BAYTOWN -- Eleven Friday nights in rewind, these Port Neches-Groves Indians were battling their own first-game jitters more than any opponent.

The Port Arthur News Friday Night Experience will be breaking new ground on the first weekend of the Texas High School football playoffs.

Risky passes thrown to receivers covered by more than one defender got replaced by safe throws out of bounds. An instinct to run from the first bit of pressure got replaced with an ability to stay calm.

Lamar Cardinals baseball manager Jim Gilligan sees another Mid-County meal ticket in Port Neches-Groves' Kane Benoit, who signed his letter intent to play for the Cardinals Wednesday afternoon at the Reservation.

PORT NECHES -- Dallas Davis proves that the cover of one's book can be enormously deceiving. Take one look at this 6-5, 260-pound football player. He's bound to be mean, tough, and finding trouble at every street corner.

After nearly 30 years of coaching, Don Price has found something new for this week’s bidistrict game against Port Neches-Groves. The Barbers Hill football boss said it’s the first time he’s ever coached a playoff game that’s a rematch of an earlier meeting from the same season.

Everyone in these parts figures to load up the playoff buses and head out next weekend. They're all going. Port Arthur Memorial and Beaumont West Brook are top seeds in Class 5A. Port Neches-Groves is an undisputed 4A league champion.

BEAUMONT — Zach Rhame, Dre Dunbar, Spencer DeRon, Kane Benoit, Caleb Harmon and a cast of purple hats by the dozens pulled out a Port Neches-Groves miracle for the ages.

As a guy that has gone defeated five times as an assistant coach, Port Neches-Groves coach Brandon Faircloth said luck plays a big part.

PORT NECHES -- Klete LeBlanc's world as a Port Neches-Groves football player completely changed from his very first moments around Brandon Faircloth. The Indians' newly hired head football coach addressed his players for the first time early in February.

MONT BELVIEU -- The Port Neches-Groves Lady Indians swapped punch for punch with the Lady Panthers of Kingwood Park in Games 1 and 2 of their first round matchup of the Class 4A volleyball playoffs on Tuesday night at Barbers Hill High School.

PORT NECHES — Even Caleb Harmon knew about Jeff Bergeron. Now his name will fly right up there by the Jet. By dashing 22 times for 204 yards and two touchdowns, the Port Neches-Groves senior tailback jumped among the truly elite rushers in a single season of this school's proud football history.

The Port Neches-Groves football team entered the night with hopes to keep pace with the fellow District 20-4A leader Central.

BEAUMONT -- When Jeff Nelson stepped into his own Associated Press Class 4A football voting booth Wednesday, the Beaumont Ozen coach had reached his conclusions about Port Neches-Groves.

PORT NECHES -- Blake Reyenga leads his No. 8-rated Port Neches-Groves Indians and ranks third in District 20-4A pass receptions with 29. That's quite a performance for a senior who never started as a pass catcher a year ago.

Duane Kroeker already heard the sales pitch about joining the Port Neches-Groves football coaching staff over the phone, but a face-to-face meeting with the team's new head coach pushed him over the edge.

LUMBERTON – Junior quarterback Brennan Doty turned in another efficient night throwing the ball and senior running back Caleb Harmon was dominant in the salting away the game in the second half for the Indians.

BEAUMONT — The Port Neches-Groves Lady Indians circled Friday night on their calendar after the Ozen Lady Panthers left the reservation with a 3-2 decision in the first meeting, a match with tons of questionable calls from the officials.

LUMBERTON -- One thing about these Indians has been quite obvious to Lumberton's coaches. Port Neches-Groves is focused... so focused that the celebrations can be somewhat reduced.

With Tuesday's District 20-4A volleyball results, the playoff picture is rather clear as Nederland seperated itself from the pack to clinch the fourth and final playoff spot, having beat Livingston 3-1.