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> Back to Football 2010

This district is absolutely loaded.

In fact, it’s arguably the toughest district in all of Class 1A.

Four of the six teams made the playoffs, and three rolled at least three rounds deep.

Mart is the favorite and begins the season ranked No. 3 in the state, while Kerens, a 2A drop-down, should challenge for the title.

Cayuga figures to be down, having lost two Division I players after capturing the Division II crown last year.

Riesel, Rice and Malakoff Cross Roads face an uphill battle trying to break into the top three.

Mart Panthers

Head coach: Rusty Nail (5th season: 46-10)

All-time: 674-314-39 since 1912

Playoff history: 82-32-1 in 30 trips, most recently 2009; 4 state championships (1957, ’69, ’99, 2006)

Returning: 22 lettermen; 9 offensive, 7 defensive starters

Outlook: With a 16-member senior class that Nail said is the largest he’s had in his tenure at Mart, the Panthers are primed for big things in 2010.

D'Shun Kinsey (left) and Anthony Martin give Mart two of the best defensive players in Central Texas.
Duane A. Laverty / Waco Tribune-Herald

Holden Strunck returns as the starting quarterback. Backups Ethan Deike and Leonard Williams, both of whom saw time as the signal caller last year, are also back.

At the skill positions, the Panthers are as fast and talented as anybody in the state.

Mart will get the ball into the hands of Jakeem Hoffman, possibly the team’s top overall athlete, in myriad ways from his running back position.

Also back is Anthony Martin, a state track meet qualifier in the 100-meter dash in the spring. Martin is a unique talent, in that he plays running back and returns kicks, but anchors the defensive line from his nose tackle spot.

Martin leads a defensive front five that Nail said would put up against anybody’s in the state. First-team Super Centex honoree D’Shun Kinsey is a star at linebacker.

Jay Vairetta and Gabe Waples are tough on the offensive line, but that’s a group that needs to develop continuity.

The secondary is another spot Mart has slight concerns. As Nail said, “The (defensive) front could outrun the secondary any day.” Hoffman will be expected to help lead that unit from his strong safety spot.

The biggest loss Mart suffered from last year’s team was all-state kicker Matthew Schaeffer, a consistent weapon who flipped field position with his kickoffs and punts in addition to being rock solid on extra points and field goals.

Riesel Indians

Head coach: Ronnie Wilson (3rd season: 9-13; overall: 76-84)

All-time: 313-365-31 since 1931

Playoff history: 6-7-1 in 8 trips, most recently 2009; 0 state championships

Returning: 10 lettermen; 3 offensive, 6 defensive starters

Outlook: The Indians are a victim of realignment. First they lost 14 seniors from an eight-win playoff team, a massive reversal from a one-win year the season before.

Shortly thereafter, they were grouped in a district with a pair of recent state champs in Cayuga and Mart and a pair of 2A dropdowns in Rice and Kerens. Wilson calls what lays ahead a “big task.”

To repeat as a playoff team, Riesel will need its offensive and defensive fronts to step up. Both are in heavy rebuilding mode with few starters returning.

But most of the skill position players and nearly the entire offensive backfield returns, including running backs Dylan Smith and Ty Marshall, a three-year starter who had 89 carries, 651 yards and seven touchdowns last year.

Quarterback Brandt Embry will be under center full-time for the first time this season. The 6-foot, 175-pound signal caller was the backup last year.

Linebacker Justin Watson, who only played in three games last year due to injury, was the team’s leading tackler all the way through Week 5. He returns healthy, as does defensive end Casey Stripling, the lone returning defensive lineman, along with impact cornerbacks Dustin McDonald and Triston Jablonowski.

** at Fairfield

— Text by Orts and Parchman
Predictions by Orts