Before taking the field against the No. 2-ranked Class 4A football team in Texas,
Red Oak coach Mike Shields talked to his players about the rare opportunity that awaited them.
"I told our guys you don't get many chances to get to play a team like Lancaster with that kind of rating,'' Shields said. "And how big a win could be for us.''
Mike Shields, Red Oak Coach
Courtesy photo
Apparently, his Hawks were paying attention.
Red Oak dominated the Lancaster Tigers in the battles up front and scored a
17-0 upset Friday night before an approving home crowd at Billy Goodloe Stadium.
For his role in orchestrating the upset, Shields was selected as the Dallas area Coach of the Week presented by Comerica Bank.
With Friday's stunner, Red Oak (5-3, 4-1 in District 15-4A) moved into a tie with Lancaster for second place in the district standings. Ennis (8-0, 5-0) is the district leader.
"It was a big win for us,'' Shields said. "We played well on both sides of the ball. Offensively, we were able to run the ball and chew up the clock. The defense got us two turnovers that gave our offense a shot.''
Defensive lineman
Josh Fisher, a 6-foot, 265-pound senior, knocked the ball free from a Lancaster ball-carrier with a big hit for one turnover and also pounced on a fumbled exchange by the Tigers.
"It's hard to single out any player in a game like that because so many played well, but Josh made some big plays,'' Shields said.
Offensively, senior running back
Cameron Bausley (5-10, 180) had his number called 32 times and responded with 117 rushing yards, putting him the over the 1,000-yard mark for the season.
"I would describe Cameron as a guy that keeps the chains moving,'' Shields said. "He runs inside and he may not break a lot of long runs, but he allows us to control the ball.''
Bausley and the Hawks did their job of playing keep-away so well that Lancaster had only two possessions in the second half.
"One thing that helped us in the game is the fact that we've had a good record against Lancaster over the years. That made a difference in confidence for our kids,'' Shields said.
Shields and his wife of 22 years, Maria, have two daughters, Sierra, 18, and Parker, 6, along with son Colton, 16, who is a junior deep snapper and reserve receiver for the Hawks.
When Shields accepted the head coaching job at Red Oak in 2007, the Hawks had gone 3-27 the previous three seasons. The playoff drought stretched 22 seasons.
All of that changed in Shields' first season when Red Oak went 10-3, advancing three rounds in the playoffs.
"When we came here, we had to instill confidence,'' Shields said. "I remember one of our players asked me if we were going to have all new coaches like they had been having every year. So our coaching staff needed to be stable and confident because if anything went wrong, with a 3-27 record in three seasons, they could put their heads down. We had a great group of seniors that season.''
Shields' record in six seasons at Red Oak is 36-27. Since that 2007 breakout year, Red Oak has made the playoffs two more times.
"Now our kids expect to be in the playoffs,'' said Shields.
Red Oak now needs one victory in either of its final two games to wrap up a post-season berth. The Hawks play at Waxahachie on Friday and host Seguin (Arlington) on Nov. 9.
"We preach to our guys not to worry about anything except the game at hand, that all we have to do is win one game,'' Shields said. "Because when you start a season in an eight-team district, it makes it difficult if you think you've got to go 7-0.''
