What's Happening in Henderson County

(This interview was recorded Wednesday, Oct. 4, with Coach Jamie Driskell.) By Michael V. Hannigan The Malakoff Tigers (6-0, 2-0) look to stay undefeated when they travel to Teague Friday night to face the Lions (4-1, 1-0). The game figures to be a battle for the top of the District 8-3A standings. "They're extremely athletic," said Coach Jamie Driskell. "They've got really good athletes." Coach D...

(This interview was recorded Tuesday, Oct. 3, at the Athens Field House with Coach Zac Harrell.) By Michael V. Hannigan The Athens Hornets will try to climb back into the win column this week after falling to Lindale last week. "We thought our defense played a really good football game, and we thought our kids played hard," said Coach Zac Harrell. "We didn't think they backed down. Offensively, we...

(This interview was recorded Thursday, Sept. 28, via Google Meet with Coach Jamie Driskell. Not everything from the interview makes it into the story, so please listen.) By Michael V. Hannigan The Malakoff Tigers (4-1) and the Fairfield Eagles (1-4) combined to score 143 points last week. Of course, they weren't playing each other. That changes this week. Fairfield will visit Malakoff Friday night...

(This interview was recorded Tuesday, Sept. 26, at the Athens ISD Field House with Coach Zac Harrell. We discuss topics that don't make it into the story, so please listen.) By Michael V. Hannigan The Athens Hornets (4-1) are on a four-game winning streak after beating Jacksonville last week, 48-28, to open district play. The Hornets have been playing well in all three phases -- offense, defense,...

(This interview was recorded remotely on Wednesday, Sept. 20, with Coach Jamie Driskell. We talk about things in the interview that aren't in the story, so please listen.) By Michael V. Hannigan And now comes district. The 4-0 Malakoff Tigers move into the next phase of their season Friday night when they travel to Kemp to open District 8-3A play against the 1-3 Yellowjackets. The Tigers rolled th...

(This interview was recorded with Coach Sherard Poteete on Tuesday, Sept. 19, at the TVCC Field House. We cover a lot in the interview that doesn't get into the story, so please listen.) By Michael V. Hannigan It has been a difficult week at The Valley. TVCC assistant football coach Bill Neal died Sunday at the age of 82. "Coach Neal has been with us and been a very, very big part of our staff, ou...

(This interview with Coach Zac Harrell was recorded Tuesday, Sept. 19, at the Athens ISD Field House. We cover A LOT in the interview that doesn't get into the story, so please listen.) By Michael V. Hannigan The Athens Hornets (3-1) are riding a three-game winning streak as they prepare to start District 9-4A play this Friday night by hosting the Jacksonville Indians. The Indians haven't fared as...

By Michael V. Hannigan The No. 5-ranked Cardinals (2-0) will be at Bruce Field Saturday night to host No. 15 Tyler (1-1). Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Both teams were on the road last week, with TVCC beating Air Force Prep, 38-26, and Tyler taking care of Georgia Military, 52-28. That big score by the Apaches isn't a mirage. Tyler has averaged 50 points in its first two games. "Tyler's played r...

By Michael V. Hannigan This interview was recorded with Athens Coach Zac Harrell at the Athens ISD Field House on Tuesday, Sept. 12. The Hornets, 2-1, will be looking for their third consecutive win when they travel to Kaufman Friday night to take on the 0-3 Lions. Last Week The Hornets are coming off an exciting 45-38 win over Rusk last week. "We were really proud of our kids," said Coach Zac Har...

This interview was recorded Wednesday, Sep. 6, with Malakoff Coach Jamie Driskell and Michael V. Hannigan. === Malakoff is off to a sizzling start. The Tigers have put up over 50 points twice on their way to a 2-0 record, but Malakoff is back on the road again this week to face a tough Salado Eagles team that is also undefeated and scoring plenty of points. This post is brought to you by our spons...

After a big win over Snow College to start the season and then an open date, the TVCC Cardinals return to action Friday against Air Force Academy Prep. The Cardinals will travel to Colorado Springs, Colo., to take on the Falcons, who run the typical Flexbone offense employed by the military academies. "That's when we see dive, dive dive," said TVCC Coach Sherard Poteete. "Can we tackle the dive gu...

(NOTE -- We go deeper on several subjects in the interview, so be sure to listen. -- Michael) The Athens Hornets (1-1) will host Rusk (2-0) Friday night at Bruce Field as Hornet Nation celebrates Homecoming. The Hornets are coming off a 49-28 win over Life Waxahachie last week in a game that was never really in doubt after the first quarter. "It was a good win, especially coming off that first-wee...

This interview was recorded Wednesday, Aug. 30, with Coach Jamie Driskell and Michael V. Hannigan. === The Malakoff Tigers got their season off to a hot start last week by beating West Rusk, 56-14. Things won't be as easy this week as the Tigers travel to Grandview to take on the Zebras. Malakoff started the season ranked No. 5 in the state by Dave Campbell's Texas High School Football, while Gran...

This interview was recorded Tuesday, Aug. 29, in the Athens ISD Field House with Coach Zac Harrell and Michael V. Hannigan. == The Athens Hornets will host Life Waxahachie in their home opener this Friday night. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. The Hornets are looking to bounce back from a tough late-game loss to Brownsboro last week. Mistakes cost Athens in what was a winable game. "We lost the...

No. 5-ranked Malakoff will start its season Friday night by hosting the West Rusk Raiders. The Raiders are ranked No. 15 in Class 3A DII. The Tigers will lean on their defense as things get underway in 2023. They have several starters returning in the front seven. "I think that's where we start," said Malakoff Coach Jamie Driskell. "Those guys are flying around, and they're being leaders." This po...

Are you ready for a battle? The Athens Hornets will open their season Friday night on the road against Brownsboro in the annual Battle of Highway 31. The Hornets won a barn-burner last year, 34-27, in a game that saw the two teams combined for almost 800 yards of offense. Athens was led in that game by senior QB Ty Arroyo, but he's gone now, and the Hornets will be turning to sophomore David Richa...

The Trinity Valley Community College Cardinals will open their season against Snow (Utah) College at 7 p.m. Thursday in Malakoff. Snow starts the season ranked No. 4, while the Cardinals are ranked No. 15 in the nation. This isn't your average opener. Classes started this week at TVCC, and the Cardinals are playing in a different stadium because Bruce Field was already booked. It's been a disrupte...

This interview was recorded Thursday, Aug. 3, in the Athens ISD Field House with Coach Zac Harrell and Michael V. Hannigan. === Another season of Hornet football has gotten underway in Athens, and to beat the heat, the seniors, juniors, and sophomores are working out early in the morning. "It's a great group of kids," Coach Zac Harrell said. "They like being around each other. It's fun every day t...

The Malakoff Tigers started a season full of high expectations when players arrived for this year's first official practice on Monday. The Tigers are coming off a state semifinal run last year and enter 2023 ranked No. 5 in the state by Dave Campbell Texas Football. "They (the players) know expectations are high, and they're kind of pushing each other a little bit," Coach Jamie Driskell told me du...

TVCC Cardinal football is about to get started in earnest. "Today, Monday the 31st, is the quiet before the storm," Coach Sherard Poteete said Monday when I visited him at the Field House. Tuesday, 90 players will be out on the practice field for the Cardinals, getting ready for the upcoming Southwest Junior College Football Conference season. Not that the Cardinals have been doing nothing. For ab...

This interview was recorded at the Henderson County Justice Center on Wednesday, April 12, with Sheriff Botie Hillhouse and Michael V. Hannigan. == In this week's episode, Sheriff Botie Hillhouse talks about National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week, the Deputies of the Quarter, and the Henderson County First Responders Rodeo. I. Statistics (1:49) Summary: There are currently 391 inmates in He...

This interview was recorded at the TVCC Field House with Coach Sherard Poteete and Michael V. Hannigan. == One trophy down, another one in sight. The TVCC Cardinals are the Conference Champions after going undefeated through their regular season with an 8-1 record, and a perfect 7-0 run through the Southwest Junior College Football Conference. Now the Cardinals are looking to add a Regional Champi...

(Travis Tapley Photo) By Michael V. Hannigan This interview was recorded at the TVCC Field House with Coach Sherard Poteete and Michael V. Hannigan. == The TVCC Cardinals vaulted to No. 4 in the nation this week after beating NMMI, 40-21, last week at Bruce Field. That win locked in the Cardinals as the regular season conference champions and the No. 1 seed in the playoffs which begin next week. B...

This interview was recorded Wednesday, Oct. 26, in the TVCC Field House with Coach Sherard Poteete and Michael V. Hannigan. == There's a classic matchup on the schedule for Saturday's TVCC Homecoming game. The No. 7 Cardinals will face the defending national champions, No. 5 New Mexico Military Institute (NMMI), at Bruce Field starting at 1 p.m. The NMMI Broncos are 5-1 in the conference and comin...

ATTENTION: THIS GAME HAS BEEN MOVED TO 7:30 P.M. THURSDAY. This interview was recorded Wednesday, Oct. 26, at the Athens ISD Field House with Coach Zac Harrell and Michael V. Hannigan. == For the second straight week, the Athens Hornets will face a Top 10 team when they take the field. Last week, the Hornets battled No. 8 Kilgore and this week they get to be on the road to Tyler to meet the No. 9...