WATER VALLEY, TX — The Water Valley Wildcats have quite the season heading this way and need to replace a number of players on their team.
After being picked as the favorites to make a state run last season out of the Concho Valley, the Water Valley Wildcats came up just short in the state semifinals against eventual state finalist Rankin, 54-46.
This upcoming season, head coach Trey Sisco is looking to reload, and the team will need to hit the ground running. Four of the five pre-district opponents are ranked in the top 25, and two of their district opponents are ranked.
Water Valley will begin the year ranked No. 14.
Sisco will have his hands full as only one starter is returning on both sides of the ball. The good thing is that the player coming back is Branson Lacy, who won COVER1’s Newcomer of the Year last season.
Lacy rushed for 1,531 yards and 30 touchdowns, and he caught 23 passes for 558 yards and eight scores. On defense, he had 115 tackles, five tackles for loss, four sacks, one interception, three fumble recoveries, and scored one TD.
This year, Sisco won’t have a ton of experience, but he does have players who have put in the work. Water Valley's JV team went 9-2 last season, and they return three lettermen from the varsity team.
“They had a really good summer,” Sisco said. “Another guy that had a good summer is Cutter Lange.”
It also wouldn’t be a Water Valley team without a Wiese on the field, and Hudson Wiese fills that void, following in the footsteps of his brothers, Canon and Boston. Other names include Cole Baker, Bronson Holland and Lance Doss.
As for the district, Sisco knows they have a task ahead, especially with Menard.
“Adding Harley and Cohen Ethridge certainly puts them in front, not that they weren’t a good team last season,” Sisco said.
The schedule really puts the Wildcats into instant fight mode. In Week 1, they’ll play Garden City, which is in a similar situation as Water Valley with only two returning starters. In Week 2, they'll have a rematch at home with No. 1 Rankin.
“Their offensive coordinator was my offensive coordinator when we won state with Sterling City,“ Sisco said. “Sometimes that’s a good thing and sometimes that’s a bad thing.”
After Week 2, Water Valley gets four straight ranked games against No. 11 Sands, No. 9 Klondike and No. 21 Westbrook before playing No. 13 Menard in the district opener.
In Week 11, Sisco takes on a familiar opponent in No. 23 Sterling City, where Sisco coached for 18 years before heading down US 87 to Water Valley.
Water Valley will start the season Friday, Aug. 28, when it travels to play Garden City.
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