The Turnaround – Halfway Point

gamestrat high school football sideline instant replay
Lubbock got new home uniforms for last Friday's game against Estacado.

Lubbock got new home uniforms for last Friday’s game against Estacado.

by Jason Strunk
Lubbock High School Head Football Coach
Follow @WestTXCoach

Suggesting that the 2014 season has been a disappointment thus far would be the biggest understatement known to mankind. It has been painful, both physically and emotionally.

We broke summer camp with two strong scrimmages, the best two we have ever had here. You could easily see how far along the senior class had come. Light years ahead of where they were when we arrived. Finally, in Year Four, we had all the pieces in place to start the season.

The problem, which none of us could have predicted, started on the first offensive drive of the season in Sweetwater. QB James Garcia went down with an injury. At the time we had no idea how the injuries would snowball out of control.

Through five games we are down nine starters, all of whom are lost for the year. There is no way anyone, not even Nostradomous, could have predicted what we have faced. It’s has been mind boggling, frustrating and just downright heartbreaking! Our hearts ache for the seniors that we have lost for the season.

Tough way to start the season indeed. Does it spell doom for us? No. We are better than that!

We have nine sophomores and one freshmen playing varsity football right now. These kids were part of seven win freshmen team last year, the most wins LHS freshmen have had in over forty years. Their future is now. They are learning on the fly and it is fun.

We have built a solid foundation. The numbers are up. The athletes are here. We will make it through this tough patch and see where we end up. I like this program and what we are made of. We just need to keep plugging away.

The playoffs are still the goal and still obtainable. Nobody here is giving up. That’s not our style. We worked too hard to throw in the towel. Tough times build tough people. We see tough and we will be fine!

LAST NON-DISTRICT GAME
LHS wraps up the “preseason” portion of our schedule this week with a three hour trip to Borger. District play begins next week. One last tune up before they all count.

Lubbock Uniforms locker roomTHEY ARRIVED
Our new black jerseys arrived just hours before our Estacado game last week! They look sharp! Special thanks to Dan and Josie Walker, Jennifer Roland and Mike Meeks for setting up our locker room with them. Our kids came in and were surprised and pumped to wear them. It was fun to see!

RANDOMNESS
– in 2009, while at Plant City High School, we started 16 sophomores. Been there, done that. We will be fine.
– I have learned a lot about myself during this ridiculous rash of injuries and bad luck. I discovered I am human after all.
– Failure is only an event. It does not define you or your character. Failure toughens you and makes you better.
– This coaching staff has worked overtime trying to get young kids varsity ready. We will not stop until it’s done.
– Writing is my therapy. I have to admit, however, it is tough writing and rehashing all of the things we have endured. I promised Jeff Fisher I would give him all I got with this blog. I will follow through on my promise.

That’s all I got!

No More Fumbles

Play Football

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About the Author

Jeff Fisher
Jeff is an award-winning journalist and expert in the field of high school sports, underscored with his appearance on CNBC in 2010 to talk about the big business of high school football in America.Jeff turned to his passion for high school football into an entrepreneurial venture called High School Football America, a digital media company focused on producing original high school sports content for radio, television and the internet.Jeff is co-founder and editor-in-chief of High School Football America, a partner with NFL Play Football.