Aliceinbubbleland said:

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Your response is sort of what I was seeking when I lamented about results of HS football in Waco.

I wonder how you can accurately judge talent in a 1 or 2 or 3A school vs a kid on a 5 or 6A?

I see all these great athletes in the NFL and just wonder what their college recruiters saw in the kids future.

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Lots of these schools are producing D1 players.

We've currently got commits from or offers out to kids from Lorena, Franklin, Marlin, and University. That's based on what I've heard, and I don't follow recruiting closely. La Vega, Midway, China Spring, Connally, Mart all produce D1 players regularly.

AustriaHungary said:

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Wasn't tusa district ad for those hires?

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I think he was.

SSadler said:

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cowboycwr said:

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There is a Woodway elementary that is part of Midway isd. But no woodway HS. For now the district is a one high school district.

But that may change in the near future as the growth in the district is going on rapidly and there may need to be a second high school built at some time in the future. It may still be 10 years out but not an unthinkable amount of time. Maybe even sooner. It was discussed as a possibility a few years back. Maybe about 5 or 6 in 2017 or 2018 when they did a massive study of the growth then.

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This paragraph could have been written 20 years ago. Old school Midway arrogance and desire to be competitive has kept Midway a one-high school system for fear if the talent pool is diluted, NEITHER Midway High school will succeed.

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The same arrogance that Waco High suffered from for a long time of wanting to be in 5A and then 6A instead of being down a classification and being able to compete.

When they build a second one they probably could compete, just at a 3A or 4A level.

Bearprof said:

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No way a second HS gets built in Midway ISD. Not unless you want two smallish 4A schools.

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It will happen at some point. The current HS is getting overcrowded and there will have to be a second one. It is just a matter of time.

Or the district will have to build an even bigger school, add on a few wings to the current school or a tear down rebuild like Waco High is doing. So with that said and there not much room on the footprint of the school for expansion, the current hallways too small, etc. it will be a second high school. Both will be small at first but it will happen.

The current SMU QB was a Midway grad, originally went to OU and transferred to SMU after I think one year.

I believe University High School is seeing the benefits of new AD Ed Love's strategy of improving the training and direction at the middle school campuses. Kids had been arriving at the WISD high schools with little to no knowledge of workout or practice habits. It was virtually impossible for the high school coaches to build a team starting from zero.

I think one of the things that hurt Waco ISD football for a long time was that they only played other WISD schools in football at the middle school level. They would rarely play any of the other area schools while Midway was playing the Temple, Belton and Cove middle schools.

Even know they only play certain non WISD schools for some reason.

SoonerFrogs said:

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Gobearsone said:

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SoonerFrogs said:

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there once was a Hewitt High School, though. And a Speegleville school.

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There was never a Hewitt high school.

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you sure about that?

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There was. The old building was used for feed storage for a while back n the late 60's.

Some old memories are slowly coming back. Wasn't there a brand new HS in the late 50's or early 60's called Richfield?

I can't find any trace of that name. When I was in Waco I thought that was a brand new HS.

Richfield started in 1962 i think; what is now Waco High was the Richfield campus (with a few new additions over the years).

Richfield and Midway had some brawls back in the day. That was fun to see as a kid.

The 4A schools have some good athletes. We have a 4* commit from Lorena. Connally has a couple 4* guys. I'm not aware that China Spring has anybody highly rated but they've got a WR and QB that are D1 quality and their sophomore class is really good. LaVega has a good sophomore class as well that'll put them back on the map.

Midway will likely be back at some point in the future but has been ugly for a few years. The WISD schools are going to have to recruit better to win…their best athletes end up going elsewhere and administrators don't care enough to put a stop to blatant violations. Until that changes, they will not compete with KISD, Temple, Cove, Belton, etc.

Here we sit in December, and China spring, Crawford, and Mart each won their region and are playing in the state semi finals. Three McLennan county schools. Waco is officially the cradle of small school football.

Aliceinbubbleland said:

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Back to my original question. Is there a Woodway HS or is Midway the Woodway HS?

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Woodway is the city. Midway is the high school

MoneyBear said:

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The 4A schools have some good athletes. We have a 4* commit from Lorena. Connally has a couple 4* guys. I'm not aware that China Spring has anybody highly rated but they've got a WR and QB that are D1 quality and their sophomore class is really good. LaVega has a good sophomore class as well that'll put them back on the map.

Midway will likely be back at some point in the future but has been ugly for a few years. The WISD schools are going to have to recruit better to win…their best athletes end up going elsewhere and administrators don't care enough to put a stop to blatant violations. Until that changes, they will not compete with KISD, Temple, Cove, Belton, etc.

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I seem to recall a poster noting a few years back that Midway was going to take a dive for a bit due to talent loss but would be back due to talented kids coming up.

BTW, I've watched Crawford this year and they're fun to watch. They'll make you limp if you're not ready to play. They also have a skill guy who is worth a look by college coaches. Had a tough out last nite with Tolar I understand and didn't back down from some punches at the end.

Robert Wilson said:

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They could've hired Briles at that point. Tusa refused. That would've pulled them back from the brink. Kids would transfer in to play for him. As it is, you've got some of the best athletes in Waco ISD getting themselves out to Midway, La Vega or elsewhere. That would've been unthinkable back in the day.

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Allowing kids to transfer around searching for their best football fit is corrupt and is sort of like Biden's loan forgiveness BS.

Kids need to be taught a lesson about commitment and loyalty. Honor. Dependability. It's no wonder our society is escalating towards the cess pool.

Robert Wilson said:

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parch said:

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Money and resources, really. Tusa left in 2008 as Waco ISD was nosediving in quality of resources just as Midway was spiking. Midway's resources paired with Waco ISD's precipitous decline in quality of standard sealed the fate of the program. Then when Gambill showed up to turn Midway into a state power just as Tusa's predecessors stumbled, the future course was set. It isn't as hard to get kids eligible to play in neighboring districts as you might think. Midway is stumbling now, but they'll regain footing eventually. Waco High probably won't, at least to the standard of deep playoff runs as they'd occasion under Tusa.

Other than that, the norm. China Spring has been the area's best team lately. La Vega has stumbled a bit since Willie Williams retired. Mart is Mart, they'll compete for state every year. Crawford goes deep in the playoffs every year with kids who look like middle schoolers. Lorena dropped a class and won state, go figure, super happy for Ray Biles, one of the best guys in high school football you'll find.

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The old days of a powerful Waco High are obviously over. They could crawl back to decent if they stay 5A and keep a good coach in place, but that's likely it.

Midway should flash back - too much talent and commitment over there for them not to catch back up, but I don't know that they ever become a consistent power. They're obviously better off in a district heading south.

Nice to see University finally back in the playoffs. Rodney Smith's kid (freshman) is going to make a lot of noise there the next few years. Remember his mom was an even better athlete than his dad, comparably.

All that said, we are unlikely to see dominant 5A/6A ball in Waco consistently. That's in part b/c McLennan County education is so fragmented - 17 school districts in one county that's not that big.

I think we have arguably become the best area for small school ball in the state. State championships from China Spring (beat Stephenville last week in a barn burner), Lorena, La Vega, Mart (again and again and again), Crawford threatening every year w/ a chance this year (won 1 in the modern era), Chilton with some championships and then the curse of being lumped in with Mart, West right there on the verge, Marlin in semis last year...

If you stretch a little further down into the Brazos valley and start counting Bremond, Cameron (both historically in Centex districts), or even Franklin (now in a Centex district), the numbers get stupid.

Either way, if you enjoy 2A - 4A ball (I do), Central Texas is a hotbed with great games every week.

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I believe as far as 6A goes, Midway is very small and that is part of their problem.

drahthaar said:

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MoneyBear said:

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The 4A schools have some good athletes. We have a 4* commit from Lorena. Connally has a couple 4* guys. I'm not aware that China Spring has anybody highly rated but they've got a WR and QB that are D1 quality and their sophomore class is really good. LaVega has a good sophomore class as well that'll put them back on the map.

Midway will likely be back at some point in the future but has been ugly for a few years. The WISD schools are going to have to recruit better to win…their best athletes end up going elsewhere and administrators don't care enough to put a stop to blatant violations. Until that changes, they will not compete with KISD, Temple, Cove, Belton, etc.

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I seem to recall a poster noting a few years back that Midway was going to take a dive for a bit due to talent loss but would be back due to talented kids coming up.

BTW, I've watched Crawford this year and they're fun to watch. They'll make you limp if you're not ready to play. They also have a skill guy who is worth a look by college coaches. Had a tough out last nite with Tolar I understand and didn't back down from some punches at the end.

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Crawford plays great team ball. Everyone taking care of his responsibility. And they lay the wood. Add to that they have 4-5 special weapons this year. No FBS types but a few FCS or D2 types who play their asses off.

Hawley, Timpson, and Refugio each have some big time FBS level athletes. Next two games will be interesting.

China Spring is absolutely loaded, and I expect them to win it again. Ditto Mart.

Thee University said:

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Robert Wilson said:

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They could've hired Briles at that point. Tusa refused. That would've pulled them back from the brink. Kids would transfer in to play for him. As it is, you've got some of the best athletes in Waco ISD getting themselves out to Midway, La Vega or elsewhere. That would've been unthinkable back in the day.

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Allowing kids to transfer around searching for their best football fit is corrupt and is sort of like Biden's loan forgiveness BS.

Kids need to be taught a lesson about commitment and loyalty. Honor. Dependability. It's no wonder our society is escalating towards the cess pool.

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Kids can't transfer for athletic purposes. If schools suspect that is why a kid changes schools they can petition the UIL and the player can be ruled ineligible. It happens all the time.

If their family moves, there is a clear difference in the schools in terms of educational rankings, etc. it gets harder to prove.

cowboycwr said:

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Thee University said:

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Robert Wilson said:

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They could've hired Briles at that point. Tusa refused. That would've pulled them back from the brink. Kids would transfer in to play for him. As it is, you've got some of the best athletes in Waco ISD getting themselves out to Midway, La Vega or elsewhere. That would've been unthinkable back in the day.

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Allowing kids to transfer around searching for their best football fit is corrupt and is sort of like Biden's loan forgiveness BS.

Kids need to be taught a lesson about commitment and loyalty. Honor. Dependability. It's no wonder our society is escalating towards the cess pool.

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Kids can't transfer for athletic purposes. If schools suspect that is why a kid changes schools they can petition the UIL and the player can be ruled ineligible. It happens all the time.

If their family moves, there is a clear difference in the schools in terms of educational rankings, etc. it gets harder to prove.

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I was thinking specifically when a kid's parents pull him from a public school and enrolls him into a private school or vice versa.

I've seen a kid leave a public high school, transfer to a private school and then when that did not work out, transfer and finish up back at the same, original public high school. The family never moved.

Thee University said:

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cowboycwr said:

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Thee University said:

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Robert Wilson said:

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They could've hired Briles at that point. Tusa refused. That would've pulled them back from the brink. Kids would transfer in to play for him. As it is, you've got some of the best athletes in Waco ISD getting themselves out to Midway, La Vega or elsewhere. That would've been unthinkable back in the day.

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Allowing kids to transfer around searching for their best football fit is corrupt and is sort of like Biden's loan forgiveness BS.

Kids need to be taught a lesson about commitment and loyalty. Honor. Dependability. It's no wonder our society is escalating towards the cess pool.

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Kids can't transfer for athletic purposes. If schools suspect that is why a kid changes schools they can petition the UIL and the player can be ruled ineligible. It happens all the time.

If their family moves, there is a clear difference in the schools in terms of educational rankings, etc. it gets harder to prove.

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I was thinking specifically when a kid's parents pull him from a public school and enrolls him into a private school or vice versa.

I've seen a kid leave a public high school, transfer to a private school and then when that did not work out, transfer and finish up back at the same, original public high school. The family never moved.

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That is a totally different thing though. Hard to stop it or create rules to limit it when it is public and private schools and the parents make the choice to go pay tuition somewhere else.

I don't know how a state would even begin to make rules to stop that.

Katy lost today to Vandegrift, an Austin school I've never even heard of before.

Westlake vs Galena Park now. Another Austin school.

And finally another high school I have never heard of, Prosper vs Duncanville.

China spring is back in the state championship game.

As is Mart.

Crawford lost a tough semifinal game after a few key injuries. Finished 14-1.

SoonerFrogs said:

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Richfield and Midway had some brawls back in the day. That was fun to see as a kid.

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We did. You could tell the difference by hairlengh. Midway had a strict dress code. I used to get sent across the street for a haircut by Coach Taylor (principal by then).