BY GREG LUCA | STAFF WRITER
Heading to San Antonio last week to face one of the state’s best and most storied teams in Odessa Permian, McAllen High coach Kevin Brewer knew his defense would be in for a challenge. But he didn’t quite envision things going as poorly as they did.
Permian picked up 656 yards of total offense and scored on every possession as McHi lost 70-14.
“I thought we were going to be able to limit them a little bit more than we did defensively,” Brewer said. “We couldn’t win first down. We couldn’t stop them on third down. It was just a long day for us defensively.”
Although the Bulldogs return just two starters on the defensive side, Brewer was excited about the group’s athleticism. Still, McHi’s athletes didn’t compare to Permian, which spread the field and gave the Bulldogs fits with an option attack.
“When you’re outgunned physically and you make those kind of mistakes, they cost you seven points,” Brewer said. “We were going to have to be dang near 100 percent assignment wise just to give ourselves a chance, and we weren’t.”
Brewer left the game with some positives on offense: Caleb Youngblood showed well as the starting quarterback, Josh McGowen ran for 115 yards in his McHi debut, and the pass protection was solid. Still, penalties and struggles in short-yardage situations kept the Bulldogs from scoring more than 14 points.
“We got our butts kicked,” Brewer said. “You’re always going to feel the sting when that happens. But by the time we went back to work at 7:30 Monday morning, we were fine.”
RETURNING THREAT
McAllen Memorial’s Trevor Speights was named the 6A Built Ford Tough Texas High School Football Player of the Week after rushing for 248 yards and three touchdowns in Week 1. He’ll have a little extra help as he tries to follow up on that distinction in Week 2, as wide receiver DJ Johnson returns to the lineup after missing the opener due to lingering effects from a concussion suffered during Memorial’s preseason scrimmage.
Johnson tied for the District 30-6A lead with eight touchdown receptions last season, hauling in 16 passes for 554 yards despite missing four games due to injury.
“He gives us a deep threat,” coach Bill Littleton said. “We’ll do what they give us. We’re not going to be doing things a whole lot different, but we know we have a deep threat, and they know we have a deep threat, so they have to cover him. If they don’t cover him, we’ll sure throw the ball to him.”
Defensive end Paul Zuniga also missed last week’s game with an ankle injury, and Littleton said Zuniga is questionable for Saturday’s game against Edinburg Economedes.
SOPHOMORE SURGE
Although La Joya Juarez-Lincoln suffered its 12th consecutive loss last week, coach Tommy Garcia came away encouraged by the performance of the team’s sophomores.
Against a PSJA Memorial team that handed Juarez-Lincoln a 33-0 defeat last season, the Huskies took a 7-0 lead into halftime before letting the game slip away in the fourth quarter, ultimately losing 14-7.
“From what I was hearing, everybody thought we were going to get drilled,” Garcia said. “But it’s like I told the kids, we’re going to put our best 11 against their best 11 and go from there. I wasn’t surprised.”
Garcia was pleased with how his current sophomores finished out last season, and they continued to make strides in Week 1. Running back Adonis Barillas was the leading rusher with 13 carries for 38 yards, and Julio Monsivalles and Jesus Proa held their own on the offensive line.
Sophomore standouts on defense included safety Elias Gutierrez, who caused two fumbles, and defensive tackles Norberto Lomeli and Bryan Lira.
But those tackles, like many other players on Juarez-Lincoln’s roster, fatigued down the stretch last week.
“We got tired, and that’s on me,” Garcia said. “I had some kids cramping up that were going both ways, but I like what I saw from our sophomores. They opened up some eyes.”