West Texas: Midland Bulldogs 2023 Preview
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<p><strong>Midland Bulldogs 2023 Preview</strong></p>
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<p><strong>Head Coach</strong>: Thad Fortune </p>
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<p><strong>Mascot</strong>: Bulldogs </p>
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<p><strong>Twitter</strong>: @midlandhighfb; @Coach_Fortune; @Brandon_Smith52; @StromanBridges</p>
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<p><strong>Colors</strong>: Purple and Black </p>
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<p><strong>2022 Record</strong>: 5-5 </p>
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<p><strong>Overview</strong>: Midland finished with a .500 record last season but missed the playoffs after finishing fifth in District 6A-2. A tight 28-25 loss to San Angelo Central in the district opener ultimately cost the Bulldogs a shot at the postseason as SAC finished fourth. Midland's base offense is the flexbone, a run-dominated attack. In fact, the Bulldogs ran the ball 88 percent of the time in 2022 (491 rushes, 70 passes). However, while acknowledging running the football was Midland's ‘identity,' Bulldogs head coach Thad Fortune insists his team must be more productive throwing the football this season. </p>
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<p>Rising junior (2025) quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='445877' first='Stroman' last='Bridges']</strong> displayed his dual threat skills last season by throwing for 259 yards and 4 TD and rushing for 477 yards on 80 carries, third most on the team. He was offered by FCS Austin Peay last Saturday, and camped recently at Middle Tennessee State and Western Kentucky. Senior RB <strong>Brylee Perez</strong> returns after rushing for a team high 722 yards last season. Junior (2025) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1421038' first='Elijah' last='McCoy']</strong> will be another featured running back for the Bulldogs. McCoy is lightning fast as he finished second in the district in the 100 meters with a blazing time of 10.64 seconds. Massive guard <strong>Timothy Hayes</strong> anchors the offensive line.</p>
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<p>Defensively, Midland returns most of their top tacklers from a season ago, including senior free safety <strong>Athen Dominguez</strong>, a stellar playmaker who led the Bulldogs with 108 tackles and 6 passes defended in 2022. If the Bulldogs defense is as relentless and attacking throughout the season as they were in the spring game, Midland will prove to be stout defensively and tough to score on. </p>
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<p><strong>Schedule</strong>: Midland faces two teams from El Paso and two from Lubbock, along with a trip to Amarillo, in non-district play. District play begins Oct. 5 at San Angelo Central. Just like last year, that contest could prove critically important in Midland making the playoffs or not.</p>
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<p>Aug. 25 EL PASO MONTWOOD</p>
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<p>Sept. 1 at Lubbock Coronado</p>
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<p>Sept. 8 at Amarillo</p>
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<p>Sept. 15 LUBBOCK MONTEREY</p>
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<p>Sept. 22 at El Paso Andress</p>
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<p>Sept. 29 OPEN</p>
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<p>Oct. 5 at San Angelo Central*</p>
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<p>Oct. 13 at Wolfforth Frenship*</p>
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<p>Oct. 20 ODESSA*</p>
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<p>Oct. 27 at Midland Legacy*</p>
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<p>Nov. 3 ODESSA PERMIAN*</p>
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<p>* District Game </p>
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<p><strong>Top Storylines</strong>: Can Midand break-through in a difficult district and finish as one of the top four teams and qualify for the playoffs? Will Midland really throw the ball more on offense this season? If so, will it produce more wins?</p>
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<p><strong>Coach's Comments</strong>: “You will never question Stroman's athletic ability. His natural, God-given gifts speak for themselves. Combine that with a great work ethic and you get a good result. He's a joy to coach because he doesn't get bored with the staff we work on every day. He knows it has a purpose and he has to get better with it. He has really grown up. He comes with it every day. . .Both guys we have at running back can really run. Those guys will keep getting better and better as we get better up front. . .When you talk about our defense, you have to start with Athen Dominguez. If you watched our spring game, he showed up all night long. He makes it tough for the offense to get to him. He's reckless, he comes downhill and he doesn't pat his feet. He has the right amount of edge we want in that dog safety position. . .We need to be more effective throwing the football. We have some good receivers to get the ball to. We have a good quarterback. It's still a work in progress. We don't apologize for being an option team and trying to get downhill. That's who we are. But we do have to be more effective in the throw game. We put a lot of work into it this spring” – Thad Fortune. </p>
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Midland Bulldogs 2023 Preview
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