Photos Courtesy of Charla Shults
The Pampa Harvesters (1-4) open up district play on Friday night against the Hereford Whitefaces (1-4). The game is in Pampa at Zach Thomas Stadium at Harvester Field.. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. Both teams enter the district slate 0-0, each aiming for at least two district wins to stay in playoff contention. A victory in the opener would be a major step toward that goal. Hereford won its season opener over Lubbock High but has since dropped four straight to Estacado, Plainview, Perryton, and Seminole. Both teams could easily have a few more wins based on how close many of those games were, but as Head Coach Floyd White says—records reset once district begins.
As I do each week, I sat down with Head Coach Floyd White to discuss last week’s game as well as preview this week.
Pre-district/Perryton game
“Our pre-district slate we dug ourselves some holes with some of the things we did. Nothing was ever really out of reach, we just didn’t make some of those plays we needed to. The reality is we could have been 5-0 coming out of it but instead we are 1-4. You use all that as learning processes to help you kind of motivate your guys and get them ready to go into the tough district slate,” White said. “The Perryton score ended up being 49-35 but really that is misleading because it was nip-tuck the entire game. We got ourselves down and tried to kick onside kicks to get back in the game. Those gave them short fields and all the sudden the game gets away from you a little bit. Ultimately, our kids are starting to hit our strides where we need to hit our strides. We just need to make sure we don’t get ourselves anymore banged up this week so we are ready for Friday night’s game against Hereford.”
Final thoughts on Perryton/Pre-district
“The one thing I am happy about coming out of our pre-district slate is our kids are learning how to compete. They know not that they can compete with anybody. If they can concentrate on taking care of the small things, they are going to find a lot more success than they will not find it. That is the one positive thing that came from the pre-district slate in my opinion,” White said.
District and Playoffs
“That’s the great thing about the pre-district slate is that it doesn’t really count toward anything. Yes, it counts to the overall record but the reality of it is the games that count in potential playoff matchups are your district games. You can now take those pre-district records and throw them out because people are going to start doing some different things,” White said. “You see these guys every year. You know them and their players and what they like and don’t like to call. There are definitely going to be some changeups that happen because of that. I know that Coach Naron and those guys over at Hereford do a great job. They will have their guys prepped and ready to go. We went into that game last year not knowing what to expect because we were brand new and just trying to figure out what was going on with those guys. We got out there and played those guys nip tuck the entire game and then they threw a couple balls over our heads late and that kind of ended up being the end all be all of that game. Now, looking forward to it, they still have a good quarterback running around and good receivers and a good offensive line. They play solid defense. Now, we have gotta make sure we adapt ourselves to do the things we need to do with those guys.”
Hereford Offense
The Herd are led by Senior Quarterback Kalub Ramirez. He is actually already committed to Texas to play baseball as he is a great athlete and plays shortstop and pitcher for the Whitefaces as well. But, who are some of the other athletes to watch for the Herd Friday?
“Up front, they are a typical Hereford team. They are really big and pretty athletic. Those guys can get out there and move bodies. They have good receivers, #12 and #11, those are the go to guys when they want to throw the ball down the field. They have a good running back #22 who is really elusive and he can get out there and tout the mill. He is not big in stature but you watch him and there is not one person that brings them down by themselves. They also have a tight end/back #44 who is a Sophomore. He’s gonna be a good one for them before it is all said and done,” White said.
Hereford Defense
“They have tweaked up what they do on defense from last year. Last year they were a 4-2-5, a four man front. Now, they spend a lot more of their time in an odd front with a 3-4 like most of the other folks in our district. They do a good job up front. They have some bigger guys up front that are hard to move. They have a pretty athletic inside backer #40. He’s a heckuva player for them. He runs around and does a great job,” White said. “They are good in the secondary. Those guys get up there and like to get into the run game. They like to sit out there and don’t get beat up over the top very often. That will be a challenge for us in our receiving game to make sure we can get over the top of them when we need to get over the top of them. But, if we’re doing things right we will just keep running the ball like we have been.”
Keys to the game
Eliminate turnovers: “I say this every week but it comes to fruition every time. The one thing we have to stop doing is turning over the ball. We are scoring a lot of points but we are also giving away a lot of possessions. Some of the things we are doing right now defensively, we are struggling at times. We’ve gotta make sure we are taking care of the ball on our side. Eliminating turnovers is going to be a huge thing,” White said.
Keep the QB in the Pocket: “We gotta make sure we keep that quarterback in the pocket and make him throw off his back foot. We can’t let him step up and get comfortable in there where he can deliver the ball. If we can keep him from delivering the ball, we’re going to be in great shape,” White said.
Continue to run the ball: “Offensively, we just have to continue running the ball like we always do. We have to continue to make them step up and see if they want to play that game all night long. If they want to step up and play that game all night long, we’ll see, but there are not a lot of folks that want to sit there and take on that pounding from our offensive line and backs all night long.”
Final thoughts for Hereford
“I’m excited to watch where our kids go. We had a great open week. We had a great pre-district slate. I feel like our kids are very, very confident in what it is that we’re doing. I am excited to get out here and watch us play tonight,” White said.
Waldrips
I am also highlighting one player each week to end the interview. This week was a little different as I wanted to feature the Senior triplets. #4 Andrew Waldrip, #6 Reese Waldrip, and #88 Caden Waldrip.
“You’re not going to get a more dynamic group of guys than you do with those triplets. They are full of energy. They’re fired up about life. They get out there everyday and they are so much fun to coach and be around. They are so positive with a lot of stuff that they do. They also take on a lot of leadership roles. Caden actually got voted in as one of our captains this year. It’s fun to watch,” White said. “When I got here that Spring, they were all sophomores. They were like little chihuahuas and fed off one another. Now, to watch how they have grown over the last two years has just been so refreshing. You don’t see young men do the things they do on a consistent basis. They’re a ton of fun. Andrew gets going at times and I have to go over there on the sideline and say ‘hey man, you better stop or you will get us another 15-yard penalty.’ He is just full of vinegar. Caden, I coach him directly every week. He’s so cerebral. I can tell him: ‘hey, I need you to do this and peel back off of doing this’ and he will say okay, coach no problem, I got you. Then, Reese, he plays safety for us and plays tailback for us. He does all kinds of different things. Everyone of them brings something new to the table. I wish we had them for another two years because if we did there is no telling what they would be able to do.”
You can find HSN on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@HarvesterSportsNetwork/.. You can also follow them on Facebook: www.facebook.com/HarvesterSportsNetwork. Lastly, there is a Twitter/X page: www.x.com/PampaHSN. Kevin Hunt and Kaleb Snelgrooes will be calling the game. The game will also be broadcast locally on 101.3 Legends Classic Country. That station will be piped through the YouTube feed. Live stats can be found here: https://www.turbostatslive.com/football/webcast/08002511465744. Season stats can be found on the team page: https://www.turbostats.team/site/2/team/football/pampahighschool/pampa%20good%20file%202025. The pre-game show will begin on YouTube and 101.3 at 6:45 p.m. and kickoff is set for 7 p.m. A weekly radio show with Coach White called “Whiteboard Wisdom” with Zac Green interviewing him will play at 6:20 p.m. each gameday before Kevin Hunt gets on with his pregame show!
