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Aldine ISD Feature: Toro Tough
WHO IS THE MOST DOMINANT TEAM IN ALDINE ISD?
You might say MacArthur cross country or Eisenhower football. Wrong. Jones Middle School was opened in 2018 and since then, the Toros football and basketball teams have never lost a district game…never. They've won nearly 30 district titles.
Athletic coordinator Laurentis Butler-Thomas opened the school and immediately put his stamp on the department. "I'm big on building a foundation, a culture. If you come through Jones, you are going to be prepared for the next level," he said. "The wins and losses don't mean that much to me. It's about playing hard, hustling, and being prepared. When we send them off to high school having taught then that culture, then we have done our job."
The culture carries over in the classroom. "We have the highest passing rate in the district, so our kids stay on the field," he said. "The kids put in the work in the classroom and that comes first." The school won the Aldine ISD Adidas 3-Stripe Award, which names the district's top athletic program – the Toros are the first middle school program to win the award. "Every single one of these kids are so unselfish," he said. "They make the extra pass on the basketball court and don't care who scores the touchdown. They are willing to play different positions to help the team. They have never lost a game in football or basketball and that's unheard of."
The defining moment when Butler-Thomas understood he had something special? "As seventh graders, we were down 25-13 with two minutes to go in our district Super Bowl," he said. "We scored, got the onside kick, and scored again to win. "They just refuse to lose." His stars on both fields of play include Bryson Wheatfall, Jomarques Henderson, Tristan Williams, McCarthur Baker, Eric Lavengne, and Laurence Littles. The school is also home to one of the top eighth-grade girl hoopers in Aniah Holmes. "I remember being their age and what they are going through," he said. "I know the backgrounds they are coming from. I know how to interact and talk with them. For a lot of my students, sports are all they know. I preach to them to use sports as a vehicle to get their education."
The 411 with Jones Middle School AD Laurentis Butler-Thomas
VYPE: Who is the most influential person in your life?
BUTLER: My parents for sure. They have always pushed me to work hard, have faith, and believe that education is key to open many doors of opportunity.
VYPE: What coach do you pattern your career after?
BUTLER: My high school coach – the late Emory Bellard, who coached at Texas A&M. He was my high school coach at Westfield. Coach Bellard taught me the skills and lessons to build a solid program that stands the test of time through building relationships with the community, co-workers, players, and administrators. I feel I have the best coaching staff in the business.
VYPE: How did you get your start?
BUTLER: I started as an elementary school PE teacher. I went from there to Stovall Middle School and ran some 7-on-7 stuff. The Aldine coach then was Lionel Crawford and he asked me to come over and help with the freshman and varsity a little bit. I then became the Athletic Coordinator at Stovall Middle and we did some good things over there. When they opened Jones, they thought of me. I couldn't thank Dre Thompson, Mr. Delgado, Ms. Mader, Mr. Colbert, and my principal Mr. Pruitt enough for having the faith in me to lead and start a brand-new athletic program.
VYPE Houston 2020 NFL Draft Tracker
The pick is in.
With one sentence, lives will be changed during tonight's 2020 NFL Draft, which for the first time in its history is being done virtually. According to multiple NFL Mock Drafts, the Houston-area should shine in the first 32 selections.
VYPE will be watching along with everyone else and be reacting to the Houston-area kids being picked as the night goes on. Below we will be updated our VYPE Draft Board as the night and weekend progresses as well as reaction from the VYPE Staff.
The Picks Are In!
1) CeeDee Lamb, WR Oklahoma (Foster HS) - Dallas Cowboys (17th overall)
2) K'Lavon Chaisson, DE LSU (North Shore HS) - Jacksonville Jaguars (20th overall)
3) Kenneth Murray, LB Oklahoma (Fort Bend Elkins HS) - Los Angeles Chargers (23rd overall)
4) Jordyn Brooks, LB Texas Tech (Stratford HS) - Seattle Seahawks (27th overall)
5) Ross Blacklock, DT TCU (Fort Bend Elkins HS) - Houston Texans (40th overall)
6) Grant Delpit S LSU (St. Thomas/IMG Academy) - Cleveland Browns (44th overall)
7) Antoine Winfield, S Minnesota (The Woodlands HS) - Tampa Bay Buccaneers (45th overall)
8) Jalen Hurts, QB Oklahoma (Channelview HS) - Philadelphia Eagles (53rd overall)
9) Josh Jones, OL Houston (Fort Bend Bush HS) - Arizona Cardinals (72nd overall)
10) Jordan Elliott, DT Missouri (Westside HS) - Cleveland Browns (88th overalll)
11) Bravvion Roy, DT Baylor (Spring HS) - Carolina Panthers (184th overall)
12) Braden Mann, P Texas A&M (Cy-Fair HS) - New York Jets (191st overall)
13) Tyrie Cleveland, WR Florida (Westfield HS) - Denver Broncos (252nd overall)
14) Sewo Olonilua, RB TCU (Kingwood HS) - Dallas Cowboys - UFA
15) Patrick Taylor Jr., RB Memphis (Atascocita HS) - Green Bay Packers - UFA
16) Cordel Iwuagwu. OL TCU (Westfield HS) - Houston Texans - UFA
17) Darrell Stewart Jr., WR Michigan State (Nimitz HS) - Green Bay Packers - UFA
18) Quartney Davis, TE Texas A&M (Langham Creek HS) -Minnesota Vikings - UFA
19) Chase Harrell, WR Arkansas (Huffman HS) - San Francisco 49ers - UFA
20) Xavier Jones, RB SMU (Spring HS) - Los Angeles Chargers - UFA
21) Rodney Clemons, S SMU (Katy Taylor HS) - Kansas City Chiefs - UFA
22) Darius Anderson, RB TCU (George Ranch HS) -
23) Spencer Nigh, Auburn (Magnolia HS) - Pittsburgh Steelers - UFA
24) Kema Siverand, Oklahoma State (Cypress Ridge HS) - Seattle Seahawks - UFA
25) Travis Bruffy, Texas Tech (Ridge Point HS) - Green Bay Packers - UFA
26) Frankie Griffin, Texas State (Klein Collins HS) - Green Bay Packers - UFA
27) Patrick Carr, University of Houston (The Woodlands HS) - Seattle Seahawks - UFA
The Breakdown
No. 17 overall - CeeDee Lamb (Oklahoma/Foster HS) - Dallas Cowboys
Koch's Breakdown: CeeDee Lamb is heading to Dallas! What a get for the Cowboys at No. 17. Dak Prescott has an awesome new weapon to complement Amari Cooper on the other side of the formation. This is another young weapon for the Cowboys.
Malatesta's Breakdown: What a pick for the Dallas Cowboys? One of the top WRs in the draft dropped to them at No. 17. He will be great being opposite of Amari Cooper. The Foster Falcon couldn't have been selected by a better team – good QB, great OL, great RB, great No. 1 WR – No pressure.
No. 20 overall - K'Lavon Chaisson (LSU/North Shore HS) - Jacksonville Jaguars
Koch's Breakdown: K'Lavon Chaisson is heading to Jacksonville. The former North Shore star becomes the first player in the history of the Mustangs program to be taken in the first round. Chaisson becomes the 14th player all-time to be taken out of North Shore, according to profootballreference.com. Chaisson teaming up with Kyle Allen on that defensive line is going to be a fun combo to watch. The Texans will now have to try and stop Chaisson twice a year. What's neat about this is, Chaisson will get to get his Houston homecoming at NRG Stadium, which is the place he won the 2015 Class 6A Division I State Title.
Malatesta's Breakdown: The OLB won a state title, a college Natty and now has work to do with the Jacksonville Jags. The LSU defender can play OLB or DE. He joins LSU brother Leonard Fournette… for now. He's a little smaller Danielle Hunter of the Minnesota Vikings – also from Houston and LSU.
VYPE Story: North Shore coach Jon Kay reminisces about Chaisson in High School
HS Coach Thoughts: "I think the best football of his career is ahead of him. He's not a guy that's peaked out. I think he's got a lot of football ahead of him. He's going to learn a lot more. He's the kind of athlete that has the physical tools and the mental capacity to put it all together and be the kind of player that can stand out in the league." - North Shore coach Jon Kay
No. 23 overall - Kenneth Murray (Oklahoma/Fort Bend Elkins) - Los Angeles Chargers
Koch's Breakdown: Kenneth Murray is heading to the Chargers. Murray joins a defense that has Joey Bosa on it already and he gets to head to sunny LA! Murray joins former Elkins players like Atlanta Falcon Jake Matthews and Jacksonville Jaguar D.J. Hayden to be a first round pick. In 2014, Matthews was picked sixth overall and in Hayden 12th overall in 2013.
Malatesta's Breakdown: Rangy LB is a football player. He's been programmed to be an NFL player since Little League. Good fit for the Chargers. Will rely on Yates HS DT Damion Square to keep OLs off of him. Great body for NFL.
VYPE Story: Feature on Kenneth Murray
HS Coach Thoughts on Murray: "He was very serious as a youngster about the goals he had made coming in.This kid never made anything less than a B, if he made a B at all. He never missed a practice in season, offseason, summer season. He came in as a leader and left as a leader. Just one of those kids that never had a write up, was never late to class. He had a mission, he had goals and he was serious about it at a young age." - Fort Bend Elkins coach Dennis Brantley
No. 27 overall - Jordyn Brooks (Texas Tech/Stratford HS) - Seattle Seahawks
Malatesta Breakdown: Brooks plays violently in space. Strange pick but Seattle wants to turn him loose. Tackling machine who could put the teeth back to the Seahawks defense. A little undersized but plays fast.
Koch Breakdown: I did not expect Jordyn Brooks to go this early. In most mock drafts he was in the second or even third round. The defense of Seattle just got stronger with Brooks. Brooks becomes the fourth player from Stratford to make it to the NFL and is the first drafted since Andrew Luck. That's not bad company to have.
No. 40 overall - Ross Blacklock (TCU/Fort Bend Elkins) - Houston Texans
Koch's Breakdown: What a story! The former Fort Bend Elkins Knight is coming home to join the Houston Texans! Blacklock will join a defensive line with JJ Watt. What a combo those two could be up front. The best story about Blacklock is as a sophomore at Elkins, he played running back, tight end and defensive end for the Knights. Elkins coach Dennis Brantley said Blacklock is just an "athlete".
High School Coach Thoughts: "He was such an athlete. He could catch the ball as good as anyone. He could run the ball. He could throw the ball. As a freshman, I think Ross was about 280. He was so athletic. He was happy-go-lucky, always laughing. Always had a smile on his face and never took stuff too seriously. Once they turned the lights on and blew the whistle, he played with a lot of 'kid enthusiasm'." - Fort Bend Elkins coach Dennis Brantley
No. 44 overall - Grant Delpit (LSU /St. Thomas/IMG Academy) - Tampa Bay Buccaneers
No. 45 overall - Antoine Winfield Jr. (Minnesota/The Woodlands) - Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Koch's Breakdown: Antoine Winfield Jr. becomes the fourth players from The Woodlands to make it to the NFL. Of course, there is Danny Amendola - who has won a couple of Super Bowl Championships - and Daniel Lasco, who was taken by the Saints a few years ago. Winfield Jr. went to Minnesota and made a name for himself playing in the Big 10 Conference. Winfield is the 7th player to be taken that was a former Houston-area standout.
No. 53 overall - Jalen Hurts (Oklahoma/Alabama/Channelview HS) - Philadelphia Eagles
Koch's Breakdown: Jalen Hurts has won wherever he's gone. He helped lead Alabama to a National Championship, then helped get Oklahoma into the College Football Playoff this past year. Hurts is an interesting case. He is soft-spoken, just like his father Averion Hurts, who was his highs school head coach. Jalen has been a leader everywhere he's gone. Now, he will head to the Eagles to back up Carson Wentz.
No. 72 overall - Josh Jones (University of Houston/Fort Bend Bush) - Arizona Cardinals
Koch's Breakdown: Josh Jones is one player who I thought would go higher in the draft. He was projected to go towards the end of the first round or the beginning of the second. Jones tumbled to the 72nd overall pick, which is where he was taken by Kliff Kingsbury and the Arizona Cardinals. This will be a fun team for Jones to head to with the 2019 No. 1 overall pick Kyler Murray running around at QB. Jones had a solid career at UH and had a good showing at the Senior Bowl this past year, which is what helped send him up draft boards. Jones becomes the fourth-ever player to make it to the NFL from Fort Bend Bush. In the 2020 NFL Draft, Jones is the third player from Fort Bend ISD to be taken. The last player to make it to the NFL from Fort Bend Bush was Olasunkanmi Adeniyi, who played for the Steelers from 2018-2019. Current former Broncos in the NFL include Emmanuel Ogbah (Kansas City) and Russel Okung (Chargers). Okung is the only first-round pick in Bush HS history.
No. 88 overall - Jordan Elliott (Westside HS/Texas/Missouri) - Cleveland Browns
Koch's Breakdown: Jordan Elliott will head to Cleveland to try and help the Browns reach the playoffs for the first time in 17 years. Elliott came from Westside High School and is the second player to ever be drafted out of that school. Houston ISD has some rich NFL tradition with Yates (21) and Wheatley (18) supplying 39 NFL players all-time. Elliott joins Germain Ifedi as a player to be taken out of Westside HS. Ifedi plays for the Seahawks.
Media Interviews
Josh Jones Reacts to Heading to Arizona
Asked @JoshJones_23 about playing with @K1 @DeAndreHopkins & @LarryFitzgerald.... he's ready. @UHCougarFB @AZCardinals #NFLDraft2020 pic.twitter.com/jDdl6pCe38
— Vanessa Richardson (@SportsVanessa) April 25, 2020
Chaisson talks his long fandom of the Jaguars
There's a good reason @S4CKGURU was wearing a Jaguars shirt while working out.
He's been a fan for a while now.
Full video:https://t.co/HLbsTok5Yj pic.twitter.com/Wec0Oe1jza
— #DUUUVAL (@Jaguars) April 24, 2020
Social Media Reaction!
Sewo Show heading to Big Dpic.twitter.com/CRtktBk98T
— Sewo Olonilua (@SOlonilua33) April 25, 2020
Jordan Elliott is heading to Cleveland
#MizzouMade 😤
The @Browns select #Mizzou DT @BIGJ5K ‼️#MIZ x #NFLDraft 🐯🏈 pic.twitter.com/ywiq30dQ2k
— Mizzou Football (@MizzouFootball) April 25, 2020
Josh Jones to Arizona
Coming soon to the trenches.
— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) April 25, 2020
Hurts Flying to Philly!
Introducing your newest Eagle, @JalenHurts!#EaglesDraft | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/aZ8UOt0i40
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) April 25, 2020
Winfield Jr. heads to the Buccaneers
With the 45th pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, the Buccaneers select Antoine Winfield Jr.!
📺: April 24 (7 p.m. ET) and April 25 (noon ET) on ABC, ESPN & NFL Network pic.twitter.com/g4YGRUsnDE
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) April 25, 2020
Delpit heading to Cleveland
“With the 44th pick in the 2020 NFL Draft the Cleveland Browns select … Grant Delpit, Safety, LSU."
📺: #NFLDraft on ABC, ESPN + NFLN pic.twitter.com/x7C6Dj9WYu
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) April 25, 2020
Ross Blacklock taken by Hometown Texans
With the 40th pick in the 2020 @NFLDraft, the #Texans select DT Ross Blacklock from @TCUFootball.#TexansDraft pic.twitter.com/LYwmNO1WWo
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) April 24, 2020
Round 1 Social Media Reactions
CeeDee Lamb taken by the Cowboys
With the 17th pick in the 2020 #NFLDraft, the #DallasCowboys select WR @_ceedeethree from @OU_Football! 🌟 #CowboysDraft
⁰@millerlite | #ItsMillerTime pic.twitter.com/alYibaCZXI
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) April 24, 2020
Foster coach Shaun McDowell Congrats CeeDee Lamb
#NFLDraft2020 : A Message from @FosterFootball HC @coach_mcdowell to newest @dallascowboys WR @_CeeDeeThree
(@KPRC2RandyMc @dmn_cowboys @calvinwatkins @CowboysNation @robphillips3 @jonmachota @TheCowboysWire @nickeatman @DezBryant @michaelirvin88 @FosterHSNews) pic.twitter.com/vqhIRkfc1m
— vypehouston (@vypehouston) April 24, 2020
Chaisson heading to Jacksonville!
J.P. Shadrick, Brian Sexton, Ashlyn Sullivan and John Oehser provide instant reaction and analysis to the Jaguars' selection of DE/LB K'Lavon Chaisson in the 2020 NFL Draft. Watch the NFL Draft on 4/23-4/25 on ABC, ESPN, and NFL Network. https://t.co/RDniC3yk91
— #DUUUVAL (@Jaguars) April 24, 2020
Murray is heading to Sunny LA!
welcome to LA, @KennethMurray ‼️ pic.twitter.com/nZNVtHzy7o
— Los Angeles Chargers (@Chargers) April 24, 2020
Super Bowl MVP congratulates former Red Raider
Texas tech baby!!! #GunsUp @JordynBrooks_
— Patrick Mahomes II (@PatrickMahomes) April 24, 2020