GRIDIRON GLANCE ’22: Blanket Tigers

August 14, 2022 at 6:52 am Derrick Stuckly

BLANKET – For the third year in a row, a different head coach will helm the Blanket Tigers football program. Still, lofty expectations remain – not only within in the program, but throughout the state.

First-year head coach Michael Cherry is taking over a program ranked No. 18 in the Class A Division II preseason poll by Dave Campbell’s Texas Football magazine.

“I grew up in Gordon, played six-man, went to Tarleton and had one of the best coaches in the business in Shane Mallory,” Cherry said. “He’s been huge in my career. I was hired at Jonesboro and went there for two years. The last three years I was working at Rochelle for my brother, who was the A.D. The Blanket job came open and it’s a place I’ve always kept up with. We played them when I was in high school, they’ve always been competitive, so I was excited for the opportunity.”

The Tigers are coming off a 9-2, district championship season with eight of 11 lettermen back, including four starters on each side of the ball.

“I expect us to be good,” Cherry said. “If we can stay healthy, I think we’ll be pretty good and competitive in any game we step in. We’ve got to stay healthy. Everybody’s made us the team to beat in district, we’re going to have that target on our back and get the best shot of everyone we play. We’ll have to keep the boys focused and not overlook any opponent.”

Among the returnees for the Tigers are preseason district MVP Brayden Day, Levi Vazquez and Brennen Varner, along with newcomer Isaac Smith.

“If you know anything about Blanket football the last couple of years you know the name Brayden Day,” Cherry said. “He and Levi Vazquez, those two will probably start in the backfield and both will be solid. Varner will play quarterback. We have a couple of young guys rotating in on the line like Isaac Smith. He’s solid, a big body kid. If we can keep our core healthy, we’ll be OK. We’ve got some freshmen that’ll find some playing time. It’s an exciting group.”

Prior to the start of district action, the Tigers will tangle with Rising Star, Bryson, Eden, Santa Anna, Moran and Evant.

“I don’t think its unattainable to think we can go undefeated,” Cherry said of the early-season goals. “A lot of things have to go right for that to happen, but I believe in setting lofty goals and I think that should be our goal. We’re going to face some adversity, we’ll have some games we are down in, and we’ll see if we can fight back or not. I have to keep the boys focused and make sure they don’t feel like that because we beat a team by so much last year the focus isn’t there this year.”

Blanket is the District 15-A Division II favorite over Mullin, Gustine, Sidney and Zephyr, according to DCTF.

“Personally, I think it’ll be a competitive district,” Cherry said. “Gustine has a new coach, Sidney has a new coach, Mullin has a coach that’s been there a couple of years and has his program in. Zephyr is up and coming and young. All these teams, we’ll get their best shot and they’ll be looking for us. We’ll have the target on our back.”

Regarding the keys to securing a second straight district championship and making a lengthy postseason run, Cherry said, “We’ve got to have a strong run game. My goal is for us to be able to sweep whenever we want, win the battle on the line scrimmage, win the battle on the defensive end with our lead running back. I want to be able to get the ball quick and run downhill quick, be able to use some of our quickness to our advantage.”

***

BLANKET TIGERS 2022 VARSITY FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

Aug. 26	at Rising Star	7:30 p.m.
Sept. 2	at Bryson	7:30 p.m.
Sept. 9	Eden	7:30 p.m.
Sept. 16	Santa Anna	7:30 p.m.
Sept. 23	Moran#	7:30 p.m.
Sept. 30	at Evant	7:30 p.m.
Oct. 7	OPEN	OPEN
Oct. 14	Gustine*	7:30 p.m.
Oct. 21	at Mullin*	7:30 p.m.
Oct. 28	Sidney*	7:30 p.m.
Nov. 4	at Zephyr*	7:30 p.m.