The Badgers’ 2020 season will be remembered for defending their district title -- and the simple fact they even got a season in, when many sports were canceled this year due to coronavirus concerns and the resulting shutdown of schools and events.
“With all the obstacles and hurdles and adversity that we had to deal with, I think 9-1 is a respectable record,” LHS head coach Troy Rogers said.
This year’s winning percentages -- 8-0 regularseason record and 9-1 overall record -- are the Badgers’ best since 1930, when they went 11-1 with a playoff loss to Taylor.
The last undefeated regular season came in 1988, but there was a tie. The Badgers went 9-0-1 in the regular season and 9-1-1 overall that year. Several other seasons over the years had just one loss but at least one tie.
In five seasons, Rogers’ career record is 32-25.
Last year, the Badgers set a school record for most wins (13) and tied the furthest they ever have gone in the playoffs (state semifinals). Several games stood out to Rogers in his postseason coach’s analysis.
“I was proud of the way the guys played, the way they bounced back at Canyon Lake … There were some things that were not going our way … we dug down deep and found ways to win.”
Shutting out a traditional powerhouse on the road was another big accomplishment for the 2020 team.
“I was proud of the way the guys went over and beat Stephenville in such a dominating fashion …,” Rogers said. “The LBJ game, there was a lot of hype around that game. Those guys came in ready … They played their best football game against us.”
While the repeat bi-district win was nice, Rogers acknowledged the district championship actually is a harder accomplishment.
There are 16 district champions in 4A Div. I and 32 bi-district champs, because four teams from each district advance to the playoffs.
“It’s a big deal to be a district champ,” Rogers said.
The coach also said Corpus Christi Miller’s Andrew Body is the best quarterback he has coached against in Lampasas. Body has accumulated over 12,000 career yards.
The biggest questions facing the Badgers this offseason are who will take over the quarterback position and how to continue the success started by Ace Whitehead and his senior teammates. Whitehead also was a four-year starting punter and placekicker.
“It’s pretty safe to say that he’s probably the most decorated athlete to have walked the halls of Lampasas, between baseball and football and track,” Rogers said. But “it takes a lot more than just one person. [Whitehead] is the first one to recognize that.
“It’s helped to have Jack Jerome standing by him for three years.”
The defensive secondary and receivers were the units hit hardest by graduation last year. This year’s secondary outperformed many people’s expectations, especially early in the season, after losing three three-year lettermen.
“Cade [White] and Connelly [White] both did a great job for us in the secondary,” Rogers said. “Keshawn McElwain, a first-year starter for us, really did a lot of good things.”
Dax Brookreson also was a returner and a leader for that unit.
When asked about underrated players, Rogers mentioned receiver Ethan Moreno, tight end Carter Johnson and several senior defensive ends.
“I think guys like Anthony Harris, Joseph Whitehead, Ian McKinney, I think some of those guys from a defensive standpoint just really did a tremendous job.”
Several theories and rumors have circulated about who will be the next starting quarterback, but it’s too early to say, and it’s a position that will be earned over the coming months.
“To me, the number-one trait for a quarterback is decision-making,” Rogers said. “We can’t have guys that don’t know how to make a decision. We can work on accuracy. We can work on all these things that a quarterback needs to have.”