As some of you may have already heard, after two years of shooting for Midlothian Panther Athletics, I am stepping down as the official sports photographer. Between working full-time at The Dallas Morning News, covering as many of the games as possible, balancing family time, and keeping my sanity, something had to give.

It has been an absolute privilege to watch these young men and women in their respective sports and I’ve really enjoyed getting to know a lot of the kids and parents alike. Not only have I been impressed with the effort given on the field, I have been more impressed with the sense of family on the teams as well as the manners these kids have.

I’ve also been very appreciative of the coaches and staff as I trudge up and down the sidelines trying not to get in the way and to allow me the access to capture the images I did. More importantly, I really grew to appreciate how the coaches relate to the kids – how they instruct, motivate, tutor, and guide their respective players not only on the field but off as well. That’s a sense I get throughout the MISD system and one of the reasons we moved here.

So, does this mean I’m through with photography? HARDLY!

Part of my marketing strategy was to network and be hands-on with my time rather than throw dollars at advertising. I wanted to “see and be seen”. Photography is about creating lasting relationships. This is a very personal type of business and that’s the part I love most. My two years in Midlothian have accomplished that. The next phase of my business is to begin focusing on what I really enjoy doing – Senior pictures and Family portraits. Make sure to visit my timeframe site on a new package I’m about to offer!

The action shots will still be available online for purchase, and if I’m needed at the school, I have left the door open to shoot specific events.

I wish everyone the best and I look forward to future opportunities to work with you in the near future. God Bless!

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The volleyball girls won Round 1 of the playoffs defeating Hallsville. Red Oak is next.

The girls play Tuesday night at 7:30pm at Mansfield Timberview. Come out and support your Lady Panthers!

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Due to the wind, the fire marshall cancelled our bonfire for Wed. Oct. 22.

The bonfire is re-scheduled Friday night after our Homecoming game with Waco University. The fire marshall did not allow us to have the bonfire Wednesday night due to the wind and we are hoping the wind will let up by Friday night @ 10:30 to have our bonfire.

We are asking all of our booster parents to please stay for the bonfire to help us with crowd control. We will have two off duty officers to help with the crowd and to insure a great night that the kids will enjoy.

GO PANTHERS!!!

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Published: October 04, 2008 09:46 pm
by Chuck Williams

Brutal is an understatement considering the Tiger’s Friday night loss to Waco Midway. Especially when you realize the term loss isn’t referring to the district standings.

Before the fight song began and the smoke billowed from the front of the new tiger head, the Tigers were entering the game without starting safety and two player Tremaigne Dickson and without cover corner Calvin Glover. When the night ended, they were without starting safety Andy Means, starting wide receiver Matt Ward, and suffered the heartbreaking season ending loss to quarterback Cameron Young with a shoulder injury.

“I hate that we lost Cameron,” said fullback Brian Gregory who led the team in receptions with three for 21-yards. “He is a leader and worked really hard on making us a better team.”

The latter stages of the game saw starting linebacker Cody Evans at quarterback because the first three, count ‘em, 1-2-3, quarterbacks were out with injury.

It’s the kind of nightmare scenario that keeps coaches sleepless deep in the night, and I am sure Dave Henigan had a couple of those sleepless nights over the weekend.

Suffering a 43-7 loss on your homecoming is an insult in and of itself, but having the result of one game so potentially affect the rest of your season is another.

If you listen to the pundits and read the magazines, this team had a tremendous hurdle to clear with everyone healthy. That hurdle just became a brick wall.

“Tonight was a tough night and losing Cameron for the season is so disappointing,” said starting tight end Hank Kirkpatrick. “But the bottom line is that we are 1-1 in district and need to get to 2-1, and that’s how we have to approach next week.”

It’s rare to head into your third district game without knowing who your starting quarterback will be. The extent of the injuries will determine that answer. If healthy, will Henigan go with Dickson or Means? Will Cameron Cutrer be called up from the junior varsity? Will Evans be the man?

To look at the bright side, next week’s opponent Midlothian is not going to have much film on the Tiger’s starting quarterback. In fact, depending on who is under center, the landscape of the Tiger offense may not resemble the one that started the Midway contest.

The absolute key to the Tiger’s success this season was staying healthy and right now they have been bitten by the injury bug in an unfortunate way. Essentially having a two way starter go down is akin to having two players bit by the injury bug. A little middle school math will compute to an equivalent of seven Tiger starters questionable for next week and one starting quarterback in street clothes.

They say high school football is about building character for the kids. The coming weeks, regardless of the win-loss column, will not only build character, but test the current content of it for this bunch of Tiger players.

“We will not give up,” Gregory said. “We will stay together, keep working hard and put it all on the line week after week.”

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I’m finally caught back up from Media Day pics, posters, program ads, etc. Whew! Between that, the games, my real job (I work in sales at The Dallas Morning News) and keeping up with my wife (Deborah) and two daughters, I always seem to be on the go.

Thanks to everyone with your patience with me in trying to get your orders fulfilled and making it out to specific games you’d like me to attend. I’m honestly trying my best to cover as many games — both boys and girls — at all the levels. Next on my immediate “to do” list is covering the freshman A and B football teams’ next home games. Then back to the volleyball courts.

Don’t forget that I also do SENIOR PICTURES. This is a great time of the year as we get into the fall months to get some great outdoor shots. Check out some of my latest photo sessions online under “Find Your Photos”!

Oh, by the way… just checked my online stats for September. There were over 11,500 page views! Last month was the first time I topped 10,000. THANKS TO EVERYONE FOR CHECKING OUT THE SITE!

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The team and individual pics from Media Day were sent to the coaches mid-week and have most likely been passed out. There is still a few more packety that will be delivered early next week (I will be stuffing packets this weekend). So, if you don’t have them, they’re coming!

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8/25/08

Everman 14, Waxahachie 12

From staff reports

EVERMAN —Ryan Smith ran for 128 of his 152 yards rushing in the second half as Everman (1-0) escaped a Waxahachie (0-1) upset bid with a 14-12 win at Marrs Stadium. The difference proved to be a special teams miscue in the first two minutes of the game. On Waxahachie’s first possession, a bad snap was kicked out of the end zone by the Waxahachie punter to give Everman a 2-0 lead.

The game was marred by typical early season mistakes. The two teams combined for 16 fumbles and 15 penalties. Everman’s defense held Waxahachie to 44 yards of total offense in the second half and allowed 178 yards for the game. One Waxahachie play went 76 yards, as Sam Gagliano found an open Oshae Cofer on a reverse pass for a long touchdown.

After falling down by two, the Waxahachie offense took advantage of field position to take a 6-2 lead early in the second quarter, as Jame Gish kicked two 37-yard field goals. Everman would get its first offensive score, as Smith scored on a 4-yard run. Waxahachie responded with Gagliano’s strike to Cofer to take a 12-8 lead at halftime.

The only score of the second half was on Devin Woods’ 1-yard run on a drive spearheaded by Smith’s 66-yard run to put the ball inside the Waxahachie 5. The win is Everman’s fourth in the past five meetings with Waxahachie, and all five have been decided by six points or less.

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Thanks to everyone who has visited the site over the past 2 1/2 years. August marks the first time I’ve had over 10,000 page views in a month (10,170). I’ve had several in the 9500 range, but this is by far the most traffic yet!

That doesn’t even count the photos you view (that’s on PhotoReflect)… so I’m really excited that the word is getting out and you keep coming back. I’m always tweaking, adding, and looking for customer input anywhere I can get it. Don’t be afraid to leave comments or drop me a line.

THANKS TO EVERYONE FOR YOUR SUPPORT! GO PANTHERS!

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