To that point there was no plausible way to quantify the Tigers' early-season success.
Well, after seven weeks of adjournment, the jury delivered its verdict Friday night: These Tigers are good, darn good!
Yes, that resounding conclusion came not after another Belton dismantling, but from its 10-0 loss to Copperas Cove that was played at a playoff-like intensity suggestive of Dec. 12 instead of Oct. 16.
Sure, the Tigers (6-1, 3-1 District 12-5A) were ahead in the statistics - they totaled 277 yards and 17 first downs to the Bulldawgs' 108 and eight - but look inside the numbers.
The offense gritted out three long drives - a 16-play march to start the game, a 12-play trek in the third and 13 on their final drive in the fourth - something that's difficult to sustain because of the consistency required.
The defense didn't allow a Cove drive to sniff the end zone, and excluding the final drive in which the Bulldawgs ran out the clock, they were 0-of-8 on third-down conversions. Only three of Cove's 36 rushing attempts went for more than 10 yards.
"I think defensively we have figured out we can line up and play with anybody," Belton coach Rodney Southern said.
Where the Tigers lost the game on Friday was a failure to produce that game-changing play at the opportune time. But that's forgivable because it was the first time the dominant Tigers had been in that situation all season long. To criticize Belton for being a victim of its own success is like unfairly creating a stir when Roger Federer or Tiger Woods fail to win a major.
We also witnessed how far the Tigers' program has evolved in three seasons under Southern. Against a Jack Welch-coached Cove team that makes few mental mistakes and perfects micromanaging field position, Belton showed it belonged on that stage.
"They're there," Welch said of the Tigers' program. "They have done such a good job of building the base. Now what you'll see is they'll starting plugging pieces in the machine and keep it going. Rodney is that kind of coach."
Southern, who served as Welch's defensive coordinator from 1994-2001 and helped turn the lowly Cove program into the current powerhouse we all know, agreed with his program's status but he won't overlook the elephant in the room.
"I think we're right where we need to be with two exceptions: we don't have our starting quarterback (David Ash), which plays a factor no matter what you say," he said while also pointing to the inability to provide his offense good field position on Friday.
Ash, who missed his second straight game with a high right ankle sprain, is such a rare talent that his presence elevates the Tigers into elite company.
"David pinpoints those balls. I don't think I've seen a high school passer better than David Ash and I've seen a lot of them," Welch said.
It's a shame two interceptions may overshadow a heck of a performance by Jonathan Paysse. How about the elusiveness to avoid would-be tacklers he showed in the first quarter when he found Kevin Thornton for 23 yards? Or the poise on that third-quarter drive when the Tigers faced a second-and-24 and still picked up the first down?
He's no ordinary backup. Unfortunately for Paysse, he's doing his best to fill the shoes of a Division I talent.
Is Belton still unbeaten if Ash is healthy? Who knows, and who cares in October? This isn't college football's stupid non-playoff system where that loss would have crushed the Tigers' season like Texas' defeat to Texas Tech did a year ago.
What we know is Belton is legit and is only going to improve every game and season with Southern at the helm. After each game I continue to marvel and have found myself impressed in different ways because their ceiling of potential hasn't been established.
Which brings me back to my original thought of 'How good are they?' With this team and where this program is headed the possibilities are endless.
