SportzBuzz - September 2024

After advancing to the state finals in one of the greatest seasons in school history, the St. Thomas Eagles will have some major holes to fill heading into the upcoming football season. “We lost 10 players who’ve gone on to play college football, so it’s going to be a chore for sure,” said Eagles Head Coach Rich McGuire. “Offensively, we’re going to have to feel our way through to see who fits best.”

The Eagles hope to have a good fit at quarterback, where they will need to replace Donte Lewis, who is now playing baseball at Kansas State following a spectacular career at St. Thomas. “We have a strong-armed 6-foot-3-inch senior transfer from Beaumont West Brook in Roy Jenkins, plus returning senior Ben Sweeney battling for that spot,” said McGuire.

Another huge void to fill will be at running back with the graduation of Johann Cardenas, who rushed for 4745 yards in a remarkable career for St. Thomas. Cardenas is now playing college ball at Vanderbilt. “We have senior Raymond Vara who got some reps last season plus junior transfer Javaughn Waldron who will both see playing time,” said McGuire.

Back for the Eagles this season is all-state offensive tackle Jake Ghiselin, as well as a trio of standout defensive tackles in senior Jack Reid, senior Trace Langin, and junior Obinna Umeh. In addition, McGuire has high expectations for linebackers John Carr and Cooper Davis as well as defensive backs Damarcus Batiste and Blake Coogan.

The Eagles also return junior kicker Michael Taylor II, who ranks among the nation’s top place kickers. “Michael’s goal is to one day kick in the NFL. He has a monster leg,” added McGuire.

GROUND ATTACK Episcopal Knights senior running back Brandon Thomas accounted for over 1,600 yards and 30 touchdowns for the defending SPC Champions.

It’s a new era for the Episcopal Knights football program under the direction of first-year head coach James Moynahan, who replaces longtime Knights head coach Steve Leisz. “I’m honored and humbled to be taking over the program and look forward to building up on the legacy Coach Leisz established here,” said the 30-year-old Moynahan, who had been the Knights defensive coordinator over the last three years.

Moynahan inherits a defending SPC champion program led by the return of standout senior running back Brandon Thomas, who accounted for over 1600 yards and 30 touchdowns last season. “Brandon’s a physically gifted player who has also taken on a big leadership role,” said Moynahan. Other top offensive players include three-year starting offensive guard Alex Lozada as well as a talented trio of wide receivers in Logan Bartee, Garon Sampson, and Tate Organ.

At quarterback, the Knights will look to a pair of players to fill the void left by the departure of star quarterback Karson Gordon, who is now playing collegiate football and running track at UCLA. “We have senior Tyler Bloomgren who’s been in our program for three years as well as talented sophomore Brody Bartee,” said Moynahan.

On defense, eight starters are back from a unit that only allowed 13 points a game last year. On the defensive line, senior Tyler Cesarski led the Knights in sacks while returning senior linebacker Brooks Edwards was second in the team in sacks. Also, senior defensive back Christian Houston led the Knights in pass break-ups last season.

TALL TEXAN Lamar Texans 6-foot-6, 285-pound offensive tackle Dramodd Odoms is rated among the nation’s top players at his position.

It’s another season of high expectations for the Lamar Texans despite graduating the bulk of its starters from a team that went 12-1 while advancing to the third round of the UIL football playoffs.

“We only return four starters, which is always difficult, but I still think we’ll have a talented team,” said Texans head coach Mike Lindsey.

There is no shortage of talent on the offensive line for the Texans in 6-foot-6, 285-pound senior tackle Dramodd Odoms, who’s rated as one of the nation’s top players at his position. While Odoms has verbally committed to play at SMU, he has offers from numerous powerhouse programs such as LSU, Texas A&M, and many others. In addition, Lindsey says 6-foot-3, 295-pound center Danny Stein is fielding Ivy League offers. “Danny is a very talented, high academic kid.”

The Texans are also bolstered offensively by the return of wide receiver Enrico Moore-Espinoza, who was the district’s newcomer of the year last season, while on defense the Texans are led by the return of talented tackle Chance Bloodsaw.

On special teams, kicker Erik Peters and deep-snapper Cole Mansour are ranked among the nation’s top players at their positions. “Erik is a great kicker and is being recruited by virtually everyone,” said Lindsey. “Cole has numerous collegiate offers as well. His uncle played in the NFL as a deep snapper for several years.”

Editor’s note: Todd Freed is the host and executive producer of H-Town High School Sports, which airs Saturday at 10:30 p.m. on CW39 and Monday-Thursday on AT&T SportsNet SW. To submit high school sports news for possible inclusion in SportzBuzz, please email [email protected].