“I’m a coyote in a field of wolves.” That’s the line from a Morgan Wallen song that I’m sure many have felt like that coyote in their certain field. I know I have. Shooed a couple away last week.
Meantime there’s a coyote in a field of historic homes in downtown Orange. It walks around during the day like it’s a dog. Andy down at Animal Control has some traps out but it’s been pretty elusive. However it’s been seen so much I’m surprised it doesn’t have its own Facebook page.
Another big week in the baseball/softball playoffs.
LCM softball has Liberty right where they want them. A one game playoff in Jasper. They just need to win. Liberty has been the Queens of Southeast Texas the last four years with two State Championships and two runner up trophies. It will be tough but the Lady Bears are playing their best ball of the season.
Unfortunately a win doesn’t mean a trip to State, yet. The new two division format only allows the State Championship game to be played in Austin as opposed to hosting both the semifinals and finals. Not all of the coaches around here are happy about the two division system although it takes away a playoff round.
We’re all double pulling for LCM and BC baseball to win this week because if they do, they’ll face each other next week in the Region Final. Anyone that witnessed the district championship series would love to see it again. Plus it would mean an Orange County team representing Region III.
Orangefield is playing a school I don’t believe we’ve (OC) ever played before and that’s the (25-11) Whitney Wildcats. It’s a small town next to Lake Whitney, about 40 minutes north of Waco. A series win for the Bobcats could mean a Region Final rematch against Franklin next week.
I get asked every week, “Do you miss broadcasting games?” And the answer is always “yes.” But I don’t miss everything before and after the game.
I got asked the other day if I ever got reprimanded for something I said during a game. The short answer is no.
But there’s probably twice that I could’ve been, at least that I remember. The first time was years ago during an Orangefield girls playoff game. Keith Little reminds me the opponent was Navasota. Orangefield took the lead with seconds left and the girls on the bench, jumping up and down, were called for a technical for being on the floor. It was so blatant and I lost it like everyone else wearing orange. The referee was a big dude, probably 6-5. Besides his call I’ll always remember him walking through the middle of the crowd to the parking lot like a boss.
Second time was at an LCM baseball game. I don’t remember the opponent. The scoreboard was out and if you’ve ever watched baseball without a scoreboard, it’s not easy to keep up. So the umpire was what I referred to as a “delay” umpire. He would take seconds to let the crowd know if it was a ball or strike. Left hand out for a ball, right hand for a strike. Sometimes it appeared to us in the box that he wouldn’t signal at all. Then on top of that he wouldn’t give the pitch count with his hands, knowing the scoreboard was out.
What being a delay ump does is incite the crowd. They’ve already made up their mind what the pitch was and then he basically tell them they were wrong which in turn gets a negative reaction. So both crowds are on him and then the crowds turn on each other. It was a bad scene. And then guess what he does? He calls for school officials to warn the crowd and he was responsible for all of it. Yeh, I could’ve been tossed for that game.
Track season just ended but I saw a race that would be really cool to start next year at one of our local meets.
It’s a 4×100 race between the coaching staffs. I mean come on! I know people that would pay just to see it. But here’s my twist. The Athletic Director has to run the first leg. Now think about it, who is our fastest AD? Think about it before you assume Dwayne Dubois just because he’s the lightest. And then who would be the fastest coach on staff to run the anchor leg? KOGT would sponsor the race and raise some money. I know it’s a longshot but I probably put an hour of thought into it, trying to think who would be on each relay team. Y’all have almost a year to train so get to it!
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Happy 100th Birthday to JB Arrington! Most people know him from owning JB’s BBQ but he has had his hand in many pies over the years. I wish I had saved his commercial copy for his restaurant. He would hand print front and back on a piece of paper, in a creative font, about 400 words for a thirty second ad. He left it up to me to decipher into 30 seconds. I also heard he passed his driving test, again. Happy Birthday Mr. Arrington!
I remember the morning I announced that JB’s was closing. It’s depressing to announce another business closed and we’ve already had too many this year. Unfortunately I’ll be doing it again this week.
The Juice needs to give a retirement shoutout to Shirlene Hryhorchuk at Deweyville ISD who is retiring after SIXTY years. She was at Woodville her first two years then 58 with the Pirates! Wow!
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Can’t wait to see how the Elites catch them this weekend on the Sabine and connecting tributaries that aren’t in Louisiana. We’re told Forward Facing Sonar fishermen won’t have the advantage they have in the lakes. Click on the ad on the KOGT front page to learn more about the weekend events.
Congrats to all of the LSCO grads walking the stage Friday night!
-Gary Stelly-
gstelly66@gmail.com
Volume 1 No. 17
The Juice is a weekly column where Gary Stelly discusses things that happened the past week and mixes it with 40 years of being involved in the Orange County community. (If we think of a better way to explain it we’ll change it) You can also check out his podcast by clicking on the Behind the Mic banner on the KOGT.com front page.
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