R E S O L U T I O N
1-1 WHEREAS, The Willowridge High School boys' basketball team
1-2 captured the 2001 University Interscholastic League (UIL) Class 5A
1-3 state title with a hard-fought 65-58 victory against Bryan High
1-4 School; and
1-5 WHEREAS, Willowridge, which owns a 61-game winning streak and
1-6 has compiled an amazing 75-1 mark over the past two years, also
1-7 defeated three nationally ranked teams to repeat as champions of
1-8 the prestigious Slam Dunk to the Beach Tournament in Lewes,
1-9 Delaware; the Eagles' magical season earned them the No. 2 spot in
1-10 USA Today's final Super 25 boys' basketball rankings; and
1-11 WHEREAS, Head coach Ronnie Courtney and his coaching staff
1-12 guided Willowridge to an unblemished 39-0 record this season and to
1-13 its second consecutive state championship, having ably prepared the
1-14 Eagles for their title showdown against the resilient Bryan High
1-15 School Vikings; and
1-16 WHEREAS, In the championship game of the state tournament
1-17 held at The University of Texas at Austin, the Eagles were led by
1-18 point guard Terrance (T. J.) Ford, who finished with eight points,
1-19 four rebounds, nine assists, and four steals to be selected as the
1-20 game's MVP by Fox Sports Southwest; joining him on the
1-21 all-tournament team was teammate Daniel Ewing; and
1-22 WHEREAS, Moreover, T. J. Ford and Daniel Ewing were named to
1-23 the 2001 McDonald's All-American team, an honor given to the top 24
1-24 high school basketball players in the United States; and
2-1 WHEREAS, A number of Willowridge's players have received
2-2 scholarships to play basketball in college, and Daniel Ewing, Kenny
2-3 Taylor, and T. J. Ford each signed with NCAA Division I schools;
2-4 this dynamic trio combined to average 44.8 points a game this
2-5 season and will attend Duke University, Baylor University, and The
2-6 University of Texas, respectively; and
2-7 WHEREAS, Longtime head coach Ronnie Courtney, who was named
2-8 national high school coach of the year by USA Today and had a
2-9 237-120 record at Willowridge, will also be making the jump to the
2-10 college level, as he was recently hired to coach men's basketball
2-11 at Texas Southern University; and
2-12 WHEREAS, The stellar 2000-2001 season would not have been
2-13 possible without the valuable contributions of all the talented
2-14 team members, including Kendrick Johnson, Daniel Ewing, T. J. Ford,
2-15 Kenny Taylor, Donta Yates, Jamarcus Johnson, Andre Watson, Roland
2-16 Parsons, Brandon Chaison, Matthew Renfro, Ralph Viverette, Curtis
2-17 Walker, Isaac Rollins, Eddie Rowe, Brandon Scott, and Brandon
2-18 Anderson, as well as assistant coaches John Howie, Greg Bell,
2-19 Anthony Armstrong, and Thomas McGaughey; additional support came
2-20 from student trainer An'Gelle Sylvester, statisticians Teena
2-21 Castleberry and Mike Washington, and equipment managers James
2-22 Viverette and Ashley Armstrong; and
2-23 WHEREAS, With persistence, hard work, and training, the
2-24 Willowridge players and coaches came together to meet their
2-25 collective goal; the Eagles have proven themselves to be formidable
2-26 competitors, and as they take pride in their second consecutive
2-27 state championship, it is indeed fitting to pay tribute to them;
3-1 now, therefore, be it
3-2 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 77th Texas
3-3 Legislature hereby congratulate the Willowridge High School Eagles
3-4 for winning the 2001 UIL Class 5A boys' basketball state
3-5 championship and extend to the players and their coaches sincere
3-6 best wishes for continued success; and, be it further
3-7 RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
3-8 prepared for the members of the 2001 Willowridge High School boys'
3-9 basketball team as an expression of high regard by the Texas House
3-10 of Representatives.
Olivo
Laney Goodman Merritt
Alexander Goolsby Miller
Allen Gray Moreno of Harris
Averitt Green Moreno of El Paso
Bailey Grusendorf Morrison
Berman Gutierrez Mowery
Bonnen Haggerty Naishtat
Bosse Hamric Najera
Brimer Hardcastle Nixon
Brown of Kaufman Hartnett Noriega
Brown of Brazos Hawley Oliveira
Burnam Heflin Olivo
Callegari Hilbert Pickett
Capelo Hilderbran Pitts
Carter Hill Puente
Chavez Hinojosa Ramsay
Chisum Hochberg Rangel
Christian Hodge Raymond
Clark Homer Reyna of Bexar
Coleman Hope Reyna of Dallas
Cook Hopson Ritter
Corte Howard Sadler
Counts Hunter Salinas
Crabb Hupp Seaman
Craddick Isett Shields
Crownover Janek Smith
Danburg Jones of Lubbock Smithee
Davis of Harris Jones of Bexar Solis
Davis of Dallas Jones of Dallas Solomons
Delisi Junell Swinford
Denny Keel Talton
Deshotel Keffer Telford
Driver King of Parker Thompson
Dukes King of Uvalde Tillery
Dunnam Kitchen Truitt
Dutton Kolkhorst Turner of Coleman
Edwards Krusee Turner of Harris
Ehrhardt Kuempel Uher
Eiland Lewis of Tarrant Uresti
Elkins Lewis of Orange Villarreal
Ellis Longoria Walker
Farabee Luna West
Farrar McCall Williams
Flores McClendon Wilson
Gallego McReynolds Wise
Garcia Madden Wohlgemuth
George Marchant Wolens
Geren Martinez Fischer Woolley
Giddings Maxey Yarbrough
Glaze Menendez Zbranek
_______________________________
Speaker of the House
I certify that H.R. No. 1027 was adopted by the House on May
11, 2001, by a non-record vote.
_______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House