The first day of the 2019 Texas 7-on-7 State Championships is in the books, and teams are set up for single elimination bracket play on Friday after three rounds of pool play, despite big weather crashing the party. After both divisions played a single round of pool play, a nearly three hour weather delay forced a modification to the schedule and the teams finished the day playing a pair of 30-minute games to conclude the day. Games are typically forty minutes and weather permitting the normal game schedule is in place Friday.

The Division III bracket will begin at 8 a.m. Friday, while the Division II bracket will kick off at 9 a.m.

Division II

Three That Impressed:

Jourdanton: The Indians were the story of the first day of the tournament, rolling to a 3-0 record in the Pool of Death, notching wins over Brock, Stephenville and Texarkana Pleasant Grove in succession.

Sweeny: The Bulldogs used a high-powered offense to score over 50 points in their opening win over Marion, then used a lock-down defense in their second game to take down China Spring, 24-7, and finished with a thrilling win over Celina 22-21 to clinch the top spot in the pool.

Graham: Pre-tournament favorite Graham did nothing to dispel their status, posting three double-digit wins in pool play over Boerne, Longview Spring Hill and Hitchcock.

Three That Struggled:

Brock: The young Eagles had trouble in Pool F losing three straight games on the day. The day started out with a blowout loss to Jourdanton. Brock bounced back in the second game, pushing Texarkana Pleasant Grove to the limit in a six-point loss, but then ended the day with a 25-14 loss to Stephenville. Brock’s offense, in its final two games, struggled to find its footing.

Celina: The typically-powerful Bobcats could easily have gone 2-1, but had a pair of agonizing one-point losses to Marion and Sweeny to close the day.

Rio Hondo: It was a rough day at the office for the Bobcats who suffered lopsided losses in their first two games to Midlothian Heritage and Dumas, before they played Columbia tough in a 26-20 loss.

Game of The Day:

Crockett 34, Waco LaVega 33: The day started out with a bang as Crockett served notice that they would be a tough out, pulling out a thrilling 34-33 win over the Pirates in pool play.

Tomorrow’s Four-Over-One Pick:

Celina over McGregor: Celina isn’t a typical No. 4 seed and with two one-point losses on Thursday, the team will be eager to make amends as the slate is wiped clean. Check out our insider article for all the bracket picks Friday!

Division III

Three That Impressed:

Wichita Falls City View: The Mustangs offense sizzled in their first two games, scoring 47 points in each game while blowing past Ballinger and Sonora, and then showed their defensive abilities in a hard fought 27-20 win over Poth to end the day.

Crane: The Golden Cranes put on a show for new head coach Jeff Cordell in their first game, blowing East Bernard away 31-14, and then won a pair of close games taking down Rogers 20-13 and Tenaha 14-13.

Hearne: Local favorite Hearne used late a score to knock down Flatonia in its opener and put the clamps down on last year’s runner-up, Palmer, 26-14, before ending the day with another stellar defensive effort taking down Ozona, 21-7.

Three That Struggled:

Arp: My pre-tournament pick to click didn’t make me look good on the opening day as the Tigers' offense fizzled in their final two games, scoring just 14 points total and going 0-3.

Albany: The day started out tough for Albany as the Lions fell behind Daingerfield 24-0 at halftime in their opener and it kept going bad as AHS lost to Ganado and Van Horn in a shocking 0-3 opening day.

East Bernard: The Brahmas' day started out bad in a loss to Crane and the bad luck continued with two close losses to Tenaha and Rogers. Much like Celina in Division II, don’t be surprised if EBHS catches fire in Day 2.

Game of The Day:

Wink 49, Comfort 41 3OT: The Wildcats technically finished third in their pool, but showed some major moxie in a triple overtime win over powerful Comfort. The Wildcats recorded an interception in the third overtime and that proved to be the difference.

Tomorrow’s Four-over-One Pick:

East Bernard over Brady: Brady had a great first day going 3-0, but are drawing a tough No. 4 seed in East Bernard, who lost two games by a combined three points.

Recruiting Notes from Greg Powers:

Texarkana Pleasant Grove 2021 DT Marcus Burris (6-foot-4, 275 pounds) is a freakish athlete. In a win over Stephenville, the mammoth defender split out wide to haul in a long touchdown catch and used his body to block out a defender to secure an extra point. It doesn’t take long to see why colleges like Alabama, Arkansas, LSU, Texas and Texas A&M have all extended him an offer. It is just not too often you see a defensive tackle with his combo of size and athleticism. 
 
Keep an eye on Stephenville 2020 quarterback Kade Renfro (6-foot-3, 190 pounds). The gunslinger has added 15 pounds and looks phenomenal throwing the football. He has a quick release and plenty of velocity. He also seems like a good leader, as he promoted his teammates in a postgame interview and showed a lot of poise with the media after a tough loss. Renfro is committed to North Texas, but he could be a prospect P5 schools look to offer after seeing him more on film in 2019.
 
Brownwood 2020 ATH AJ McCarty (5-foot-11, 180 pounds) recently committed to Baylor, and he is a prospect who could play on either side of the football. He reports that the Bears initially recruited him to play cornerback, but recently opened up the idea of him playing on the offensive side of the football. That being said, he has started to warm up to the concept of playing defense and feels like he could ultimately have a better shot at playing in the NFL on defense. He is quick in and out of his breaks and closes on the football in a flash.