By Tom Waddill
Sports Editor
May 18, 2008 12:01 am
—
Walking to class one day recently, Huntsville junior Kirby Ennis got a nice surprise from one of his coaches.
The Hornets’ three-sport star had been named to a preseason all-state team. No, not in football, the sport in which Ennis is being recruited by major universities such as Texas A&M, Nebraska, Texas, Colorado, Northwestern, Colorado State and Houston.
Ennis was named to a preseason all-state team by Texas Basketball Magazine.
According to a letter sent to Hornets basketball coach Doug Anderson, Texas Basketball Magazine awards the “very best players in the state of Texas,” and Ennis is one of those players.
“This is a great honor for Kirb,” Anderson said last week. “He made first-team all-district and all-region last season. He has the capability to have another great year for us.”
Ennis averaged 12 points and eight rebounds during his junior season for the Hornets. He also shot 62 percent from the field and 66 percent from the free-throw line.
Ennis said he’s honored to be named to the magazine’s preseason all-state list.
“It feels really good to be nominated for that team,” Ennis said, “but I’ve got to show them next year that I deserve to be on there.”
Ennis is always up to a challenge. With hard work in practice, he has made himself a standout basketball player.
“My free-throw percentage has improved since my freshman and sophomore years,” Ennis said. “I was kind of horrible shooting from the line back then. Last season, though, I went 10-for-10 in one game at the Conroe tournament. ... I started getting good at free throws.
“In practice, I would act like I just got fouled with zero seconds on the clock. I had to hit my free throws to win the game or send it to overtime. I guess that helped me.”
Anderson said Ennis also improved dramatically on his post defense. With Kyedrick Fuller and Rayshadrick Johnson gone from the lineup this past season due to graduation, Ennis had to step up and be the Hornets’ top post player, which meant he had to guard the opponent’s biggest big man.
“Kirby did a good job against those big guys,” Anderson said. “He has learned how to handle himself inside.”
Ennis adds, “That’s something else I’ve improved on. We do a lot of defensive drills in practice, so you can’t help but get better. Basically, I’m just making smarter decisions than I did in my freshman and sophomore seasons. I also have an advantage over those guys because usually I’m stronger than they are.”
Anderson said he was glad to see another one of his players recognized for his accomplishments. According to the Hornets coach, Ennis deserves a spot on the magazine’s all-state team even though basketball may not be his main sport.
“Football is his ticket for sure,” Anderson said. “He’s already got some big schools after him, but playing basketball has helped him in football.
“Nowadays, Division I schools are looking for athletes. When a college coach comes in from one of those big schools, they want to see multi-sport kids. They know the benefits basketball can have on football and vice versa. Kirby’s good in everything he’s done. He was all-district in football, all-district and all-region in basketball and he went to regionals in track this spring.”
Currently, Ennis said he’s concentrating most of his energy on spring football. The Hornets have been working out for the past two weeks, and they have two more weeks to go before concluding offseason practices with the spring intrasquad game on May 30.
Ennis says he has his mind set on one goal starting later this fall.
“My main goal is to help Huntsville (High School) in every sport I play. I want to go to state in everything,” Ennis said. “Making the playoffs in football might have been my goal in other years, but since this is my last year and senior year I want it all.”
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