BY GREG LUCA | STAFF WRITER
MISSION — After years of being the Valley’s most dominant program, Sharyland High hit a lull the Rattlers haven’t felt since 2007 on Friday, losing their second consecutive regular-season game.
Sharyland allowed Laredo United quarterback Ignazio Tellez to throw for 309 yards and six touchdowns in the first half alone, putting the Rattlers in an insurmountable hole that resulted in a 55-35 loss at Richard Thompson Stadium.
“Me, personally, it gets me a little mad,” defensive end Beto Ruiz said of the loss. “We don’t expect that from Sharyland.”
Indeed, the Rattlers had lost just five regular season games total in seven seasons since 2007, averaging 10.7 wins per year.
But after graduating 46 seniors at the end of last season, Sharyland High is feeling the effects of the split that created Sharyland Pioneer, with 30 fewer players in the program compared to 2014.
“This tells me that maybe the split affected us a little bit as far as depth, but we’re still just as good as ever,” quarterback Seth Carter said. “The main thing is we’re a very young team.”
That youth is showing on defense. A week after giving up 473 yards on the ground in a 42-18 loss against McAllen Memorial, Sharyland allowed 440 passing yards on Friday.
“Look at who we’ve faced,” Sharyland High coach Ron Adame said. “We’re facing some good teams. District championship teams. Taking all of that into account, I’m proud of our boys. And I wouldn’t trade them for the world.”
Tellez finished 40 of 59 with 440 yards and 8 touchdowns, marking only the 29th time in the history of Texas high school football that a player has thrown eight touchdown passes or more.
David Sanchez was his leading target, making 13 catches for 199 yards and five scores.
“I think communication in the backfield on defense killed us a lot,” Ruiz said.
United opened up a 21-point lead when it scored twice in 25 seconds during the second quarter. Tellez found Sanchez from 24 yards out with 9:37 to play, Sharyland’s Manny Campos lost a fumble on the next play from scrimmage, and United immediately scored again on a pass from Tellez to Daniel Ruiz that brought the lead to 28-7 with 9:12 remaining in the quarter.
Still, the Rattlers never trailed by more than 21 points, and the defense stiffened after halftime, holding the Longhorns to -4 yards during the third quarter.
“We just challenged our boys,” Adame said. “Our guys flat out showed some character.”
Down 42-28 with the ball inside United’s 20-yard line, Sharyland High looked to be making a rally before Carter threw an interception as the final seconds of the third quarter ticked off.
“Simple mistakes kept us out of the game,” Carter said. “A little key block here and there, it’s a different game.”
Carter was the Rattlers’ leader on offense, completing 16 of 32 passes for 149 yards and a touchdown. He also ran 20 times for 130 yards and a score. Sergio Tornero found the end zone twice on the ground, and Campos scored once.
“A lot of stuff was working — we have a talented team,” Carter said. “Everything was just one block away from being something special.”