KAY ELLINGTON | THE TEXAS SPUR
The 19th Annual Gridiron Classic, the annual showcase of six-man football in West Texas, takes place this week August 25–27 at Jaybird Stadium in Jayton.
Up first is Lubbock Kingdom Prep versus Borden County on Thursday, Aug. 25 at 6 p.m.
Area fans may remember that Borden County is coached by Jayton alum Trey Richey. Richey was inducted into the Big Country Athletic Hall of Fame earlier this year. In high school at Jayton, Richey competed in back-to-back state championships as a high school running back at in 1984 and 1985. In the 1985 game, Richey set the state championship game record of 461 yards and eight touchdowns in one game.
Richey went on to coach at Borden County after his playing career, winning one state title as an assistant and four state titles as a head coach.
The Thursday 8 p.m. game pits the state runner-up Motley County Matadors versus the Ira Bulldogs.
On Friday night at 6 p.m. Garden City takes on the Valley Patriots. In realignment, Valley will be in Spur’s district this year, but the Bulldogs and the Patriots are no strangers. Valley ended Spur’s playoff hopes last year 66–54 in the area game.
Valley’s coach John Stanaland is a graduate of JGISD and is the brother of Jayton coach Josh Stanaland.
The hometown team, the Jayton Jaybirds, take the stage Friday night versus the May Tigers. May was the state runnerup in Division 1 Six Man, and Dave Campbell’s Texas Football have the Jaybirds ranked as number 3 in the state in Division II, Six Man. It should be quite a contest.
Saturday will feature three games.
The Klondike Cougars, an area finalist last year, will face the Crowell Wildcats at 3:00 p.m. The Wildcats will have a tough challenge in the game.
In the 5:30 p.m. game Knox City will take on the Division II Six Man State Champions, the Strawn Greyhounds. Coach Dewaine Lee’s Greyhounds have been featured on Paramount Plus’s documentary Texas Six.
At 8 p.m. on Saturday, Westbrook, the Division I Six Man state champions, will take on the Happy Cowboys. Happy was a state semifinalist last year, and both teams return a lot of lettermen. It should be quite the contest to wrap up the showcase.
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