There are always stories inside the stories. This is what makes high school football so great in the state of Texas.
There were two stories that might have gone unnoticed Friday if readers did not pay attention to social media.
First, let us start at The Reservation. Do Port Neches-Groves football fans remember the name Sage Seay? If not, let me do a very fast reminder.
Seay, a former Nederland quarterback and defensive back who is now a sophomore linebacker at McNeese State, in 2013 intercepted then-PNG quarterback Ky Walker in the end zone to secure a 21-17 Nederland victory.
The next year, as a senior, Seay was the winning quarterback and also made another big play on defense. He stopped then-PNG quarterback Adam Morse yards short of tying the game in the last moments as the Bulldogs won again, 35-28.
Yep, that is the Sage Seay I am talking about. I love the kid. He is one of my favorite athletes to cover since I came to The News four years ago.
Now here is the story from Friday at The Reservation.
A PNG fan let Seay into the game for free. That’s right. Sage Seay, one of the biggest Indians’ killers in the last 10 years, walked into The Reservation for free.
I went down to meet Seay at the gate to say hello, and we walked to the ticket booth so he could purchase a ticket.
Why was he there to begin with and not at Dan R. Hooks Stadium to watch his Bulldogs take on West Orange-Stark? Seay’s cousin is PNG defensive back Jacob Vaughan.
When I first saw Seay at The Reservation Friday, I yelled out, “If I say your name right now, there is no way they let you in the gate.” Oh the irony.
Seay was next in line and was seconds away from buying a ticket when a PNG fan walks up and asks him if he needs two tickets. He says ‘yes’ and asks how much.
The man says they are free if Seay is a PNG fan. The man asked Seay: “Are you an Indians fan?”
Now this is where it gets great because Seay, without pausing, says: “Oh huge. Huge fan.” Seay grabbed the two tickets and walked into the stadium for free.
Wow. If the man only knew whom he was giving those tickets to, I wonder by how much the value would have gone up.
The second story takes us to WOS and to Twitter.
A Nederland fan tried to get under the skin of Mustangs quarterback Jack Dallas on the popular social media site early Friday morning. They tweeted how the Bulldogs would show Dallas who they are.
Dallas, the reigning state championship Offensive MVP, could have easily flashed a picture of his state ring. He did not.
He instead came back with the best response to trash talking I have ever seen. Dallas tweeted back: “Y’all play the Mustangs, not Jack Dallas.”
Dallas was spot on because he was an average 9-of-19 passing Friday and WOS defeated Nederland 42-0.
This tweet proves there are still athletes out there who care more about their team than themselves.
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Gabriel Pruett can be reached at 721-2436 or at gabe.pruett@panews.com. Twitter: @PaNewsGabe