That said, Temple could have mixed in a so-called “softie” somewhere, such as a middle-of-the-road Class 5A program or maybe even a 4A school.
Instead, coach Bryce Monsen and the Wildcats lined up three 5A opponents - Cedar Park, Leander and Plano - who last season had a combined record of 28-10 and competed in a total of eight playoff games.
Cedar Park certainly wasn’t an easy foe last week, jumping out to a 28-6 lead at home and holding on to beat Temple 28-20. Second-ranked Plano definitely won’t be a pushover when it comes to Wildcat Stadium a week from tonight.
And Leander (1-1), owner of seven consecutive winning seasons, shouldn’t be expected to be anything other than a stout opponent when it takes on Temple (0-1) in the Wildcats’ home opener at 7:30 tonight at Wildcat Stadium.
“It would be a great victory for us if we can get it,” said Monsen, whose 2007 squad had a 3-1 home record en route to a 7-4 overall mark. “Is it going to be easy? No. Leander is a quality opponent, just like Cedar Park.”
In addition, Temple wants see how good it is and what it needs to improve more than it wants to simply pick up a couple of easy victories.
“What our schedule allows us to do is that we’re playing very good teams, so that’s making us work extremely hard,” Monsen said. “If you’re going to win, you’re going to have to beat them - they won’t give it to you. To have a chance to win, you’ve got to play all four quarters.
“That’s why we have this schedule,” he added. “It’s good for our kids and it’s good for our community.”
The same can be said for Leander coach Steve Gideon and his Lions. After a 9-4 season in which it reached the third round of the Division II playoffs, Leander has begun this year with a 24-17 victory over rival Pflugerville - the 5A Division II state runner-up in 2007 - and a 31-24 home loss to traditional playoff qualifier Bryan last Thursday.
Now, Gideon is eager to see how his team fares against another tough foe in Temple.
“We know Temple is a very good football team. They had the big breakout year last year and they have a number of players left who know how to win,” Gideon said. “We know about the speed factor, because they have three or four kids with rocket speed that we have to keep corralled.
“It’s really good for us to face a team like Temple in terms of speed, misdirection (in the Wing-T offense) and power.”
Playing Cedar Park at A.C. Bible Jr. Memorial Stadium on Leander’s campus last Friday, the Wildcats experienced a tale of two halves.
Plagued by penalties and a lack of execution, Temple’s offense got off only 21 snaps in the first two quarters - only three more than Cedar Park ran on the first of its four scoring drives.
Riding the effective legs of tailback Dedrick McKnight and quarterback Drew Russo, the Timberwolves rushed 34 times for 195 yards and 11 first downs in the first half. All four of their touchdowns came on running plays.
And on top of that, a high snap one minute before halftime led to Chris Winkler’s punt being blocked out of bounds at Temple’s 10-yard line, setting up the Timberwolves’ final score for a commanding 28-6 lead.
Monsen clearly wasn’t pleased by his team’s performance up to that point, but he certainly liked what he saw from that point forward.
Temple’s coaches made adjustments during the halftime break, and the players came back out and executed them.
The Wildcats outscored the Timberwolves 14-0 in the second half, and the reasons were many. Their defenders ran faster to the ball and were more physical when they got there, limiting Cedar Park to 21 rushing yards and no first downs on the ground.
Although speedy Temple junior running back Lache Seastrunk rushed for 110 of his 134 yards before halftime, including a 76-yard touchdown burst, his second-half carries were complemented by those of rugged newcomers Kane Thomas and Marcus Jones.
Meanwhile, senior quarterback Kevin Lock and senior receiver Tevin Reese connected for a 23-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter and a series of large gains in the fourth that set up Seastrunk’s 2-yard TD in the final minute before Cedar Park recovered an onside kick to stave off the Wildcats.
Needless to say, Monsen was thrilled with the way Temple approached the second half even though it continued to make some first-game mistakes.
“It’s something that in Temple, there will never be any excuses,” he said. “It starts with the head coach, and the first thing is that I need to do a better job of preparing this team to win.
“But one thing we have all learned is you don’t ever feel like you’re out of a game. We were all a little embarrassed, because we made a lot of mistakes. The kids were great at halftime. They said, ‘Let’s get this done. We know we can play better.’ Then we caught our breath and played better in the second half.”
Monsen believes that the lessons the Wildcats learned last week will benefit them tonight and beyond.
“The positives were many, because the kids responded and gave themselves a chance to win,” he said. “That means your kids care.”
As most coaches of Temple opponents said last year and are likely to repeat this season, Gideon said his team’s top priority on defense is to contain the explosive Seastrunk, he of the YouTube highlight video.
“First of all, they ought to make a rule that outlaws a guy as fast as he is,” Gideon, whose son, Blake, is a freshman starting safety at Texas, said with a laugh. “He’s a Division I talent, and he can go from zero to top speed in a hurry. On that (76-yard) play last week, he looked like he took the baton on the anchor leg of a relay. He’s a great concern.
“We do have team speed on defense, but we’ll have to play very well against Temple because we know most teams make their biggest improvement from Game 1 to Game 2.”
Gideon, in his sixth season as Leander’s head coach, attributes his program’s consistent success to its work ethic and also continuity in the coaching staff.
“We believe you make your football team during the offseason, and we like to think ours is as rigorous as any in the state,” he said. “Our kids don’t carry much extra weight, because we encourage them to run, run, run. We’ve been blessed with some (college-level players), but we put hard-nosed teams on the field.”
Monsen and Temple got some good news when the University Interscholastic League approved another year of eligibility for running back Daniel Carr, who was listed as a senior last year. He was a small but punishing blocker for fellow backs Seastrunk, Adrian Reaves-Brown and Quentin Tuck.
“He’s been working out and he’ll play,” Monsen said of Carr. “He’s a great blocker and he understands his spot in the offense. The kids are all happy to have him back."
gwille@temple-telegram.com
