The Texas high school football season is three weeks in, and strong quarterback play has started to emerge from Districts 15-5A DII and 16-5A DII.
Brownsville Lopez senior Lupe Ramirez, a three-year starter, is no stranger to lighting it up through the air. The Lobos’ signal-caller has completed 59 of his 77 passes and ranks third in the Rio Grande Valley with 706 passing yards and nine touchdowns through three games.
Sharyland High junior Calvin Harris has shown the ability to impact the game with his arm, legs and hands after going for a hat trick with a passing, rushing and receiving touchdown during the Rattlers’ most recent game against Mission High. Harris is up to 661 passing yards, which ranks fourth in the RGV, 197 rushing yards and nine total touchdowns.
Mission. (Joel Martinez | [email protected])
Sharyland Pioneer’s passing attack continues to take shape this season, and the Diamondbacks’ Week 3 31-14 win over Edinburg North showcased it. Senior quarterback William Goodloe, who played receiver last season, had his best performance of the early season with 221 passing yards, 50 rushing yards and four total touchdowns against the Cougars.
Mission Veterans junior Cameron Sarinana has flashed potential this season and sits seventh in the Valley with 555 passing yards and four touchdown tosses. He finished his first career start with 290 yards and three touchdowns against crosstown rival Mission High before running into two tough defenses in Edcouch-Elsa and PSJA High. The experience will prove valuable once district play rolls around.
Roma also has a new gunslinger in town with quarterback Eli Garza taking over after transferring from McAllen Rowe before the season started. He completed 2-of-5 passes in his debut with the Gladiators last week, a 17-6 win over Grulla, for 76 yards and a touchdown, and he also ran for 27 yards.
THUNDER D
Edcouch-Elsa’s “Thunder Defense” had high expectations coming into the 2024 campaign, returning nearly all of its starters and setting out to allow just two touchdowns all season.
The Yellow Jackets have allowed more than two touchdowns this year, but they’ve still proven to be among the RGV’s top units this year.
Through three games Edcouch-Elsa has allowed 543 total yards and 33 points, averaging just 181.0 yards and 11 points per game against.
More impressively, the Yellow Jackets have 15 takeaways and three defensive touchdowns on the year, tallying 10 interceptions, five fumble recoveries, two pick-sixes and one fumble return TD.
A pair of non-district games remain for Edcouch-Elsa, beginning with Edinburg High this Friday, followed by a contest against Port Isabel the following week.
NEXT UP
A couple of weeks remain before the start of district play for the Valley’s 5A-DII districts, but that doesn’t mean exciting matchups aren’t on deck.
PSJA Southwest (1-2) and Sharyland High (1-2) kick off Week 4 action at 7 p.m. today in a non-district battle between playoff hopefuls. Both teams are looking for a return to the postseason this year, with the matchup also presenting a possible bi-district matchup this season.
Sharyland Pioneer looks to stay hot at home against a tough Brownsville Hanna team. The Diamondbacks are coming off back-to-back wins after dropping their season opener, while the Eagles are in search of their first win of the year. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. Friday at Richard Thompson Stadium in Mission.
Other notable matchups include Brownsville Lopez (2-1) vs. Grulla (1-2) at 7 p.m. today at Joe Sanchez Stadium in Rio Grande City, Mission Veterans (0-3) at Laredo Johnson (1-2) at 7 p.m. today and more.
For a full look at this week’s scheduled games, visit RGVSports.com.