The Allen Eagles have been a model of consistency over the last several seasons. The Eagles haven’t lost a regular season game since 2011 and have either won a state championship or advanced to the state semifinals each of the last five seasons.
Heading into his second season, head coach Terry Gambill wants to maintain that consistency and says that is his main focus as he heads into spring football.
“We just have to be more consistent in how we do things,” he said of his team’s focus into the spring, “The kids are learning something new every day and they continue to get better.”
The Eagles had their fair share of challenges last season, playing top programs outside of Texas in Hoover (Alabama) and Evangel Christian Academy (Louisiana). In the postseason, they faced tough tests from Euless Trinity, Belton and San Angelo Central among others before falling to The Woodlands in the Class 6A Division I state semifinals. That said, Gambill isn’t interested in looking back in the past, instead he’s looking forward to what next season has in store for his team.
“It’s not about them, it’s about us,” he said, “It’s about how we execute and how you go about and practicing and preparing who you’re playing that week and you’ve got to prepare mentally to be successful.”
The Eagles have several talented playmakers on both sides of the ball, but there will be a new face under center for Allen in 2017. Grant Tisdale is projected to take over as the starting quarterback for Mitchell Jonke, who is off to Brown after putting up nearly 3,000 yards of total offense his senior year. He’ll be asked to step up but Gambill insisted the entire load wouldn’t fall on the rising junior’s right arm.
“We’ve got to do a great job of playing as a team. It doesn’t come down to just one guy,” Gambill says, “Right now, Grant is taking snaps as our number one quarterback but he can’t be successful without a great offensive line or great preparation as a quarterback. There’s still a lot to do this spring.”
It will be a tough challenge out of the gate for the Eagles as they face Cedar Hill to start things off followed by another game with Evangel Christian. In order to maintain that success, Gambill takes a page out of Bill Belichick’s playbook as to what the key will be for Allen to maintain their high level of play for the last several years.
“We’re taking it one day at a time and continuing to get better. It’s about getting lined up and communicating on offense and defense and then the bottom line is that we tell our players to do your job. If we do that, I think the rest will take care of itself.”
Brought to you by:
