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Talking with Kilgore’s Mike Vallery
I visited earlier with Kilgore head football coach Mike Vallery about how his team is doing with just a week left before its season opener against former district rival Carthage.
Vallery expects his Bulldogs to be strong on the offensive and defensive lines. Offensive guard Vincent Cano is an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision prospect, and defensive end Dominique Jones has already committed to Texas. A strong offensive line would spell trouble for Kilgore’s opponents. Kilgore is at its best when it has a good O-line, and tailback Frank Reddic will be the key beneficiary.
The quarterback job appears to be Steven McBryde’s. Vallery said McBryde was expected to get playing time last season, but a broken arm suffered early in the season put Eric King in the driver’s seat for the rest of the season. With King graduated, McBryde’s time is now.
“He’s been looking good, getting better every day,” Vallery said. “He just needs to get some playing time. We expect big things out of him. Right now we think he’s where he ought to be at.”
I also asked Vallery about his non-district schedule, which seems pretty ambitious: Carthage, Hallsville, Marshall, Gilmer, and Palestine.
“If we can come through that non-district schedule healthy, we feel like we’ll be ready for district,” Vallery said.
Carthage (16) and Gilmer (23) are both ranked in Dave Campbell’s Texas Football magazine’s preseason Class 3A poll. Kilgore fans will get to see three special quarterbacks with three different styles during non-district: Carthage’s Si’Darius Blackshire (drop-back passer), Gilmer’s Darian Godfrey (cannon arm and strong runner), and Marshall’s Darius Jones (Oklahoma commit with blazing speed).
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