School Spotlight: Midland Legacy (Midland, Texas)

Midland Legacy High School-located in Midland, Texas- competes in the 6A classification of Texas high school football. They are coming off a 7-5 year finishing 2nd in District 2 of Texas 6A football. The Rebels, whose colors are maroon, gray, and white, beat the Franklin Cougars 46-21 in the first round of the playoffs before losing to a tough Keller team. Led by coach Clint Hartman, I talked to him about many things that revolve around the Midland Legacy program.

There is a lot of history at Midland Legacy. Formerly known as Midland Lee, the school changed their name in 2020 but have kept the football success at this school. Spike Dykes, winningest coach in Texas Tech history and father of current TCU head coach Sonny Dykes, coached at this school for 3 seasons. Their main rival is Odessa Permian, the school that inspired the book and movie Friday Night Lights. Winning the state championship from the years 1998-2000 under coach John Parchman, the Rebels have always had success in Texas football. Notable alumni include Cedric Benson, the 4th overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft, and Eric Winston, an offensive tackle who played in the NFL for 11 seasons.

Coach Hartman and his staff have built a steady foundation for this program. They are not going to accept the man that these kids are today but the man they will become in the future. Coach Hartman and his staff have open talks with the players, and want to make sure that they will become great fathers and husbands once they leave this program.

On offense, the Rebels run a traditional spread offense much like the ones that are being run at the collegiate level. On defense, the Rebels run what Coach Hartman likes to call an “overshift” defense. The overshift is really a 4-2-5 defense that some schools are starting to use at the collegiate level. Their success on both sides of the ball has helped them continue their success at the 6A level in Texas high school football. Winning 5 district titles in a row, they are primed to win a 6th as they return 17 starters from last year’s team (include 2 that Coach Hartman highlighted below). Winning is hard at the 6A level in Texas, but Coach Hartman knows that his team can do it.

Marcos Davila is a 6’3″ 217 lbs quarterback for the Rebels. Davila is committed to Purdue University to play football, and can make any throw on the field.

Damien Johnson is a 5’10” 165 lbs cornerback for the Rebels. Having 2 interceptions and 57 total tackles this past year for the Rebels, Johnson is starting to get notice from several schools in Texas.