BY NOLAN RUTH
X – @RealNolanRuth
Arguably the second best program in Parker County is the subject of the next Parker County football preview. The Brock Eagles are the newest addition to Class 4A after three consecutive years of winning their region in 3A Division 1, including two appearances in the state title game.
Head coach Billy Mathis is in the same spot as his mentor was over 30 years ago. Mathis was a sophomore when Tim Buchanan came on the scene for the Aledo Bearcats and he later joined Buchanan’s coaching staff.
There are several similarities between the two at the beginning of their head coaching careers, but one could argue that Mathis has a step up, having taken over a program four years ago that already had plenty of pedigree on the state level.
In his first two seasons, Brock made it to the state championship game before falling short. Now, with a jump in classification, Mathis finds himself in a similar situation as Buchanan did back in 2002 when Aledo jumped from what was then 3A to 4A.
This ultimately means nothing to Mathis and his team as the expectations remain the same. Despite graduating most of their starters from a year ago, this program has become one that the state of Texas will always keep its eyes on, as the famous song says.
The Eagles are young, but bring in a plethora of players who saw plenty of varsity reps. Quarterback Brody Woods returns as signal caller after a season where he threw for 2,427 yards and 31 touchdowns in one of the best spread offenses in the state. He will have plenty of weapons on the outside with Jesse Rusinek and Cannon Stephens looking to make a difference on the other side of the ball, as both had stellar seasons as defensive backs in 2023. Colt Matlock will likely be the main target as he had a sophomore season in which he seemed to score every time he touched the ball.
The backfield will be a committee effort for Brock this season as athleticism is not something the Eagles are short of. Several players could join Woods in the backfield, including Tolar Cearley, Tyler Kirk and Coty Farmer.
Like most 4A Division 2 teams, several players will be playing Iron-Man football (playing on both sides). Rusinek will be one of the biggest weapons on defense as he recorded 34 tackles and five interceptions as a safety. He was beat out in interceptions only by Matlock, who recorded seven INTs in 2023, but only 21 tackles. Woods and Stephens will likely return in the secondary as well to help lock down what could be a record breaking unit for the Eagles.
In the trenches, Brock is very young. However the Eagles aren’t afraid to take on the “next-man-up” mentality. Much like the skill positions, several players up front will be expected to go both ways, including Adam Mueller and Ethan Brooks. Waylon Winfrey and Walker Hughes are also names that could play big impacts on the front line. The only issue – none of them are returning starters. This is where the youth of Brock will have to step up and make a name for themselves. But if history is any indicator, that shouldn’t be a problem.
Schedule & Analysis
at Decatur
at Lake Worth
vs Aubrey
vs FW Southwest
vs East Lake (CA)
vs Eagle Mountain
at Mineral Wells
vs Burkburnett
at Graham
vs Bridgeport
Floor: 7-3, 2-seed
Mathis knew what he was doing when he scheduled his non-district as he loves scheduling tough games. In the last two years, Brock went a combined 1-7 in non-district to programs who made very deep playoff runs. In this scenario I count Decatur as a loss as the Wise County rival, to just about everyone in Parker County, is expecting one of their best years ever and rightfully so. I can’t talk myself into a loss to Lake Worth or FW Southwest. East Lake is a default win in the sense that I don’t know much about them. The other two losses I can talk myself into are Aubrey and Graham. These are two programs with plenty of history that find themselves on the upswing yet again. Thankfully for Brock, only one of these losses is in district, so they still stand as the second seed.
Average: 9-1, District Champions
Not much changes here. Aubrey is a good program, but still has a lot of faults. With the Eagles playing them at home, it’s easy to believe that Brock comes away with a win. It’s the Decatur game that still gives me fits. The Eagles vs Eagles game will send ripples throughout the state regardless of who wins. Decatur still gets the edge in this scenario. However, the experience pays off in the long run and Brock takes down state-ranked Graham on the road for the district championship.
Ceiling: 10-0, District Champions
If Brock can go into Eagle Stadium in Decatur and walk away with a win, I don’t see anybody in 4A D2 Region 1 taking down Brock. It’s very feasible given how strong their scrimmage schedule is, with top ranked Stephenville and Decatur’s arch-rival Springtown on the list. This team is a three-time regional champion and they’re not scared of anybody, even if they are a bigger school. It’s totally plausible that Brock goes north to Wise County and let’s the entire state know that they’re not going anywhere, even with a rise in classification.
