David Brewer knows exactly where he was and what he was doing when Blooming Grove's Tyler Ellis kicked a 48-yard field goal to beat Jacksboro in the playoffs last fall.

It wasn’t just a field goal and it wasn’t just a playoff victory.

When Ellis’ kick with seven seconds left in the game sailed into the night it landed in a place so far and so distant for the kids, coaches and fans in Blooming Grove that it has carried over into a new season and new hope for the town, the team and the folks who call Blooming Grove home.

It was the first win in the playoffs for the Lions since 1977.

“I was watching the game in the press box, but had to leave because my mother had to be rushed to the hospital,’’ said Brewer, the principal at Blooming Grove Elementary and a self-proclaimed die-hard Lions fan. “I was walking into Navarro Regional Hospital and Karen Lane, the high school principal, was on the phone giving me the play-by-play. She said, ‘It’s up … It’s good!’

“It gave me Goosebumps.’’

The whole town felt that way that night, and those Goosebumps are on the rise again because the Lions didn’t just make history with the win in the playoffs, they are back with what people are calling the best Blooming Grove team in years.

“I’ve been here 34 years,’’ Brewer said. “And the expectations are as high as they have ever been in 34 years.’’

It’s not just on the football field, where Ellis, an all-state kicker, returns along with 14 starters, or in the locker room, where the energy has been heating up all summer and about to boil over with the opening night game finally arriving Friday night.

It’s everywhere in Blooming Grove.

There’s a little extra bounce in everyone’s step, a few more smiles around town and the feeling that the buzz that surrounds this team today is going to grow all year.

If you’re not from Texas, it may be difficult to grasp just what a winning football team can mean and how a winning football team in small-town Texas means even more. Friday night lights aren’t just about football, they’re about a sense of community and more.

“It’s hard to explain. It helps pull a community together,’’ said Jim Owens, a retired ag teacher and a legendary softball coach at Blooming Grove who took his team to the state tournament three years in a row and won the state title in 1996. “It’s just pride, pride in the community. We haven’t had this feeling in a long time.

“You have a school like this where they haven’t had success in a while, and now there are expectations in the community where in the past we didn’t expect it. It’s been a long time since the ‘90s. You appreciate it even more,’’ said Owens, whose grandson Brody plays on the team. “We’re a close community. We’ve got a convenience store, a bank and a café, and everywhere people are talking about the football team. This makes everyone feel good.’’

There's plenty of talent and a new coach and a new attitude and confidence that wasn't there in the past. Owens said this group of players has been on the rise for years.

“We watched this group come through junior high,'' he said. “They have a pretty big weight on their shoulders. It's their time.''

Owens’ wife, Marsha, said the town is excited, and she wants everyone to relish this season.

“I want to challenge people to come out and be a part of this,’’ she said. “Don’t wait to come out to the games. It could be very exciting.”

The feeling about this team and this season is sweeping over the town.   

“We haven’t had this feeling in a long time,’’ said John Paul “J.P.” Gillen, a native of Blooming Grove who moved back from Corsicana this year. “There’s a sense of pride everywhere. It gives the community something to hang it’s hat on. In a community the size of Blooming Grove, the school is the heartbeat of the community.’’

Gillen said one of the reasons he moved back to Blooming Grove this year was the football team and the way it has brought the community together. He bleeds Lions blue.

“I followed Blooming Grove football since I was a kid in the ‘70s,’’ Gillen said. “When I was 5 my grandfather brought the equipment to the games, and my biggest thrill was helping to carry the equipment. I played for Blooming Grove in the ‘90s. I moved back and part of the reason was this. It seemed like a great time to move back.

“You can feel the buzz about this team,’’ he said. “And I think it’s ready to blossom. Everyone is excited, and it makes it that much more special because it hasn’t been there in a while, and it’s a lot more special for the kids to have the community believe in the program.’’

They believe in the Grove.

And to put a little more air in the balloon Dave Campbell’s Texas Football magazine picked the Lions as the favorites to win the district title. Most coaches run from preseason predictions, but new coach Lawrence Williams Jr., who takes over after spending two years as a the defensive coordinator, didn’t run at all.

“It shows people are respecting us,’’ he said. “And that’s great for our program. Now we have to earn that respect on the field. Our kids believe we can win, and it's great to see the community support us like they have. I think everybody is excited about Blooming Grove football.’’

For the old-time die-hards, the feelings couldn’t have come soon enough.

“It’s really exciting,’’ said Ted Southard, who is the president of Blooming Grove Pee Wee Football, and a former player. He played on a talented playoff team in 1984 and remembers the glory days of football for the Lions.

“When I was growing up in the ‘60s and ‘70s Blooming Grove was a powerhouse,’’ Southard said. “To be here as a kid and see what it used to be and then to be there when (Ellis kicked the field goal). That was an emotional time for everyone.”

Southard was part of the crew that runs the chains and was on the sideline when Ellis nailed the 48-yarder that set off a celebration that has spilled over into this season.

“We were standing right by the Jacksboro coaches,” said Southard, who was also at the game in 1977 when the Lions last won in the playoffs. “They weren’t too worried about it. They had no idea he would make it. They couldn’t believe it. They were devastated.''

It was euphoric for the Lions.

“It was incredible. I really can’t describe it,” Southard said. “It was a huge lift that hadn’t been there since 1977. It lifted a huge weight off the program. To be there as a kid and see what it used to be and then to play in 1984 and to be there last year when we won. It was an emotional time for everyone.

“And now to start this year after what happened last year … You can feel it. The community can sense it. It’s something we haven’t felt in a long, long time.’’

It’s contagious.

“The whole town is out of the doldrums and excited about this team,” said Brewer, who sees an overwhelming effect in the elementary school. “It makes a difference in every aspect of the school from the classroom to vocational to all of the extra curricular activities, everything. The pride comes over into everyone. Just the entire attitude of everyone …  Everybody is different. It’s just electric, and we haven't even had a game.’’

Kickoff time is 7:30 Friday night in Dawson.

—————

Mike Phillips may be reached by email at mphillips@corsicanadailysun.com

Trending Video