BY JON R. LaFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER
PHARR — At times, Desi Rodriguez finds himself in an awkward spot on the Weslaco Panthers. He’s a quarterback, sure, but his right arm is rarely used in coach Tony Villarreal’s run-dominant slot-T offense.
“Normally I only throw on third and long,” Rodriguez said. “But whenever they call my number and nothing is there, I just take off running.”
Third and long, second and short. It didn’t matter Friday during the Panther’s 56-7 district-opening win over PSJA North at PSJA Stadium in Pharr. Weslaco got whatever it wanted, including a potent passing attack.
Rodriguez’s stat line — 2-of-5 for 86 yards — may seem insignificant in such a one-sided win, but his pair of completions propelled his team’s rout. Rodriguez’s struck gold on his first passing attempt with 1:49 left in opening quarter. On the Weslaco 39-yard line, Rodriguez found wideout Alex Lara as naked as the eyes of a clown behind the Raiders’ defense for a 61-yard score.
One play. 10 seconds. 21-0 Panthers.
“We have it,” Villarreal said of his team’s ability to move the ball through the air. “We just don’t show it ‘til we need to. District is the number one thing for us. We needed big plays tonight.”
But Weslaco (3-2, 1-0) was productive from the get-go. Their first two drives resulted in touchdowns. Usiel Gonzalez punched it in from 2 yards out to cap a five-play, 78-yard drive with 10:07 in the quarter to put the Panthers up 7-0. Running back Matt Ortiz made it 14-0 with a 22-yard run seven minutes later.
Weslaco didn’t let up, either. By the end of the third quarter, and with second stringers on the field, the Panthers scored on eight of their nine possessions. The catalyst was their offensive line, who routinely pushed North defenders aside with ease.
“I saw a lot of holes tonight,” Weslaco senior fullback Jonathan Martinez said. “It didn’t matter who was carrying the ball.”
Indeed. Nine separate Panthers took turns carrying the ball, combining for more than 400 yards on the ground. If Villarreal wanted a crack at running back, he could have walked into the end zone unscathed, as Martinez did three times to the tune of 183 yards on eight carries.
Just as impressive as Weslaco’s offensive output was their defensive display. The Raiders (1-4, 0-1) entered the game averaging 41 points on 442 yards per game. Friday, they were limited to less than 300 yards, the bulk of which came when the game had long since been decided.
“The defensive coaches did a tremendous job planning for this game,” Villarreal said. “I was worried coming into this game, because (North) can move the ball so well. The defense played outstanding.”
Junior linebacker Jordan Nichols collected two turnovers, recovering a fumble from a sack of Raiders quarterback George Olivarez on the third play of the game. Nichols’ other takeaway came midway through the third when he intercepted Olivarez.
“This was a hell of a win,” Nichols said. “It just shows that people can doubt us all they want, but when it comes to the field, we know we can take care of business.”
The Raiders’ offense could only go as far Olivarez took them. The senior quarterback, when not scrambling away from Weslaco’s defenders, looked a step slow for much of the night, and seemed to still be affected by injuries which kept him out off the first half of North’s Week 4 loss to Mission Veterans. By the end of the third quarter, North punted four times and had three turnovers.