Play to Win

Llano Yellow Jacket head football coach and Athletic Director Matt Green is entering his eighth year at the helm of the Llano program. Only John Baskin from 1976 thru 1983 held the position as long. Green has lead the Jackets to three District Championships, an 58-26 overall record, and a 10-6 post season record. All school records and counting.

Coach Green’s winning percentage is at .691% Only Llano Coach Ken Gray has equaled the percentage. Gray’s two district championships and over all record of 23-10-1 in three seasons, plus Gray’s 2-2 post season mark places him in the top three all time.

Llano Coach David Yeager was in Llano for 7 years, and had a 43-36 over all record. His 5-5 record in the state play offs was remarkable.

Coach Karl McCormack was head coach for five seasons, and had a 35-22 record. Karl resigned after being told by then Llano School Superintendent Jack Patton that the school board had met, and had decided to fire Karl at their next meeting. Karl, being the stand-up guy that he was, immediately resigned. It was weeks later that Karl found out the school board had never met. I owned the The Llano Buzz at the time, but Karl asked me not to tell the story. Many years later, I called Karl and asked him if it was OK for me to tell Llano what had happened. He agreed. I published the story.

Due to inexperience on both sides of the ball, the Jackets took a small step back, going 5-5 for the season. Last season, the Jackets were expecting to be at the top of the district race. But when returning All State quarterback Briggs Green had a season ending injury the week before the first game, all bets were off. So many great seniors last season all had to be at their best. And for most parts, they were. As mentioned in last weeks article, the games won against Jarrell, Austin Crockett and San Antonio Cole were stunning. But inexperience at most positions raised its ugly head as Llano came into the home stretch.

With strong freshman and sophomore classes now moving towards the varsity level, the Jackets look to be more experienced. Many very good players got invaluable experience last season. And maybe best of all, the expectations will be more sound. These players now have a feeling of what to expect, and be prepared for the unexpected.

Scrimmage at Mason Friday night. Then scrimmage with Brady here at Jacket Stadium the following Thursday. And on August 30th, Llano travels to Lytle, somewhere south of San Antonio. Llano has never beaten Lytle in two games. These young Jackets can start their own legacy on August 30th.

The Fighting Llano Yellow Jackets have one of the most challenging and exciting season in recent memory lying ahead. Coming off a disappointing 5-5 season in 2023, the Jackets just work harder. Having been to the State Play-offs 8 of the past 10 years, Llanos’ expectations are high for 2024. Not making the play offs last season was totally unexpected. With three weeks left in the regular season last November, I was not just talking about making the play offs, but winning the District.

To briefly summarize, Llano beat 4AAAA Jarrell in the opener of last year. Jarrell made the play offs. Llano beat 5AAAAA Austin Crockett in Llano. Crockett not only made the play offs, but won their Bi District game. Only their second State Play off game victory in the history of their school, all while playing with a Division 1 Quarterback who is now at Texas Tech.

Then District begins against a very strong San Antonio Cole team. Llano walks away with a 37-0 win. The Jackets followed that up with a sound beating of District foe Lulling. The Jackets are sitting at 2-0 in District play, and what looked like a rolling machine, turns out to be a wagon with a few loose screws. Nothing major. But major enough to allow District foes Marion and Randolph to beat the Jackets.

District 13-3A Division 1 has changed. We add Florence. Lulling, Randolph, Marion and Ingram stay the same. 5 District games. The pre district schedule also has changed.

The Jackets begin the season with a team Llano has never beat. The Lytle Pirates are 2-0 against the Jackets all time. Lytle is another one of the places that you can’t get there from here!! The last time we played, the game was at Lytle. I could not find the town. But I found the stadium. Bad to say, but the Jackets failed to show up that night.

Then Llano plays an old foe, Comanche. The Indians have a very good program, having been to the play offs for many years. Last season Comanche was 8-5. Three deep into the play offs. And with 4 and 5 players returning from last year, they will be ready for the Jackets as we travel to Comanche.

Looking very forward to playing our close neighbor, the Marble Falls Mustang. Llano is 30-20-2 all time against the Mustangs. The 4AAAA school is in a deadly district. The Mustangs line up against Stephenville, Brownwood, Lampasas and Burnet. That is tough. And the Mustangs will be thinking Llano could be there opportunity to win a big game.

The Jackets get Jarrell at home on 20th of September at Jacket Stadium. Llano is 2-0 all time against the Cougars. Jarrell has a quarterback that threw for 2,598 yards last season with 28 TD passes. The Cougars will be in Llano to settle some scores. This will be a tough home game.

And the last pre district game is against Comfort. Llano is 4-0 all time against the Bobcats. Comfort was 6-6 last season, winning their Bi District game in 3AAA Div. 11. They have a running back returning who had 1,975 yards last season, and 20 TDs. They too will be prepping for their district play.

It will be fun. Always is with Coach Matt Green and one of the top coaching staffs anywhere. But most important, Llano has the best kids. They’re Llano Yellow Jackets.

DATE OPPONENT LOCATION TIME

August 16 Mason Scrimmage Mason TBD

August 22 Brady Scrimmage Llano TBD

August 30 Lytle AWAY 7:00 PM

September 6 Comanche AWAY 7:00 PM

September 13 Marble Falls HOME 7:00 PM

September 20 Jarrell HOME 7:00PM

September 27 Comfort HOME 7:00 PM

October 4 ** Florence AWAY 7:00 PM

October 11 ** Luling HOME 7:00 PM

October 18 BYE WEEK

October 25 **SA Randolph AWAY 7:00 PM

November 1 ** Marion HOME 7:00 PM

November 8 ** Ingram AWAY 7:00 PM

** Denotes District Games

Llano

Florence

Ingram Moore

Marion

Lulling

University City Randolph

Llano Yellowjacket Schedule to Be Announced Soon

First Team All District:

Frank Macuga- Defense Senior Tate Morgan- Defense- Junior

Fitz Kennedy- defense- Senior Cooper McWilliams- Punter- Senior

Charlie White- Defense- Senior Dylan Kennedy- Offense- Senior

RJ Coplin- Offense- Junior Konrad Zwicke- Offense- Sophomore

Second Team All District

Trey Mote- Offense- Junior Alex Kachura- Offense- Senior

Parker Parrish- Offense- Senior JJ Vaughn- Offense- Senior

Hunter Brown- Defense- Senior Dusty Miller- Defense- Senior

Logan Van Pelt- defense- Junior Carter Bickett- Defense- Jumior

Trey Mote- Defense- Junior RJ Coplin- Offense- Junior

HONORABLE MENTION:

Colton Bailey Brayton Shaw JD Friday Billy Everhart

Aiden Detwiler Thomas Calderon Will Landers

To catch up….Blanco is the only team remaining in the State Playoffs from 13-3A. The Panthers blanked Goliad 34-0 this past weekend. This week 2022, the Jackets too blanked Goliad. And into the fourth week of the playoffs, Blanco plays Edna this week. The Jackets too played Edna in the fourth game deep into the playoffs, last year.

I’ve entered about 25 new entries into the LHS Record Book. I’m sure I have missed some. Please send me your corrections. With your help over the past two decades we still are making corrections and additions.

School Record: 558-480-45….54%

Coach Matt Green: 58-26-69%

RECEIVING:

RJ Coplin- 41 catches season

Alex- 36 catches season

Career: Alex- 44 catches

RJ Coplin- 8 catches, 90 yards- Burnet

Alex Kachura- 4 catches,91 yards-Jarrell- 1 TD

Charlie White- 7 catches, 101 yards- Blanco- 1 TD

Alex- 3 catches, 95 yards- Marion

Alex- 7 catches, 133 yards-0 Ingram- 1 TD

RJ- 6 catches, 99 yards- 2 TDs Ingram

Kick off returns: 2- RJ…entered # 9 and #12 longest

Passing Yards: Single game

Luke Davis- Blanco- 21-36-1- 264 Yards- Blanco

Luke- 16-25-5- 210 Yards- Marion

Luke- 18-28-277 Yards- 5TD Passes- Ingram

Luke- #14 TDs in a season…Season- 74-119-990 Yards 12 Td passes/ 6 Interceptions

FRESHMAN ENTRIES

Carlos Sapalu- 18 of 24 extra points, 2 of 3 Field Goals

Luke Davis: 74-119-6, 12 Td passes

Tate Morgan (Junior)

15 of 15 extra points…1 of 1 Field goals

97 tackles season- 3 sacks

TACKLES:

Charlie White- 57 tackles

Fitz Kennedy- 55 Tackles

Dusty Miller- 53 tackles

THE 2022 Banner is up. please go see…located on the west wall in Llano River Creamery. About 20 pictures are up, and about 20 still to come. Thanks so much for Jeff Kuykendall for all of the pictures. If we’ve missed a senior, let me know.

The fun part of what I do is finding new entries into the record book. The 2023 Yellowjackets have provided many of those new entries. Despite only a 5-5 season record, many numbers and names go into the book.

It is still a work in progress. I welcome anyone to submit items that you might think need to be in the Book..But I must have some kind of backup, either thru the Coaches, or items that have been placed by the coaching staff in Max Prep….or if it is an older statistic, I will go back into my play by play notes.

I just added a number and name that I found. Long time Llano Coach Karl McCormack kept wonderful records. When he was Coaching in Llano, he furnished to me many times stats that became invaluable. Coach Mac has just sent me a text in which he is sending me all of his stats from 1986 to 2000. One of the ones that I had, was that of Llano safety Chad Wootan.

Chad was the quarterback of the 1988 graduating class. But he badly hurt his right shoulder before the 1987 season. Yet, despite that injury, Chad still played safety. He not only lead Llano in total tackles, 138, but was one of the most prolific tacklers in the state. He was All District, All West Texas, and All Central Texas. This on a team that went 0-10. Today Chad leads all tackles in Llano, ever. That could change, as I get more information. But today is a great day to remember one of the all time best.

In a few days I will start listing here new additions to the record book. Mainly this will be from the 2023 season. Many have already been added. Other additions that I may find in Coach Mac’s statistics will come over the next few weeks.

I still am working on numbers for the great Drew Cooper and other Jackets that I need confirmation on. But to remind you…just type in Play To Win, by Mikel Virdell….then hit on the LHS School Records button…..

The seniors of the 2023 football class will look back at some point in time and appreciate better what they were able to accomplish. The four years of wonderful football and leaving behind records and accomplishments that will be hard to match. Yet the lessons learned will be more important.

I can tell you that over the past 50 plus years, the relationships, friendships and sense of knowing fairness and never giving up have been more important. The seniors have had moments that seemed impossible. The Crocket game this year. Winning with less than a minute to play. What lesson is that? They come from behind three seasons ago against San Saba? What a memory. And even last season playing to a season with four shutouts for the defense, in which two were in the playoffs. Will be hard to duplicate. All of these moments will be remembered by these players forever.

Might be interesting to also remember that the Jackets played eight teams that made the state playoffs. And in the first week of state playoffs, five of those teams won. 5A Austin Crockett won their first playoff game in 27 years. 4A Burnet won, 2A Coleman won, as did the top two teams in our district, SA Cole and Blanco. Llano beat Cole 37-0 and that still feels good.

Missing next year will be senior and two year starter Fitz Kennedy. Fitz was a force last season at linebacker, and this year had 37 solo tackles and 10 were for loss yardage, along with 3 quarterback sacks. But most of us remember Fitz carrying the heavy load of running the football, usually on third or fourth down. He had 82 carries and 363 yards and 8 running touchdowns. Fitz also blocked a punt against Ingram and also caught the ball and ran it in for the TD. Great Jacket career.

His brother, Dylan played on the offensive line. Simply dominating. Starter for two years. Offensive tackles don’t garner many statistics, but Dylan has been great. And so hard to replace.

Cooper McWilliams may be missed the most. A starter at the punting position, and had a good 28.1 yard average with a longest of 58 yards. But his coming into games late at running back became a fan favorite. Cooper only carried 30 times this season, but finished with 167 yards and a 5.6 yard average. His 150 pound frame was tough and fast, and the call by fans in the later part of the season is one reason to have been excited about this 2023 season.

I watched as senior Gage Arms was the good soldier. Always positive and excited for the players as they came off the field. Coaches made sure Gage got into the Ingram game. I saw Gage after the game, and he was beaming…a great teammate. What being a Yellowjacket is all about.

Dusty Miller had some great moments on both sides of the ball. He had 30 carries for a 5.4 yard per carry. Quick as a cat. And made special plays on defense for two years. Had 43 solo tackles this season with 1.5 sacks. His 9 tackles for a loss was third on the team. His energy and great enthusiasms will serve him well as he goes forward.

Players like Mason Martin, Jose Hernandez, Aiden Beuke, and Forrest Homesley had so many missed games due to injury. Briggs Green too can be included here. Their contributions are still valuable. And they get to have the same memories as most…Good teammates all.

Tight end Parker Parish was out with injury for 4 games. Yet the returning all district player had great moments. He had 5 catches for 28 yards and a TD. Very strong blocker. Mentored Sophomore Konrad Zwicke and junior Logan Van Pelt. Great leadership skills.

Charlie White missed the last game of the season with injury. But his contribution of 10 catches for 133 yards and two touchdowns were always exciting. But Charlie was a great defensive back. 44 solo tackles, 6 plays for loss yardage, and 3 interceptions. Might get recognition on the all district team.

Senior Alex Kachura was the Jacket’s most valuable player on offense. The tall 6’2 wide receiver ended the year with 36 catches and 647 yards, both numbers making the record book. Alex had so many clutch catches on third and fourth downs. His 5 TD catches was second only to junior RJ Coplin’s 6. It will take big shoes to replace Alex next season….he was special.

Jackson Hoot had a good senior year, despite missing two games. Playing cornerback and wide receiver, Jackson had 15 solo tackles. A very good downfield blocker, and an excellent special team player, lots of extra effort getting downfield fast. ..we needed more like Jackson.

Center Billy Everhart became invaluable. Injured for several games, when he returned the Jackets improved. Billy kept up a long tradition of very strong and smart centers. His buddies in crime in the offensive line were seniors Josh Cooper, JJ Vaughn, Hunter Brown and Frank Machuga. Their experience missed will end up telling how the Jackets can do next season. These veteran players were so good so many times. Statics don’t tell the value of offensive lineman. These seniors had a good year. Machuga on defense had 19 solo tackles with 2.5 sacks, and one blocked field goal. Hunter had 9 solo tackles and many games played both sides of the ball, as well had a blocked field goal. JJ seemed to show up everywhere. A sound blocker, and 5 solo tackles on defense.

2024 started last Monday. As we see the seniors go off into all different directions, one thing they will all get to know. They will always be Yellowjackets….thanks for the memories

I’ve started on the record book….many entries to make, and the next article will try to let you know what has been entered. Let me know when I miss some…always do. I found an entry from 2001 last week!! Go to: Play to Win by Mikel Virdell…can click on Yellowjacket Records

The Llano Yellowjackets took a full quarter to get going against the Ingram Warriors Friday night, but when they did, left no doubt in anyone’s mind that the Jackets had come to play, and play very good. The Jackets needed the win to secure a 5-5 record, and avoid the first losing season since 2014. Llano finished the season with a 3-3 district record, tied with Marion. Marion secures the playoff stop due to its win over the Jackets back October 13th.

While the Yellowjacket seniors may feel unfulfilled in not obtaining their preseason goals, or even making the playoffs, the accomplishments are many. The 49-27 win against Ingram allowed the frustrations to come to surface, and great effort and determination sent the seniors out on a great note.,

Ingram had played sound football all season, playing many teams down to the last minute. Their opportunity to have a winning season was on the line. Beating Ingram on their home field and on senior night would not be a cake walk. Ingram held Llano to no points in the first quarter and less than 60 yards of offense.

In fact, on the first play of the second quarter, Ingram scored from 22 yards out to take a 6-0 lead. But from that moment on, the Jackets woke up and realized the importance of taking their game to the next level. The Jackets scored three touchdowns on their next 13 plays.

The Jackets running attack took off first. Strong runs by Brayton Shaw and Luke Davis ran for first downs. Senior Fitz Kennedy ran for another first down. And to complement the running attack, the passing game had its best night of the season. Freshman quarterback Luke Davis found senior Alex Kachura for 7 catches and 141 yards for the night. Alex had a TD catch in the second quarter, his best night as a Yellowjacket.

Junior RJ Coplin also had a great night catching the football with 6 catches and over 100 yards. Senior Parker Parrish’s catch in the second quarter also was for a touchdown. Sophomore Konrad Zwicke got into the act with a key catch in the third quarter for 24 yards and a first down. And also special was the catch of Jose Silas’s in the fourth quarter for a TD. Jose is a junior. He may be most remembered this season for the key block in the Austin Crockett game in which he freed RJ to run back the fourth quarter kick off and hand Llano the win in the last minute of play.

The running attack continued with senior Cooper McWillams and junior Trey Mote picking up good yardage behind an offensive line that had its best night blocking. Cooper had one run of 14 yards in the fourth quarter that sealed the win. Kennedy too had several first down runs in the third and fourth quarters. But maybe most impressive was the play of the offensive line.

Those forgotten lineman had a wonderful last game. Seniors Dylan Kennedy and center Billy Everhart really had good nights. Josh Cooper and JJ Vaughn were superior. And while JJ and Hunter Brown and Frank Machuga spend most of their time on the defensive side of the ball, their experience will be badly missed. All had major roles in last seasons 13-1 run deep into the State Playoffs. Blocking downfield by Parker Parrish, Alex, and Aiden Beuke usually go unnoticed. Their effort was relentless. Jackson Hoot had a good year, spent also alot of time on defense. As did senior Jacob Hernandez at wide receiver. Great effort by all.

The measuring stick of how good these lineman played can go to the numbers. The record breaking night in the passing game may stand for a long time. Freshman Luke Davis threw five TD passes Friday night. The five ties a school record with several other Jacket quarterbacks. In 2001, senior Brian Edwards threw five TD passes against….Ingram also. And then only last season, junior Briggs Green threw 5 TD passes. Briggs was on the sidelines Friday night with Luke giving him the business…I think. Anyways, after the game Friday night, and with a short interview with radio announcer Art Dlugach….Luke too called out his offensive line as instrumental in making this record happen.

I spoke little this week about the defense. Will do that later this week…as well as have some statistics and mention the names I have identified this year with names going into the school record book.

These seniors have had the unreal run of having seen or played in 39 victories in their four years of high school. Pretty sure that is an LHS record. That’s winning at an 80% pace. Give this a few years to look back on, and these seniors will be very proud of what they have accomplished. Thanks for the memories.

The Llano Yellowjackets most likely will be playing for Pride Friday night in Ingram, as San Antonio Cole won this past weekend over Marion. Last week I said that Cole needed to win in order for Llano to still have have a chance to make the state playoffs. Actually Cole needed to lose. I was wrong…Cole won, and will have an opportunity to take part of the 13-3AAA District crown should they beat Blanco this week.

Being so odd, the Jackets played their best game this season, beating Cole five weeks ago 37-0 in Llano. Cole went on to win their next four district games to set up their contest with Blanco. Even should Cole lose, they will go into the state playoffs with a 4-2 district record. The Jackets have a 2-3 record in district play, and can finish 3-3 with a win over a surprising Ingram team. Marion too can finish the district schedule at 3-3 this week with a win over Lulling. But their win over the Jackets back on October 13th would give them the nod for the fourth play off spot. Should Marion fall on its face at Lulling, the Jackets would be back in play, providing Llano beats Ingram.

There are so many reasons the Jackets fell short of their goals this year. Injuries first…inexperience second, bad penalties in bad spots third, and turnovers fourth. Those are enough excuses. And I just thought of a 5th reason. Maybe the Jackets had too high of expectations. The Jackets expected more of themselves. And there is no reason to say that is a bad thing. Each and every player expected more of themselves. And every player gave all he had. No one gave less. I guess that is why there is so much pride in being a Yellowjacket.

I can only presume Marion will beat a very weak Lulling team. Going forward, the Jackets need to beat Ingram. For the seniors it is very important. While a 5-5 record is not what they had expected, it is still been an honorable season. Beat a 4AAAA school in the first game of the season in Jarrell. Beat 5-A Austin Crockett for the second year in a row. Crockett has already qualified for the state playoffs in their tough 5-A district out of Austin. Total domination what now looks like a very good San Antonio Cole team, possibly the best team in the district. Winning at Ingram makes for a good handoff from the seniors to next year’s Jacket team.

The Jackets have made the state playoffs the last eight years. 9 years ago, the 2014 team went 2-8, the last regular losing season. The Jackets went 5-5 in 2017, made the playoffs but lost in Bi-District.. That was head Coach Matt Greens first year in Llano. It has been a great run. And this years seniors, many on the 2021 team, have seen 6 playoff games, four playoff wins, and maybe 26 wins. A pretty good run.

Ingram is a pretty good team. They have a 5-4 record, and can have their first winning season in a very long time, should they beat Llano. Ingram lost to SA Cole only by the score of 24-14. And SA Randolph score was only 14-6! And then scored 41 last week against Blanco! These guys are expecting something good to happen to them….like beating a Jacket team that looks beatable. No doubt, the Jackets must bring their A Game. Dumb penalties and turnovers must be limited to none. The seniors last road trip. Lets make it memorable.

Llano 42 Ingram 20