr. who signed to play football at Texas College in Tyler, Texas. Texas College is an NAIA D-I school, and the Steers compete in the Red River South Athletic Conference.

Congratulations to the Sidberry Family! The Sidberry's email address is michaelsidberry@msn.com

http://www.texascollegeonline.net/athletics/

Cameron Hickey - Dual Athlete

Marcus OL Cameron Hickey who also competes on the wrestling team advanced to the state wrestling championship today with victories in the Regional Meet in Arlington. Cameron is in the heavyweight (285#) category. Senior Marauder Tyler Lee, defending state champion in his weight class (145#), also qualified to go to state!
The State Championship will be held in Austin February 27-28.

Scholar Athletes - High Value Targets

The greatest challenge for college coaches in any sport is finding enough scholarship money with which to reward and entice athletes to come to the school and represent it athletically. Most coaches will tell you that their 'pie' is rather small compared to the 'sheet cake' of money that the Admissions Office has to award Academic Scholarships.

When coaches screen potential recruits, they will always inquire about the student-athlete's grades. This inquiry has two purposes: first, the coach wants to know if the recruit meets and will be able to maintain the academic standards of the institution. Second, is for the coach to determine if the young person under consideration is a scholar. Does this recruit have high SAT and ACT scores? What is their GPA? Where do they rank in their graduating class?

A recruit who excels in these areas is quite quickly labeled a scholar-athlete. If the coach is impressed with the scholar-athlete's skills and abilities in their respective sport, the coach can now walk this scholar-athlete's application into the Admission Office and make a case for an Academic Scholarship.

If his petition is successful, it becomes a win-win-win all around. The coach gets to extend an offer to a highly-qualified athlete and the scholarship money does not come out of his 'pie'. The scholar-athlete receives a four year financial commitment, unlike an athletic scholarship which is required to be renewed every year.

The scholar-athlete does not sign a Letter of Intent; rather he signs a Letter of Commitment to the school and the sport. And he further win because he gets to play his favorite sport at the school of his choice, and injury or a cessation of athletic participation does not negate his scholarship. He merely has to maintain his grades for the duration of the four years.

Cameron Hickey Dual Signs

Marcus OL Cameron Hickey has 'dual-signed' to play football with either Cisco Junior College or Southeastern Oklahoma State University in Durant, Oklahoma.

Cameron is pictured after signing with his parents Lloyd and Debra, his sister Candace, and Marcus Head Coach Bryan Erwin.

(Scroll down Blog for other player details)

Chase Douglass commits to Air Force

Marcus Offensive Lineman Chase Douglass has committed to play college football at the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

Chase was named First Team All-District (unanimous) and received Honorable Mention from the Texas Sports Writers Association All-State Team. He was the recipient of the "Hawg" Offensive Lineman Ward at the teams year end banquet.

Chase is pictured after signing his Letter with his parents Bill and Susan Douglass and Marcus Head Coach Bryan Erwin.

The Falcons compete in D-I in the Western Athletic Conference.
http://goairforcefalcons.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/afa-m-footbl-body.html

Ty Cloud commits to University of Houston

Marcus Offensive Lineman Ty Cloud has signed to play college football at the University of Houston.

Ty was named All-District First Team. Ty is pictured after signing with his parents Ty and Kim and Marcus Head Coach Bryan Erwin.

The Cougars compete in D-I in Conference-USA.
http://uhcougars.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/hou-m-footbl-body.html

Jared LeBon commits to Bentley University

Marcus Fullback Jared LeBon has committed to play college football at Bentley University in the Boston suburb of Waltham. Jared was named Second Team All-District, and First Team Academic All-State. Jared was named a Presidential Scholar by Bentley, and will receive a four year academic scholarship.

Jared is pictured after signing his Commitment Letter with his parents Paul and Susan, brother Justin, grandmother Theresa, Marcus Head Coach Bryan Erwin, and Marcus RB Coach Fred Jones.

The Falcons competes in D-II in the Northeast - 10 Conference.

http://www.bentley.edu/athletics/varsity_sports/football/index.cfm

Chris Olson commits to West Texas A & M

Marcus Defensive End and Captain Chris Olson has committed to play college football at West Texas A & M in Canyon, Texas.

Chris was named to the All-District First Team (unanimous choice), and was the recipient of the Fighting Heart Award at the team's Season Banquet.

Chris is pictured after signing his Letter of Intent with his parents Rhonda and Keith and Marcus Head Coach Bryan Erwin.

The Buffaloes compete in D-II in the Lone Star Conference South.

http://gobuffsgo.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/wtam-m-footbl-body.html

Joel Free commits to Cisco Junior College

Marauder Wide Receiver Joel Free has committed to Cisco Junior College in Cisco, Texas.

Joel is pictured after signing his commitment with Marcus WR Coach Michael Odle, Head Coach Bryan Erwin, his parents Kevin and Olga, and his sister Melissa.

http://www.cisco.cc.tx.us/football.asp

Banquet Videos posted on YouTube

All of the videos from Thursday night's video are now posted on YouTube. The thumping introductions of the award winners, the Parent Tribute, Coach Erwin Tribute, and the Senior Video.
The Parent and Coach Erwin videos had to be modified because of music copyright, and the Senior Video was broken into two parts because of YouTube size limits. The Marauder Memories is one video, and the Lessons and Takeaways is another.
Simply go to http://www.youtube.com/ and search by my user name 'marauderdad'. All of the videos will come up in a menu.

Marauders celebrate season

The 2008 Marauders season was celebrated with a banquet held Thursday night at the Hilton Garden Inn and Convention Center. Special achievement awards were presented to the following players:

Fighting Heart Award: Dylan Blount and Chris Olson
Frank Jones Award: Daniel Noble
Academic Achievement: Landon Banister
Shark Special Teams: Jack McCann
Scout Team Offense: Ian Ivey-Davis
Scout Team Defense: Jeremy Willis
Boss Hawg Offensive Lineman: Chase Douglass
Dawg Defensive Lineman: Nick Fitzgerald
Offensive MVP: Stephen Hopkins
Defensive MVP: Jameson Holt
Team MVP: Tate Baker
Chad Tinsley Award: Beau Glover

A special tribute video was played in honor of Chad Tinsley, 1995 Defensive Captain who died in 1997, to introduce the award.

In addition, $1000 scholarships were awarded to: Landon Banister, Alex Finley, Jared LeBon, Ernest Levert, and Chris Olson.

Marauder Earns Eagle Scout

Marcus LB Sean Murphy recently attained the rank of Eagle Scout. Sean's Eagle project was to rebuild two fitness stations in the Flower Mound Greenbelt behind Forestwood Middle School.
Congratulations Sean!

Marauders Earn 5A All-State Honors

Two Marauders have garnered Honorable Mention status on the Texas 5A All-State team announced this morning in the Dallas Morning News (page 10C).

Senior Offensive Lineman Chase Douglass, son of Bill and Susan Douglass of Flower Mound, and Junior Running Back Stephen Hopkins, son of Randy and Denise Hopkins of Double Oak received this honor.

Congratulations to Chase and Stephen!

Marauders Named to All-State Academic Team

Two senior Marauders have been named to the Texas High School Coaches Association All-State Academic Team which was announced today.
Landon Banister, son of Gary and Kim Banister of Flower Mound, and Jared LeBon, son of Paul and Susan LeBon of Highland Village both received First Team Honors.

Landon and Jared are ranked 9th and 10th respectively in Marcus' Class of 2009.

Congratulations to Landon and Jared.

Stephen Hopkins - 6-5A Offensive Player of the Year

Junior Running Back Stephen Hopkins was voted District 6-5A Offensive Player of the Year by the 6-5A coaches. Congratulations, Stephen!


Read down the Blog for other Marcus honorees.

All-District Offensive First Team

Junior Rhett Butler*, Senior Ty Cloud, Senior Chase Douglass*

* = Unanimous

All-District Defensive First Team

Senior Tate Baker*, Senior Beau Glover, Senior Taylor Hardin*, Junior Daniel Noble*, Senior Chris Olson*

* = Unanimous

All-District Offensive Second Team

Sophomore Michael Gill, Senior Cameron Hickey, Senior Jared LeBon, Sophomore Dagan Newsome

All-District Defensive Second Team

Senior Dylan Blount, Junior Nick Fitzgerald, Senior Jameson Holt, Senior Zach Williams

Marauders Receive All-District Honors

Congratulations to the following Marauders who have received All-District Honors:

Offensive Player of the Year: Stephen Hopkins

Offensive First Team: Rhett Butler*, Ty Cloud, Chase Douglass*

Defensive First Team: Tate Baker*, Beau Glover, Taylor Hardin*, Daniel Noble*, Chris Olson*
* Unanimous

Offensive Second Team: Michael Gill, Cameron Hickey, Jared LeBon, Dagan Newsome

Defensive Second Team: Dylan Blount, Nick Fitzgerald, Jameson Holt, Zach Williams

To read the entire list of honorees, go to: http://www.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=881620

Players of the Week - Hebron - Week Ten

Congratulations to the outstanding Marauders who have been named Players of the Week by Coach Erwin:

Boss Hawg (O-line) Chase Douglass (Sixth Week)

Red Swarm (D) Dylan Blount (Second Week)

Soldiers (Scout Team) Cody Kuecker (D) and Ernest Levert (O)

Shark (Special Teams) T.J. Bourgeois

DMN Tribute to Marauders

Dallas Morning News sportswriter Keith Whitmire in his column today - Bruised but standing tall - focuses on the Marcus Marauders grit and determination in the toughest district in the state. The column might have been titled 'Real men play real non-district schedules'.

Here's the link: http://www.hsgametime.com/dfw/sharedcontent/dws/content/topstories/stories/110708dnspowhitmire.3ed2dc1.html

Players of the Week - Flower Mound - Week Nine

Congratulations to the outstanding Marauders who have been named Players of the Week by Coach Erwin:

Boss Hawg (O-line) Ty Cloud (Third Week)
Red Swarm (D) Tate Baker, Zach Williams
Soldiers (Scout Team) Landon Banister (Second Week) (D) and Steve Johnson (O)
Shark (Special Teams) Stephen Hopkins (Second Week)

Marauders Capture 16th Spot

The latest Dallas Morning News area Top 20 ranking have been released and Marcus is back in the charts at #16. Congratulations to Coach Erwin, his staff, and players.

Elsewhere in District 5A Southlake dropped from no. 7 to no. 13, Hebron moves up from no. 13 to no. 8, and FloMo slides down and barely hangs on, tied for last. Coppell dropped out of the rankings.

A 1st! Both LISD Trophies Reside at MHS!

Marauders Stuff FloMo in OT

The Marcus Marauders reclaimed the Mound Showdown Trophy tonight after defeating the FloMo Jaguars 28-21 in OT.

Marcus took the lead in OT on a 1 yard TD run by Stephen Hopkins; after the Jaguars got possession, they were pushed back with a holding penalty, and then the Marauder Defense smothered them, drilling QB Brandon Colquitt into the field turf on 4th down at the 30.

Read the excellent write up in the Flower Mound Leader by Ricky Moore:

http://www.flowermoundleader.com/articles/2008/11/02/sports_update/1.txt

Players of the Week - Coppell - Week Eight

Congratulations to the outstanding Marauders who have been named Players of the Week by Coach Erwin:
Boss Hawg (O-line) Chase Douglass (Fifth week!)
Red Swarm (D) Chris Olson (Second week)
Soldiers (Scout Team) Sean Murphy (D) and Tylar Epps (O)
Shark (Special Teams) Michael Gill