PHARR — After being hired at PSJA North in December, coach Jorge Peña reviewed game film to try to determine what led to the Raiders’ 0-10 season.
More than X’s and O’s, Peña sensed the players had the wrong mindset.
“Most of the time, it’s the approach the kids have to the game itself,” he said. “And the approach was one of ‘me’ and ‘I’ and that had to be addressed first. ‘I didn’t get enough carries. I’m not getting enough touches.’ That was addressed. The team concept had to be the first thing I addressed and they received it very well.”
Through the first couple of weeks at two-a-days, there’s a sense that the team is more united, and that’s enough to give players hope that it can revitalize the program.
“Playoffs, definitely — 10-0 season,” quarterback David Garza said.
Expectations are certainly high at PSJA High, with a new coach, a new system, a new district and some changes in the coaching staff, as well. If the Raiders come up short for a perfect regular-season, they’ll set their sights on a “lengthy” playoff run.
“I think we’ve been getting a lot of good work in,” said George Olivarez, who will share snaps with Garza this season. “We’ve been grinding pretty hard and putting the work in that we need to do.”
The Raiders will go with a spread offense this season, utilizing the variation of weapons they have at running back (with Rene Ramirez, Jacob Rodriguez, Brandon Villarreal) and wide receiver (Bo Adams, Darren Fuentes, Deion Hernandez, Saul Zuniga).
Peña, who has experience as an offensive coordinator, places plenty of importance on the offensive line, which features Emilio Salinas, a right guard, and tackles Anthony Marin and Andy Martinez.
“They’re the heart of the O-line,” Peña said. “They bring athleticism, power, high energy and they’re just football players. They’re as dedicated a group as you’re going to find.”
Linebackers Micklo Garza and Nic Jaime led the defense, along with cornerback Juan Garcia and nose guards Pierre Garza and Jozaith Treviño. Whatever the Raiders lack in size, they’ll make up for with their speed. In fact, Peña said only one of his defensive players runs the 40 in 5.0 seconds. Everyone else clocks in between 4.5-4.9 seconds.
“We’re not that big, but we’re dedicated,” Peña said. “This defense is perfect for us because we’re really, really quick and really, really tough.”
With the season nearing, the Raiders are looking to shelve away memories of last season and start anew.
“We don’t care what happened last year,” Peña said. “We’re focusing on the hard work from January to today. These kids haven’t stopped. They want to reach their goals, and they’ve paid the price.
“We don’t just want to be competitive. We play to be winners.”
TOUGH SCHEDULE
For a team looking to build confidence, one would imagine PSJA North would have scheduled opponents that performed similarly the year before. Instead, the Raiders will face three teams that made playoffs last year. Brownsville Veterans Memorial, the fourth school, missed out when a three-way tiebreaker was determined by way of positive points..
PSJA North opens with PSJA High followed by Brownsville Veterans, Los Fresnos and Mission Veterans Memorial.
“It’s the toughest (non-district schedules) I’ve ever had,” Peña said, before adding, “The way i look at it, we prepare for every game. Every game is important to us. Every game we go into, we prepare the same, same level of intensity. Every game we get better and better. And hopefully we’ll reach our peak by the time we play Weslaco (in the district opener). But, yes, it’s always a concern because we have a tough district schedule, but there are no easy games. We’re looking forward to it.”
BLOOMING TALENT
The Raiders have plenty of youth on their roster this year. The second-, third- and fourth-string quarterbacks are all underclassmen. The same goes for their running backs. All the receivers are underclassmen, as well. In fact, of the 30 skill players on the team, only one is a senior.
Even with all that promise, Peña isn’t looking ahead to next season and the potential for an experienced team like that. Instead, Peña is aiming to turn things around now.
“I’m not concentrating on next year,” he said. “These next seniors this year want to win. And these juniors and sophomores want to win. We’re not going to sacrifice this year. Yes, of course, we’re going to have a lot of returning lettermen next year, but this is the year we’re focused on. This is the year we’re planning to make the turnaround and win.”
DUAL QBs
The Raiders will have a two-quarterback system with Garza and Olivarez sharing snaps. Garza has improved his passing and running ability, while Olivarez has developed into an athletic, strong signal caller, especially with his offseason workouts. The two should give PSJA North plenty of options this season.
“Both of them improved in the areas they needed to improve,” Peña said. “That’s why they are where they are. They’re really similar in that they’re both good athletes and they’ve very competitive and they’re smart.”
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PROGNOSIS
The Raiders are hoping to bounce back from an 0-10 season with first-year coach Jorge Peña going with a two-quarterback offense.
2014 Record: 3-7
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COACH’S TENURE
Coach: Jorge Peña
Years at school: First
Record at school: 0-0