Head coach Joe McBride (seated) has a half-dozen starters returning on each side of the ball and that includes players (left to right) Solomon Thomas, John Herubin, Blake Mahon, Chris Adkins and Gavin McDaniel.
Photo by Jim Redman
When the Cowboys of
Coppell (Texas) were good last year, they were really good.
Coppell opened the season with a 41-8 drubbing of East Texas power Longview and four weeks later handed eventual Class 5A-I state champion Allen its only loss of the season.
Eventually, Coppell was bounced from the playoffs by DeSoto. In 2013, the team returns a very balanced group that should again be among the nation's best.
Linebacker John Herubin
Photo by Jim Redman
A half-dozen starters return on each side of the ball. The most high-profile Cowboy is
Solomon Thomas, a defensive end with numerous Division 1 offers, including from Texas, Stanford and Notre Dame. He'll be supported by linebacker
John Herubin, an athletic, 6-foot-4 linebacker who was a first team all-region selection.
The team's offense should click from day one. With the exception of the team's center, the entire offensive line is returning from last year. However, the unit was plagued by injuries last year, something that could derail Coppell's title hopes in 2013.
See the entire Preseason Xcellent 25The team's top two running backs also return, as
Gavin McDaniel and
Charles West will come back for more success.
Quarterback Colby Mahon needs to be replaced. He leaves behind rather large shoes to fill, though McBride likes what he has seen from junior
Skyler Bonneau and sophomore
Myles Paschal.
Local look: "Thomas has so many suitors that even when he narrows the list, he's got a baker's dozen."
- Matt Wixon, Dallas Morning News, on the hectic recruitment of Solomon Thomas
