By ANDREW CRUM, Staff Writer
As the saying goes, offense wins games but defense wins championships.
For the teams in District 32-6A, no championships were being played in Week 2, but defense was definitely the difference to those that lost and those that earned a victory.
Brownsville Veterans Memorial, Los Fresnos and Hanna all earned victories with excellent defense down the stretch, something that wavered in Week 1.
On the opposite side, San Benito, Harlingen High, Harlingen South and Lopez all found a mark in the loss column due in part to defense.
The Chargers lost a late lead in Week 1 and wasn’t going to let the same thing happen against PSJA North. Despite its own offense miscues — three first-half fumbles — Brownsville Veterans’ defense made stops when it needed to. The Chargers forced the Raiders into fourth-down situations and allowed just one conversion in five different attempts.
“Our defense was incredible after the three big fumbles in the first half,” Brownsville Veterans coach David Cantu said. “They all occurred near our red zone, but they only resulted in a total of three points. It’s been amazing to see the kids on defense to hold them to that when it was necessary…and we expect to continue to improve.”
Los Fresnos, stunned in Week 1 after losing a 19-point lead and being defeated on last-second field goal, stepped up its defense, too. The Falcons held a 35-10 lead against Edcouch-Elsa after the third quarter thanks to a fumble return for a touchdown by Isaiah Zepeda and a blocked punt return by Jonathan De Leon for another score. Edcouch-Elsa scored 21 fourth-quarter points but the damage was done as Los Fresnos forced three turnovers in the win.
Hanna also earned its first victory of the season due to its defense. The Golden Eagles coach Rene Medrano was proud of he team’s road victory, but especially his defense, saying “We had some big stops in some crucial situations.”
San Benito did not stop the run, giving up 427 yards on the ground to Weslaco East, and Harlingen South kept pace until the fourth quarter as Edinburg Vela scored three touchdowns within six minutes to blow it open. Harlingen High was shut out and allowed nearly 400 yards of offense in a loss to San Antonio Reagan, and Lopez allowed 31 unanswered points after taking a 7-0 first quarter lead against Porter.
BY THE NUMBERS
Through Week 2, San Benito is atop the district standings on both sides of the ball. The Greyhounds have averaged 428 yards on offense and 244 yards on defense, including a miniscule 11 yards through the air. San Benito has averaged nearly 34 points per game, but has a 1-1 record heading into Week 3.
On the opposite side of the standings, Lopez is averaging 184 yards on offense and allowing 395 yards per game. The Lobos already have allowed 713 yards on the ground and nearly 39 points per game in their two losses this season, to La Joya Palmview and then to Porter in the annual Battle of Southmost.
Andrew Crum covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6629 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @andrewmcrum.