Ralph Lymas feels good about his Hearne football team, and that should be good news for the Eagles and their fans.

The last two times coach Lymas entered a season feeling this way about his team, both squads reached the third round of the state playoffs. That includes two years ago when Hearne made the longest playoff run in school history to reach the Class 2A Division I state quarterfinals.

Hearne slipped to 5-5 last season and missed the playoffs, but that didn't keep Lymas from having high expectations for the 2008 Eagles.

"It's a unique bunch," Lymas said. "We had some bumps in the road last season, but they never quit or gave up. I was so proud of them in the last part of the season.

"I think the game that set the precedent for me was when we played New Waverly in the last game of the season. We were down one point with 1 minute left, and [receiver] Jamie Smith walked over and said we had them. Three passes later, we were in the end zone, and we won the game."

Lymas enters his third season at Hearne with the same excitement and anticipation he felt in 2006 in Hearne and at Karnack in 1996, when he led the Indians to the third round of the playoffs.

"You just know that, barring a serious injury or something like that, this is a special group of kids," Lymas said. "The attitude is great. We practiced eight times in four days, and we pushed them like a mad dog, and they responded well."

The Eagles return a talented group of veterans led by Smith, a 6-foot, 180-pound senior who earned honorable mention all-state honors last season after catching 67 passes for 1,110 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Smith, who will play wide receiver and defensive back, is one of several players that Lymas considers potential game-breakers. Other potential standouts include quarterback/safety Justin Evans, running back/safety Alonzo Gurode, lineman William Moten, tight end/defensive end Andrew Washington, defensive end Quinn Taylor and center/linebacker Thomas Williams Jr.

Last season, Evans took over as the starting quarterback and produced. He completed 137 of 232 passes for 2,100 yards and 21 touchdowns and ran for 480 yards and five scores.

For the defense, Taylor made 72 tackles and had four sacks, while Washington added 48 tackles and four sacks.

Overall, the Eagles will have 10 returning starters on offense and 10 on defense, including several who play on both units.

"There's a nucleus of talent on this team, and it's a good bunch of kids who are fun to be with," Lymas said. "My biggest concern is overall depth. When we go two deep, we're very tough. If we have to go any deeper than that, depth is always tough at a small school."

Lymas said the Eagles have been working hard to improve their special teams, an area that could be the difference between winning and losing in a powerhouse District 20-2A.

The UIL realignment moved Hearne into a league with Teague, Marlin, Franklin, Leon and Rosebud-Lott. In his preseason rankings, Lymas listed Teague as the team to beat.

The Eagles will open the season by visiting Class A power Bremond on Aug. 29. Hearne's first home game at Wood Field will be against New Waverly on Sept. 5. The nondistrict schedule includes games against 3A teams Navasota and Rudder.