By ROY HESS, Staff Writer
The message is clear this week for the Los Fresnos Falcons.
It’s a message meant for the players from Los Fresnos coach Clint Finley and his staff, and it’s telling them to focus on playing to the best of their abilities and meeting the coaches’ expectations rather than concern themselves too much with who the opponent is and what the opponent’s record might be.
The Falcons (2-1) play host to the Lopez Lobos (0-3) at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Leo Aguilar Memorial Stadium in a District 32-6A opener.
Never mind if the opponent is 3-0 or 0-3, the Los Fresnos coach said.
“I’m telling our team we have to focus on us and go out and play our best game,” Finley said. “We can’t focus on the opponent. That’s been an issue here the past couple of years that we’ve focused on the wrong things (going into a game). We’ve got to focus on us.
“When we take care of what we need to take care of, we’re usually pretty successful,” he added. “When we focus on the things we can’t control, the things that don’t matter, that’s when we get into a little bit of trouble.”
The Falcons and Lobos each are coming off a bye week. The most recent game for Los Fresnos saw the Falcons rally from a 34-14 second-half deficit to win 35-34 at PSJA North on Sept. 12. That same night, the Lobos fell 53-22 to Pace in their most recent outing.
Both teams are well aware that non-district records are meaningless at this point with the 32-6A race just getting under way.
“I’ve seen a lot of good things about our football team (so far), I’d just like to see them more consistently,” Finley said. “I’ve seen that we can move the football on just about anybody, and when we’re executing (properly), we’re pretty hard to stop.
“It just comes down to us being able to get out there, execute and take care of the football,” he added. “I think we’re a minus 11 (in turnover ratio) over the first three games, which is unacceptable. We worked hard on ball security, execution and getting better at the fundamentals during our off week, so we’re looking forward to being a little more efficient in those areas.”
The Falcons have a senior at quarterback in Pierce Ruiz. He’s rushed for 224 yards and three touchdowns while passing for 298 yards and three scores. Sophomore Ivan Olivo has made an impact at QB for the Lobos and has rushed for 300 yards and four TDs. He averages 8.6 yards per carry and had scoring runs of 55 and 61 yards against Pace on Sept. 12.
“We’re young and we have a long way to go, but we’re close,” Lopez coach Jason Starkey said recently.
Meanwhile, Los Fresnos gained some additional confidence by rallying from a 34-14 deficit to win 35-34 during its last game at PSJA North. Finley said it was the first time he’s been associated with a team as a coach or player that has come back like that.
“That’s probably the biggest comeback that I’ve been a part of,” Finley said. “I was glad we were able to pull it out. It was fun. Hopefully our players matured and grew up a little bit from that game. They did what they had to do to get it done, and I was very proud of them.
“We feel pretty good about that (comeback),” he added. “I think our kids figured out that you’re never out of it. They put their heads down, their noses down, and went to work and did what they had to do to get the win. We dug ourselves a hole that we had to get out of, but the boys did what they had to do to get the win, and that says a lot.”
After Friday’s game, the teams continue 32-6A action Oct. 3 as Los Fresnos travels to San Benito, and Lopez plays host to Harlingen South at Sams Memorial Stadium.