Westlake Picayune

By Thomas Jones, Sports Editor 
With the 2008 fall season now a memory, several questions linger as the football and volleyball coaches begin thinking of next year.

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Player of the Year: Ryan Swope, Westlake
The senior RB repeats as the Picayune’s Player of the Year after leading the Chaps to a share of the 25-5A championship.
Coach of the Year: Derek Long, Westlake
Steady hand helped the Chaps overcome an 0-3 nondistrict record.
Offense
Most valuable player: RB Ryan Swope, Westlake, senior
• QB: Josiah Monroe, 10, Bastrop [...]

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By Thomas Jones, Sports Editor 
What do you do for an encore after one of the best seasons in school history? You do it again – and add in a district title just for good measure.
That’s what Westlake senior running back Ryan Swope managed to do in 2008,  tallying 1,245 yards rushing, 336 yards receiving and 20 [...]

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By Thomas Jones, Sports editor
 
SAN ANTONIO-Westlake faced an unfamiliar game in Saturday’s regional final at the Alamodome.
San Antonio Clark called it keepaway.
Powered by a relentless ground game that nibbled away at Westlake’s defense and the game clock, the Cougars held on for a 24-21 win to claim the Class 5A Region IV Division I championship [...]

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When: Saturday, 2 p.m.
Where: Alamodome, San Antonio
Radio/TV: 1370 AM.
Records: Westlake, 9-4; SA Clark, 12-1
 
Foe to know: Running back Jock Tilghman leads all area San Antonio 5A runners with 2,174 yards and 25 touchdowns on 253 carries.
Stat that matters: 5 – Wins by Clark in five games decided by a touchdown or less this season.
Watch to watch: [...]

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By Thomas Jones, Sports editor
When Westlake football coach Derek Long got on the line with his counterpart at San Antonio Stevens a few weeks ago, he didn’t think much about the absence of his good luck charm.
After all, thought Long, most coaches agree to a neutral site when a nice facility such as Bobcat Stadium [...]

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Clark, Westlake shootout in ’94 still resonates
By Thomas Jones, Sports Editor 
When Westlake and San Antonio Clark hooked up for a wild and woolly Region IV championship 14 years ago, there was only one person in the stadium who had a more miserable time than Chap head coach Derek Long.
“And that was the defensive coordinator at Clark,” [...]

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By Thomas Jones, Sports Editor
In his last full season under center, Tanner Price helped West Ridge Middle School top fierce rivals such as Hudson Bend and Hill Country for an eighth-grade district title.
In his next year as a starter, the Westlake junior quarterback found himself fleeing from a 6-foot-3-inch, 230-pound terror of a University of [...]

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By Thomas Jones, Sports editor
SAN ANTONIO – A blitzing and gambling Harlingen defense became the first in the playoffs to hold Westlake’s Ryan Swope to less than 100 yards.
Unfortunately for the Cardinals’ upset hopes, their special teams couldn’t say the same.
Swope, the Chaps’ all-district senior running back, returned the first two Harlingen kickoffs for touchdowns [...]

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When: Saturday, 4 p.m.
Where: Alamodome, San Antonio 
Radio/TV: 1370 AM.
Records: Westlake 8-4; Harlingen 10-2
Foe to know: Quarterback John Murphy directs a balanced attack while averaging 159 yards passing and 68 yards rushing a game.
Stat that matters: 1,048– Yards of offense gained by Harlingen in two playoff games.
Rundown: Traditional Valley powerhouse boasts an electric spread offense that tallied 501 [...]

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