NATHANIEL MATA|THE MONITOR
There’s a youth movement in the La Joya High backfield, and it goes through sophomore Eddie Villarreal.
If his 234 yards through two games take fans by surprise, it’s a forgivable offense. The underclassman got significant carries only in La Joya’s final two games of 2016. His 104 rushing yards and receiving touchdown got lost in the Coyotes late-season skid that kept them from a playoff berth.
“We knew that he was a gem,” La Joya High coach Reuben Farias said. “We just had to take care of him.”
Villarreal listed two overarching goals for this season: rush for 1,000 yards, and get the Coyotes their first playoff berth since 2014. He’s on pace for both.
Villarreal says thanks to his action in 2016, he felt no pressure starting on the varsity squad.
“No, it’s cause last year I had experience in two games, so I just felt confident that my O-line was going to block for me,” Villarreal said. “I wasn’t nervous. I was just there to hit the holes.”
His fearlessness was on display in La Joya’s season opener this year, when he carried the ball 37 times against Rio Grande City for 171 yards and a TD. Between Villarreal and QB Irving Garcia, the Coyotes rushed for 263 yards and grinded out a win over a Rattlers team known for their stingy defense.
The sophomore gave credit to his experienced quarterback, who is in his third year of varsity play.
“He gives me advice,” Villarreal said. “He has four years here. I just feel good being back there with a veteran quarterback.”
Farias said getting Garcia to rush the ball more was a deliberate decision designed to give defenses another player to worry about, freeing up the backs.
“We’re trying to use (Garcia) a little bit more running the ball,” Farias said. “We had it last year, but we were real tentative. We need to give him an opportunity to run with the ball, too, or else they’re going to key in on just one kid.”
La Joya’s optimism is apparent from the athletes and coaches. The Coyotes dropped their first two games last season and this year found ways to win both games against the Starr County opposition — Roma and Rio Grande City.
“We’re doing better finishing off games,” Villarreal said. “Last year, we’d stay with a team, and we didn’t finish the game. This year, we are, and our defense is helping that a lot.”
The young back is already a carry away from 60 rushes on the season. When asked if he has any concerns about the 5-foot-6-inch Villarreal’s durability, Farias said he views Villarreal no differently than any other player.
“He’s a young man that works hard every day,” Farias said. “All offseason, he came and worked out with us, and he worked out with his father early in the morning, lifting. Do I ever worry about him getting hurt? We all do. We try to avoid young men getting hurt before district, but we can’t be saying, ‘You know what? (Let’s hold him back.)’”
Villarreal said he has no issues if he’s asked to carry the ball 35-plus times each night if it means a win.
“Yes, we do feel comfortable, because like I’m always saying, the O-line is the big impact here,” Villarreal said.
The offensive line that Villarreal compliments so often has a young makeup, as well. It consists of one senior, two juniors and two sophomores.
“As a linemen, that’s my favorite thing to do, run the ball every single play, because we get more of the action,” Damian Tanguma said. “I would prefer to run the ball every play, but whatever the game plan needs is what we’ll do.”
Villarreal said work ethic is the key to the early success.
“We just push each other every day,” Villarreal said. “We work hard. We never stop grinding, and that’s why we keep getting better every day.”
Tanguma is one of the starters on the increasingly important O-Line. He brings a mix of youth and experience, being a junior with varsity experience from last season.
“We’re showing real improvement from last year,” Tanguma said. “It feels good, because we have chemistry, and we know each other really well by now.”
Tanguma and the line are prepared to keep the good times rolling for the Coyotes.
“The offensive line is going to keep pushing throughout the season, and we’re going to let our running back run,” Tanguma said. “We’re going to keep the pocket open for the quarterback to throw. We’re just going to give the offense more opportunities to thrive.”