Think you know all of your Texas sports history? Get ready – you are about to be tested thoroughly.
How about the best Texas quarterback, running backs and receivers? Sure. Most of us can handle that. How about the five best offensive linemen ever to play high school ball in the Lone Star State? A little tougher, right?
Well, the UIL website is celebrating its centennial anniversary by offering a poll that will stump all but the best sports historians. Thank goodness for multiple choice tests and a plethora of choices provided by the UIL.
Football and volleyball polls are active currently with girls’ and boys’ basketball, track & field and baseball set for later dates this year.
It’s all part of the UIL All-Century Team voting determined by fans like you and I. To make it interesting, some sports will have its all-century stars selected by position. Football is one such beast, and with 31 quarterbacks – plus a write-in spot – much of Texas’ great history is surfacing by just mentioning the names.
Among the quarterbacks are two Dodges from different eras– Riley and Todd – the Detmer brothers – Koy and Ty – and a host of all-state all-stars. Do these names ring any bells? Tommy Kramer, Lupe Rodriguez, James Brown, Y.A. Tittle or Marty Akins? They should.
Looks like Southlake Carroll and Port Arthur Jefferson are the only schools with two stud quarterbacks nominated by UIL personnel. Only one choice is allowed for the all-century team however.
At running back, you have 55+ prime choices, including Doak Walker, LaDainian Tomlinson, Thurman Thomas, Rodney Thomas, Robert Strait, Earl Campbell, Eric Dickerson, Craig James and Adrian Peterson. But you have two choices there to fill the backfield.
Likewise you get two picks for receiver, one for tight end, five for offensive linemen, four defensive linemen, three linebackers and four defensive backs. All have ample choices to browse through.
Then you find out how taxing this nomination process was for the UIL staff. You can choice one place kicker and one punter. Not sure if Texas doesn’t have great punters in quantity, but only three are nominated by the UIL, and two are just west of Houston.
The punters are: Sammy Baugh, Justin Brantley and Shane Lechler. No easy choice there, despite just three choices.
Regardless visit http://uil100.org/vote.php and vote for your favorite football and volleyball stars during the first 100 years of UIL competition. You’ll be glad you did when the results are posted.
My choices are listed below for football, and I also made 10 overall selections for volleyball. These sports are open for your votes until Oct. 31 (volleyball) and Nov. 7 (football). Keep in mind statistics don’t decide every category choice for me, nor should it for you. I have an eye open for historical selections because without their achievements, the new go-getters would have nothing to aim for.
Also don’t ever forget RB Ken Hall of Sugar Land. The school never won a state title during his era (1950-1953), but Hall set national records that still stand, including his 11,232 rushing yards.
Terry Carter’ votes for Texas UIL All-Century Team Voting (Football)
Quarterback: Chase Daniel, Southlake Carroll
Running Backs (2): Ken Hall, Sugar Land; Cedric Benson, Midland Lee
Wide Receivers (2): Jordan Shipley, Burnett; Nati Valdez, Mission
Tight End: Eric Winston, Midland Lee
Offensive Linemen (5): Brandon Houston, Katy Taylor; Seth McKinney, Austin Westlake; Ben Wilkerson, Hemphill; Gene Upshaw, Robstown; Adam Ulatoski, Southlake Carroll
Defensive Linemen (4): Michael Carter, Dallas Jefferson; Santana Dotson, Yates; Bob Lilly, Throckmorton; Michael Strahan, Westbury
Linebackers (3): Jessie Armstead, Dallas Carter; Brian Bosworth, Irving MacArthur; Mike Singletary, Worthing
Defensive Backs (4): Grady Cavness, Willowridge; Willie Mack Garza, Refugio; Donald Moore, Splendora; Kyle Rote Jr. Highland Park
Kicker: Tony Franklin, FW Arlington Heights
Punter: Sammy Baugh, Sweetwater
FOOTNOTE:
Finally, I'd like to sneak in a vote for the best pure athlete I've witnessed in my years of covering Texas football.
That all-around, world-class athlete would be 2A Mart QB/FS/KR/PR Quan Cosby. At roughly 6-0, 188 pounds, Cosby was the ultimate beast on the gridiron for me. Cosby finished his high school career in 2000 as an First Team All-State pick at quarterback, defensive back and kick returner. He was also the 2A Offensive Player of the Year in 2000.
He had world-class 4.30 – reports abound of him runing 4.29 in tennis shoes – speed for 40 yards, benched more than 300 pounds and squatted more than 500. To my knowledge, he holds no Texas state records despite leading Mart to the 1999 state title and to the 2A championship game against Celina in 2000.
Yet he was the most punishing defensive hitter I've seen, crushing receivers and running backs over and over. He frequently notched 20 tackles in a game, finishing with about 188 stops his senior year.
As a kick returner, he took seven to the end zone as a junior with that 4.3 speed. No one could stop him due to speed, quickness and his power if he got five steps into a return. His senior year, I personally watched Cosby take a kickoff return and a punt to the house in four games.
As a quarterback he ran for close to 2,000 yards in his junior and senior years while throwing to younger brother Quincy Cosby (4.35 speed) for more than 1,000 yards. Quan accounted for 273 yards of Mart's 319 total yards in the 2A title game against Celina, which the Celina Bobcats won 21-17. Cosby regularly carried four defenders for 5-10 yards on his rushes and QB draws.
Quan Cosby was the All-Century Athlete in my book.