High School Sports

By SHANE STARK
Staff Writer

ALTO -- Jared Moore is the second consecutive Alto football player to enter his senior year ranked No. 1 in his class. He hopes to attend Texas A&M next fall, pursue a fulfilling career someday and continue avoiding daydreams of "making the league."

So, there may be little surprise when Moore remains grounded at the introduction of a certain topic. He thinks it over. He verbalizes a conservative viewpoint.

"Well, I'm not sure because we graduate a lot of good athletes each year," Moore said earlier this month. "But at the same time, we bring up more good athletes, so I think it's more of a reload thing. So it's not like we use the same people every year."

Brandon Thacker is ranked third in the class of '09. He's also an intelligent teenager, someone who collects himself when the topic is mentioned.

"I feel like we are just trying to be state champs," Thacker said. "It means a lot to me, because we had never done it before and now we have done it twice."

A hot question entering the 2008 season is whether top-ranked Alto stands a single trophy from the big one. Consider UCLA basketball in the 1960s and '70s. The popular television show in the '80s. The Chicago Bulls in the '90s.

Are the Yellowjackets on the verge of becoming a...drum roll... dynasty? Or, have they already scaled such heights? Come to think, what are the standards by which a dynasty is even judged?

Hmm.

During the past two seasons, the Yellowjackets have strongly made a case by sinking their stingers into every opponent en route to back-to-back Class 1A Division I titles.

It's a level of success few programs across the state have ever achieved.

With the Beijing Games having been completed last weekend, the Tyler Morning Telegraph decided to pose the dynasty question. Though the power of the Alto football team certainly pales in comparison to some of the great Chinese dynasties, it has pushed its will onto opponents -- game in and game out.

Since dropping to Class 1A following the 2006 UIL realignments and reclassifications, Alto has played 28 games without losing. Seventeen wins have come via shutouts, and opponents have been outscored by an average of 44 points a game.

Head coach Keith Gardner said the word "dynasty" hasn't been approached inside the program. However, he knows there has been outside discussion.

"It's really nice to have people throw your name in there," Gardner said. "There's been some great dynasties in Texas, and to be thought of as one of those is great. We want to go out and take care of business on the field. When we're old, then we'll sit around and think about it."

Instead, what they're currently thinking about is simply putting together the best run in Class 1A history. All previous streaks ended at two state titles.

"It means a lot, because we will be the first ones in 1A in Texas," senior running back Marcuse Gasaway said. "All we want to go out and do is win, try to win. It shows that we accomplished something, that we worked hard as a team."

Since 1992, the Yellowjackets have missed the playoffs only once. During the 90s, they finished six seasons with at least 10 wins and built a strong reputation for speed and athleticism.

By 2003, however, the program had begun a noticeable decline. That year the Yellowjackets went 5-4, missed the playoffs for the first time in more than a decade and misplaced much of their swagger.

Yet, they rose from the canvas and produced two more playoff teams in 2A. Guess they could've been considered your run-of-the-mill playoff team in '04 and '05, winning nine games each season and not advancing past the area round.

Much like many small towns across the state, the UIL offered Alto a chance to be more competitive. Having reported a student body of 182 to the UIL, the school came in 12 students short of the 2A cutoff and was dropped to 1A.

Suddenly, Alto was a team to beat once again. And the very next fall, the school celebrated its first state title.

The Yellowjackets began the 2006 season with many a target placed on their collective back. State polls ranked them at or near the top. Wonders about the prospect of gold began to surface. An urgency to win sprouted? You bet.

In the first game of the season, the Yellowjackets smashed San Augustine 54-0. In the third outing, they scalded Burkeville by 70 points. And five times later during the regular season, they scored at least 60 points while keeping their opponents off the board.

Some names on the roster might be forever remembered by fans. Tyson Mitchell. Jeremy Lofton. Julian Willis. Clayton Scott. Tarlandus Mitchell. Tarcellus Mitchell.

All played major roles that memorable regular season, during which the Yellowjackets outscored their opponents a mind-blowing 571-13. But it was their feats during the playoffs that will perhaps be remembered most.

Though still dominant for the most part, Alto had a close call en route to the trophy. It came during the state semifinals against Iola, which appeared far overmatched due to the loss of three previous games.

But for the first time all season, the Yellowjackets were offered a challenge, pulling through for a 39-25 victory and allowing more points than the previous 12 games combined.

Following the game, Gardner seemed grateful for Iola's fight.

"It was a tremendous ballgame the whole night," said Gardner, whose squad that night became only the second team in UIL history to score more than 700 points in three seasons, joining Southlake Carroll. "Our kids really battled the entire way. We hadn't really been tested until tonight and they responded."

It turned out to be the final test of the season, though. In the state final, the supremacy returned in a 42-13 victory against McCamey; during which the Yellowjackets (14-0) broke the school record for points in a season.

It was an addicting moment, to say the least.

"We better win another state championship next year or you're all fired," Gardner said to his coaching staff after the game, in a humorous fashion, of course. Kidding aside, the staff's job security was undoubtedly healthy a year later.

Even greater promise was offered during the 2007 season. Thirteen starters returned with one obvious goal in mind -- to repeat.

For the most part, the scores read like clockwork. Including the playoffs, the Yellowjackets outscored their opponents 622-80.

Although there were a pair of close calls (a 43-30 non-district victory against Hemphill and a 21-13 playoff win against Groveton), the Yellowjackets seemingly coasted to another 14-0 record and state final. The opponent in the final, Seymour, went home on the losing end of a 22-0 decision.

Scott, then a senior linebacker, put the feat into perspective.

"You're in a class of your own if you win two in a row," he said. "It's something I'll never forget. It shows you the group of guys I played with and the coaches we played for."

Gardner views the championships separately. Although many of the same players contributed to both, new memories were made each season.

"It's hard to compare the two," he said. "Probably the common denominator in both of them is the kids work hard, and they love the game and they give everything they have.

"If you grow up as a little boy in Alto, it's all about Alto football. I spent summers in Alto with my grandparents. As a young kid, you know how important Alto football is. It's fun to see these guys grow up, mature and turn into great football players."

Thacker comes from a long line of family members who've lived that childhood, but is the first to be afforded a state title.

"When I was little I always dreamed of playing football, and now my dream has come true," he said. "I've just got my own trophy case at the house, and it just sits there shining."

Moore, meanwhile, lived a similar childhood.

"It's a surreal experience," he said of the titles. "I just thank God that I've been part of it. To get two in a row is just awesome. And we know that the third one is going to be hard, but you just got to take it one game at a time."

A three-peat might be difficult. According to Gardner, the 1A ranks are deeper than ever this season. But his confidence in the team won't budge anytime soon.

"The kids are a joy to be around," he said. "They have so much fun out here. The coaching staff, they get along so well together and work so hard.

"Probably the biggest thrill of all is that nobody cares who gets the credit. They just want to get the victories. It's fun to be around guys like that.

"The kids work so hard in the offseason. Every time they line up, they work hard. You have to have that; you are not going to win if you don't have that. They devote themselves 12 months out of the year and give you the effort it takes."

Owner of matching rings, he would know.

You're in a class of your own if you can the group of guys I played with and the coaches we played for."

Alto wide receiver/linebacker Jared Moore hopes to help bring the Yellowjackets a third consecutive state championship.
(Staff Photo By Tom Turner)