Your Allen Eagles Update

I would be remiss if I didn't post about my adopted hometown Allen Eagles' latest state championship.  This one was the most hard-fought of the now 5 titles in the last 10 seasons, 35-33 over Lake Travis.  I'm not certain if I think Allen deserved it, or was the best team this year, but as I like to say, if you put yourself in the position to win, you're going to do some winning.

The game: there was plenty of drama, LT losing their QB straight off, Allen going up 21-0, LT storming back to lead 24-21, Allen fighting back to squeeze it out on Brock Sturges' 176 yards.  My lasting memory is the final 7 minutes as LT was driving to potentially take the lead, the great INT by Allen deep in their own territory, then Allen running 8 consecutive plays on the ground that picked up 4 successive first downs to run out the clock.  Fitting since the O-line has always been the Allen calling card.

The Eagles' run over the past 10 years is one of the best in TX high school football history.  The numbers are hard to accept when you write them down.  Five in 10 years in the highest class is impressive enough, but the 4 in the last 6 years looks surreal:

Season	Regular Season	Playoffs	Total
2012	9-1	6-0	15-1
2013	10-0	6-0	16-0
2014	10-0	6-0	16-0
2015	10-0	4-1	14-1
2016	10-0	4-1	14-1
2017	10-0	6-0	16-0
Total	59-1	32-2	91-3

To win at this rate against the top programs in TX is something hard to believe.  I vividly remember opening night at the new stadium in 2012, hoping to survive Southlake being in town, wondering if Allen was ever going to realize the potential that everyone recognized.  We couldn’t know that the program that Coach Westerberg had built had in fact finally reached the level of depth and quality necessary to dominate Texas 5A (now 6A).  Those classes had arrived in full force, we just didn’t know what was in store.  6 seasons later and we haven’t yet witnessed a home loss or a season falling short of the state semi-finals.  A 57-game win streak, a national player of the year, a mythical national championship.  This from a school that had never won a title in any class until 2008.  It's been quite a ride.

• 15 seasons since 2003, 9 state semi-final appearances
• 10 seasons since 2008, 137-9 with 5 state championships

Championship game recap:

2008  Allen 21  Hightower 14

2012  Allen 35  Lamar 21

2013  Allen 63  Pearland 28

2014  Allen 47  Cy Ranch 16

2017  Allen 35  Lake Travis 33

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