Winning now the expectation at Mesquite Horn

September 24, 2009

Dr John D Horn High School


Winning now the expectation at Mesquite Horn
Posted: 09/21/2009 5:40 PM
Column by MATT WIXON / The Dallas Morning News | mwixon@dallasnews.com

MESQUITE - When Rodney Webb took over as Mesquite Horn coach, the Jaguars had never made the playoffs. They weren't even close most of the time, having won only nine of their past 40 games.

Now, less than two years later, Webb talks to his players about knowing the difference between confidence and cockiness. That's how fast Horn has risen from a doormat to a program that believes it can compete against, and beat, the best teams in the area.
Seeing is believing for Horn, which last week beat Ennis to improve to 4-0. It's obvious that the Jaguars, who are No. 7 in SportsDay's Class 5A area rankings, are benefiting from Webb's No. 1 priority as coach:

Establishing a higher expectation for Horn.

"When I got here, football was kind of a joke," said Webb, who coached Royse City for five seasons before moving to Horn in February of 2008. "You would hear kids in the halls make disparaging remarks about football."

Football apathy built with six varsity seasons that ended with a record of 18-42. But it began to change last season when Horn earned its first playoff berth, and now the higher expectations are heard in the words of the players.

"When we take the field, we expect to win," senior quarterback Emory Miller said. "That's our motto at the school - expect to be the best."

Miller is a big reason for the optimism. The 5-10, 195-pound senior, who holds most of the Horn passing records, has completed 81 of 119 passes for 960 yards with only two interceptions this season. He also has 10 touchdown passes, including a 24-yarder to Jakeem Grant that sealed Horn's 30-24 overtime win over Ennis on Friday.

"He really is a coach's dream," Webb said of Miller, who also leads Horn in rushing. "He understands the offense better than any of the coaches."

But it's not all about Miller. Horn is deep in receiver talent, with eight players who have at least five catches. The defense has also improved greatly from a year ago, when Horn's three nondistrict losses included giving up 38 points to Lake Highlands, 60 to Wylie and 65 to Ennis. This year, Horn allowed an average of 20 points in wins over those teams.
The future also looks bright for Horn because its junior varsity team finished 9-1 last year and the freshman team was 8-2.

"Those kids don't know how to lose," Webb said.

For years, it was very much the opposite. But now Horn is winning, fans are filling up the stands and the players can walk tall in the halls at school.

"This has been kind of a forgotten program down here. The kids aren't used to getting any recognition," Webb said. "I told them, if they want to keep getting recognition and keep people in the stands, they've got to keep winning."