District 15-5A DI was the first to kick off district play in the Rio Grande Valley last week, and 16-5A DI is set to join the mix as both leagues deliver primetime matchups in Week 4.
15-5A DI
WESLACO EAST AT PSJA MEMORIAL
The nine-team District 15-5A DI features seven playoff qualifiers from a season ago, which turns this year’s race for a top-four spot into a marathon.
The seventh-ranked Weslaco East Wildcats (3-0, 1-0) are off to a hot start and coming off a dominant 26-0 win over Donna High in Week 3. The Wildcats limited Donna to just 14 yards of total offense and East’s tandem of runners — senior Margarito Pompa and freshman Malachi Rodriguez — ran wild in the win.
Pompa leads the Wildcats with 389 rushing yards, 122 receiving yards and three touchdowns on 50 touches this season. The freshman athlete, Rodriguez, has lined up at quarterback and in the backfield and posted 342 rushing yards and six touchdowns on 55 carries.
Linebacker Kyle Garcia and safety Greg Granados lead the East defense with 32 and 26 tackles, respectively. They’ll be tasked with matching up against a PSJA Memorial team that likes to pound the rock itself.
The Wolverines (1-1, 0-0) are coming off a bye week and will have had two weeks to prepare for their meeting with the Wildcats. Their most recent action was a 36-28 win on the road against McAllen High on Sept. 5 as running back Emi Colunga erupted for 189 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Senior quarterback Ryan Reyna added 93 yards on the ground with one rushing touchdown, and senior receiver Robert Moralez chipped in with 70 total yards and a score on four touches.
Defensively, senior linebacker Diego Villegas leads the Wolverines in stops with 20 tackles in two games, and senior defensive back Exzayveon Banks is a threat in the secondary with 13 tackles, one interception, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.
Kickoff between the Wildcats and Wolverines is set for 7 p.m. Thursday at PSJA Stadium in Pharr.
16-5A DI
EDINBURG VELA AT MISSION HIGH
District 16-5A DI competition kicks off this week and begins with a matchup of two teams inside the RGVSports.com 5A/6A Top 10 rankings featuring No. 2 Edinburg Vela visiting No. 8 Mission High.
The SaberCats (3-0, 0-0) proved they’re still one of the big dogs on the block by taking down last week’s No. 2 team, Harlingen High, 34-16 at Boggus Stadium in Harlingen in the RGVSports.com Game of the Week.
Edinburg Vela’s offense continues to improve each week, and now the SaberCats are ripping off chunk plays in bunches. It starts up front with a strong offensive line in the trenches that opens up room for running back Jonathan Flores. The senior back ranks sixth in the RGV in rushing yardage with 568 yards and seven touchdowns on 68 carries. That creates opportunities for senior quarterback Geoffrey LeFevre (648 passing yards, four touchdowns) to hit playmakers on the outside in senior June Garza Jr. (245 yards, three touchdowns) and junior Jay’r Guevara (174 yards).
The SaberCats’ defense also flexed its muscle in the win over Harlingen by holding its third straight opponent to less than 17 points. Safeties Luis Garcia and Derek Rodriguez are solid on the back end, and the Vela front seven has played tough to slow opposing rushing attacks.
Mission will be standing on the opposite sideline on its home field of Tom Landry Stadium, looking to pull off an upset.
The Eagles (2-1, 0-0) have won tight games against an intra-city rivals and dropped a close one against Weslaco East by a field goal. Still, Mission High has the pieces to push fellow 16-5A DI teams Vela and McAllen Memorial for a district title.
The Eagles have displayed a balanced attack this season with experience at the quarterback position in senior third-year starter Diego Salinas and weapons in the backfield and on the perimeter in Mission’s spread attack.
Mission. (Joel Martinez | [email protected])
Salinas ranks second in the RGV in passing yards with 740 and seven touchdowns through three weeks. Senior running back Thomas Aparicio has been one of the area’s best with 410 rushing yards, and pass-catchers Yandel Barrera, Christopher Kirk and Shelby Sital can hit the big play at any moment.
Mission’s defense will be tested against Edinburg Vela’s ground game, but the Eagles have held two spread offenses to 22 points or less in their wins against Mission Veterans and Sharyland High with junior linebackers Jonathan Kader and Jose Sanchez leading the charge.
The SaberCats and Eagles are slated for a 7:30 p.m kickoff Friday at Tom Landry Stadium in Mission.