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Thursday, August 27, 1998
Celina-Lindsay to make Texas high school football
history
By JAIME ARON AP Sports Writer
DALLAS (AP) - G.A. Moore's name already is a fixture in the
annals of Texas high school football. The Celina coach is one
of three men with 300 victories and he's among a select group
with four state titles.
It's only fitting, then, that Moore will march into Texas high
school football history again Thursday night when his fourth-ranked
Bobcats take on Lindsay in the first UIL regular-season game ever
played in August.
It isn't a coincidence, either.
When Moore first heard the UIL was moving up the starting date
for the season, he approached several coaches about joining him
in an early opener. The first to bite was Lindsay coach Charlie
Meurer.
Then Moore got to thinking: if they were going to be first,
they should make a big deal out of it.
The result is "The Kickoff Classic," a 7:30 p.m.
kickoff at Fouts Field on the University of North Texas campus.
The game even has sponsors in Ultramar and Diamond Shamrock.
"We're trying to build it into something special,"
said Moore, who carries 326 wins and an .821 winning percentage
into his 36th season. "I think it's going to be a good experience."
The hype has been building all week in Celina, about 35 miles
north of Dallas, and Lindsay, another 35 miles northwest.
"I'm not used to this much attention for a first ballgame,"
Meurer said. "It feels somewhat like a playoff game and it's
just a pre-district game. It's been a lot of fun."
UIL athletic director Charles Breithaupt said the rule change
that gives teams 11 weeks to play 10 regular-season games actually
passed two years ago, but was downplayed because it wasn't going
into effect until this fall. Coaches were reminded of it in February,
following the most recent realignment, as they were beginning
to make their schedules.
Breithaupt said coaches suggested the change to give them more
flexibility in scheduling. He denied the popular theory that it's
a step towards an mandatory early start date that would facilitate
a new playoff system.
With one game Thursday and 31 on Friday, only 64 of the state's
nearly 1,100 teams - about 6 percent - are taking the UIL up on
its new offer. The benefit to them is being able to have a week
off during the season while still getting in 10 games.
Celina and Lindsay strategically will be idle just before district
play begins. That should allow for healing of bumps and bruises
heading into the most important stretch of the year.
"If I was a coach, I'd be in favor of starting early to
begin evaluating talent, then take a week off to get ready for
district," said Breithaupt, adding he wasn't surprised by
the low number of teams playing this weekend. "Some are skeptical
about the change, but I think more will agree with it in two years,"
after current schedule contracts expire.
Three of Friday's games involve ranked teams.
Brownwood, ranked third in 4A, visits San Angelo Central; 4A's
No. 7 Andrews hosts El Paso Eastwood and 2A's No. 10 Italy plays
at Trinity Christian Cedar Hill.
Moore said he expects the buildup surrounding the opener to
be a good test for his squad as it breaks in 10 new starters.
"We have so many young kids, this gives us a chance to
evaluate them under pressure," Moore said.
Meurer, coming off a 10-3 year, said the game can only help
his team.
"I know Celina has enough talent to expose our weaknesses,"
he said. "That leaves the door open for us to evaluate what
we need to do to get better."
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