Ranking Cameron’s 2016 Opponents

This week, I want to take a look back at the 2016 schedule and give my personal rankings of the teams the Yoemen matched up against on gridiron. We all know that Cameron has a tradition of scheduling tough opponents. If you followed the Yoemen throughout the year, you know that did not change in 2016. Next week, we will preview all 10 teams on the schedule for 2017 and get a gauge on who could be a potential threat.

14-11. Jarrell (W 46-0), Academy (W 63-0), McGregor (W 44-20), Troy (W 56-2)

10. Gatesville (W 69-31)

This score was somewhat deceiving, as in the third the Hornets held a 31-27 lead. That was before Cameron exploded with 42 straight points, which included two Levi May interception returns for touchdowns in a span of less than a minute. The Hornets did not make the playoffs out of 13-4A DI, but had some competitive games along the way.

9. West (W 35-19)

The Trojans are a football program that has been on a rise the last few seasons, and they gave the Yoemen a good game for the most part all the way through. The Trojans two district losses came to Teague (14-10) and Malakoff (42-0).

8. Woodville (W 48-26)

The Eagles had some good looking athletes on the field in this area round matchup, but at the end of the day, Cameron’s offense proved to be too much. An issue with Southeast Texas teams in this day in age is that they don’t see a whole lot of spread based offenses that can execute both the run and the pass, making it hard to defend it when it comes up in the playoffs.

7. Bellville (W 33-10)

This should go down as one of Cameron’s most impressive season openers of all time, and as a fan of of the Yoemen, you could not have asked for more against a ranked 4A team on the road in a hostile environment. The Brahmas ended up going three rounds in the playoffs.

6. Bay City (W 30-27)

Former Yoe offensive coordinator Guadalupe Florez took what was an 0-10 Bay City team in 2014 and transformed them to 7-4 in 2016 with an area round playoff finish. These Blackcats came to Yoe Field with plenty of fight as the Yoemen had to hold off a late push to pull out the win on the home turf.

5. Franklin (W 42-38)

It was the game everyone had circled on their schedule before the season began. It ended up living up to the hype as Cameron managed to hold off a surging Lion squad inside the goal line in the final minutes. Things did not go so well in the playoffs as the Lions were overwhelmed by Teague in bi-district, 42-20.

4. Rockdale (L 80-54)

If you were at this game, you’ll never forget it. It was not only exhausting for the players, but also for the fans as momentum swings were aplenty with 9 touchdown alone in the third quarter. The Yoemen just had no answer for Rockdale’s playmakers on offense or on special teams as the Tigers put up a series record 80 points.

3. Teague (W 23-6)

Cameron’s most impressive victory of the year came in this quarterfinal win over Teague - making it 3 straight over the Lions in the playoffs since 2014. The Yoe defense shined the entire way, giving up just the early score before tightening up and never allowing the Lions to cross the goal line again.

2. Malakoff (L 37-34)

Both teams had very similar offensive approaches - try to stay balanced while also striking with the big play from their big playmakers. At the end of the day, Malakoff just made a few more of those plays to end Cameron’s streak of state championship appearances at 4. The Tigers suffered a shocking loss to Yoakum the following week in the semifinals, 28-24.

1. China Spring (L 63-13)

China Spring was the number one team on the schedule in 2016, and in my opinion it wasn’t even all that close. It’s rare to see Cameron not competitive in any game, home or away. The last time this happened at home was to Liberty Hill in 2007 in a 63-14 loss. Liberty Hill went on to capture their second consecutive state championship later that season. China Spring nearly got there, but fell to eventual state champion Carthage in the semis, 26-20.