By MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
RIO GRANDE CITY — At the tail end of another long, methodical drive, Roma’s Jorge Espinoza had every intention to punt on 4th-and-8 from the opposing 41-yard line, trying his best to preserve the Gladiators’ slim lead late in their District 31-5A opener.
But when a couple of Rio Grande City defender broke through his line of defense, the running back-converted-punter cradled the ball for 30 yards — his only carry of the evening — as Roma earned a first down, milking the clock to secure a 19-14 win Friday at Joe R. Sanchez Stadium.
“I’m not going to lie to you, that wasn’t a fake. I could, but no,” Roma coach Max Habecker Jr. said. “We work on special teams everyday. We work it for extra points. We work it for field goals. We work it for punts. It’s just stuff that happens in a game, and thank goodness that we were prepared, because three guys turned around and lead-blocked for him, and that’s great.
“That’s the kids having football savviness. He saw a hole and he attacked it. It was awesome.”
The play highlighted a series of adjustments Roma executed Friday to secure the program’s first-ever 5-0 start.
Through halftime, the Gladiators trailed 14-13 after allowing 113 yards, including 53 and two touchdowns to Casimiro Olivarez, the district’s second-leading rusher. But Roma’s aggressiveness in the second half resulted in RGC either coming up empty or losing yards on plays nine plays.
They surrendered only 14 yards while blanking the Rattlers in the final two quarters. Olivarez finished with 60 yards on 19 carries.
“Even though we started a little bit slow, I know my team is a better second-half team, and I’m proud very proud of them,” middle linebacker Gerardo Gonzalez said. “Our defense, since we’re never individuals, we know that if someone messes up, someone’s going to be there to back us up.
“And we know if someone messes up, we all pay for it. So that’s why we play as a team.”
EXECUTING ON OFFENSE
Through two quarters, Roma had generated 137 yards of offense, with workhorse running back Ramon Espinoza picking up 108 yards on 19 carries. By the end of the game, the Gladiators had put up 317 yards, with Espinoza tallying 257 on 43 carries.
Espinoza accounted for each of his team’s touchdowns, including the go-ahead score with 5:58 left in the third quarter on a 10-yard pickup. In fact, during that drive alone, he rushed eight times for 47 yards.
“That’s just who we are,” Habecker said. “We’re that grind-it-out team that plays really good defense, because we controlled the clock.”
Roma, however, had a couple of missed opportunities that could have stretched the lead, including a 5-minute-long drive that ended with a blocked field-goal attempt, after failing to score on 1st-and-goal from the 8.
“Obviously taking time off the clock is good, but we have to finish drives,” Habecker said. “That’s going to be a point of emphasis in practice.”
FALLING BEHIND
Facing an aggressive line, coupled with its share of penalties, Rio Grande City (2-3, 0-1) was forced to punt on five of its nine drives, in addition to an interception it gave up late. The Rattlers had three 3-and-out scenarios, including two in which it started behind on 1st-and-15 due to penalties.
RGC finished with eight infractions for 60 yards.
“Once you get behind, it’s hard to catch up,” Rattlers coach Carlos Longoria said. “You put yourself in a hole, and that kind of hurts your momentum.”
NEXT UP
Rio Grande City goes on the road Oct. 1 to take on Sharyland Pioneer (5-0, 1-0). Roma will host Edinburg Vela (5-0, 1-0) on Oct. 2.