By Nick Gradney
The #Road To The Crown brought to you be DRSportz, made it’s way through The Woodlands (Tex), over 120 teams touched down and made their case to earn a bid to Round Rock. While many came , only one team per age group can plant their flag as champions. Here are several teams you will see in Round Rock in April.
The Money $quad 14U (Cypress, TX) made the Road To The Crown look like a walk in the park, as they ran through the competition on the way to a championship. They started pool play off with a dominant 21 point victory over the BTL Kingz in their first game. The Money $quad went on to run the table the rest of the weekend, not allowing any of the teams they faced to come within 10 points of them. One could make a case that The Money $quad was the best team in The Woodlands, regardless of age group.
Platinum Elite out of Baytown, Texas a suburb of the Houston area, came to The Woodlands on a mission from the first snap to wreck shop in the 15U bracket. One team that matched up well with them this weekend as the hometown favorite The Woodlands 15u squad, made up ballers from nearby The Woodlands High School. Even though they are separated by just 53 miles, both teams aren’t as familiar with one another as you may think. They played each other right out the gate for bragging rights and more importantly, seeding for Crown Sunday. Unfortunately for Platinum Elite, this one wasn’t close. The Baytown boys couldn’t move the ball at all and at times it looked like they were moving backwards. The Woodlands were clicking on all cylinders, with minimal trash talk and won the game 34-6. Platinum Elite would go on to split they’re next 2 games, while The Woodlands remained undefeated all the way until the championship game on Sunday. Both teams book ended the Road To The Crown, only to meet in the game to decide who heads to Round Rock. In their second match up of the weekend, the outcome was much different than the first meeting in pool play. The Platinum Elite coaches and players made the proper adjustments and from the first snap their focus was different. Platinum Elite brought their A game, giving The Woodlands their only loss of the weekend with a final score of 23-14 to secure the 15U championship.
The 18U group had many title contenders competing in the #RoadToTheCrown DR7 tournament. Teams such as DAB, STE Boyz, CAT-Takeover, The 979, and All-En, came into the weekend as established programs who have a championship pedigree. Each squad had their eyes on being the top dog in a loaded 18U bracket. But KC Elite had other plans. The most complete and disciplined team on both sides of the ball was KC Elite. They weren’t picked by many to make a deep run, but one thing that always goes unappreciated is chemistry. KC Elite is constructed with ballers from the Klein area. Klein Cain, Klein High School and Klein Collins are several schools from which these players call home. Led by great coaching and exceptional quarterback play, KC Elite didn’t drop a single game. Tucker Parks, one the top quarterbacks in the Class of 2024, had a dominate performance throughout the two-day event. Although they went unblemished in pool play, it wasn’t until championship Sunday, when they put everyone on notice, after they boat raced both KB3 Elite and DAB by a total score of 66-14, including a shutout victory over KB3. KC Elite eventually went on to defeat a perennial Houston Area power, the STE Boyz, in the championship final. This was KC Elite’s second championship victory on the Road To The Crown DR7 circuit, as they brought home the first trophy in December at the Army All-American Showcase in Frisco, Texas.