The Tomball Memorial Wildcats have pulled off a win that almost nobody expected. They beat the Klein Forest Eagles in an intense 15 – 12 affair. Memorial’s victory marks their 1st district win in nearly two years. The win gives the Wildcats much-needed momentum after losing to Klein Cain in the first week. The Wildcats now need to use that momentum to keep performing in the next five weeks in order to have a chance at making playoffs.

When looking at last week’s win, there were many important factors that allowed the Wildcats to come out on top in the 4th quarter. Arguably, the most important aspect was the defense. When the game started, both teams were neck and neck, neither managing to put any points on the board. Both the Wildcat and Eagle defenses were strong enough to nullify each other’s offenses. However, in the 2nd and 3rd quarters, the Wildcats faltered and let two touchdowns be scored, while the Eagles only seemed to get stronger. After that many spectators left, believing the game to be lost. But even after going down two touchdowns, senior Matthew Bess knew the game wasn’t over.

“The team knew that we were still in the game and that we could still win,” Matthew stated. “Even though we were down we had hope, so we just hunkered down and kept playing our game, and it worked out in the end.”

This win was a statement from the Wildcats; they have managed to quiet down some of the team’s doubters. But what most people do not understand is that the team does not play in order to win for the school, instead, they play to win for themselves. It may sound egotistical at first, however, it makes sense. The players only care about proving themselves on the field.

“After last year, we had to realize that we are a team, that we are there for each other, and we don’t go out on the field for the students or staff,” Matthew stated. “We do this for us.”

As exciting as talking about last week’s game is, there is another team coming for the Wildcats– the Klein Collins Tigers. The Tigers are arguably the strongest team in the district, and they haven’t dropped a single game this year, making their record an impressive 5-0. The Tigers boast a very strong rushing game, averaging around 222.4 rushing yards per game compared to the Wildcats’ 169.8. However, while the Wildcats may not be as good at rushing, they make up for it with their passing game, boasting a wild 336.6 average passing yards per game. Compare that to the Tigers’ 201.4 average yards, and it becomes clear that the Wildcats have air superiority. Senior Brandon Gonzalez believes that the team is gonna be able to continue performing after their win last week.

“The team is in a high right now, we are gonna go beat Collins and have fun,” Brandon stated. “The coaches have been excellent at preparing the team and I trust every single one of them.”

Like the Klein Cain and Forest games, this matchup will be the 3rd between the two schools. It is a chance to see which school has learned more from its past failures to pull ahead. The game will be on Saturday, October 8 at the Klein Memorial stadium. Since the game is on a Saturday, the game will be held at an earlier time than usual– 2:00 PM. Will the Wildcats be able to continue their winning performance from last week and break the Collins’ streak? Or was last week just a flash in a pan?