BY SAUL BERRIOS-THOMAS | THE MONITOR
In the proverbial David vs. Goliath fight that is Edinburg North against San Benito, David may have just the stone he needs for his slingshot.
Edinburg North junior quarterback Frankie Zuniga has been cleared to wear the navy and gold for the first time since Week 3.
“The kids have won back-to-back games for the first time this season,” North coach Rene Saenz said. “They are feeling good. And to have Frankie back, it’s kind of like a little bit more confidence for them. Believe it or not, Frankie is the most excited.”
How much Zuniga will be able to play is unclear. Saenz said “we will see how much action he can take,” obviously wanting to protect Zuniga’s health.
In his first three games, Zuniga was a live wire, completing 35 of 48 passes for a 77.9 completion percentage and 393 yards.
“(Junior quarterback) Max Aguilar has done a tremendous job,” Saenz said. “He’s guided us to a couple of wins, but he doesn’t bring that factor where a defense has to prep for him running it also, but Frankie does. That is kind of an added dimension. We are happy to have it. We can’t have enough dimensions to go against San Benito. They are the real deal.”
Edinburg North will face San Benito at 7 p.m. Thursday at Bobby Morrow Stadium.
“We know we are the fourth seed coming in and they are the No. 1 seed,” Saenz said. “They are ranked No. 1 in the Valley. We still have to play the game. We keep telling the kids we will take it one drive at a time and one possession at a time. Do what we know how to do. Try not to be heroes out there, as far as trying to do something extra out there, because that’s when mistakes happen. If we don’t end up on the winning side, it’s because they beat us, and not because we beat ourselves.”
One of the keys to the North offense will be the play of junior running back Cristian Flores, who rushed for more than 100 yard in all but two district games. Last week, against PSJA High, Flores had a career high 269 yards in North’s 28-10 win.
“San Benito is an all-around tough team,” Saenz said. “They have a great defense. They fly all over the place. It’s hard to get one consistent look from them, because they move a lot on the line of scrimmage and they are quick. So we are hoping that Cristian can keep up his running. Of course, we don’t expect him to go 200-plus, but we do expect for him to be the majority of the yards. A lot of that is on our O-line to make our blocks. That’s why it’s a great team sport. We didn’t just celebrate that 200-plus game with him. A lot of it was on the O-line and the receivers and everybody else doing their job. If he can have a healthy day, that means the team itself did what they were supposed to, and that’s what we are striving for.”