BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER
ELSA — When Edcouch-Elsa ISD hired Bradly Chavez to be the Yellow Jackets’ newest head coach, one new assistant was sitting by his side at December’s introductory press conference.
The assistant coach is James Jefferson, a former NFL defensive back with the Seattle Seahawks who also played five seasons in the CFL. Chavez brought Jefferson aboard to be his defensive coordinator.
Jefferson will work with a defensive group that allowed 218.0 yards per game, the fewest among the four Mid-Valley 5A schools in 2017. He is putting his fingerprints on E-E’s defense.
“I don’t know what they (E-E) ran last year,” Jefferson said. “I’m not trying to be rude or mean about it, but it doesn’t matter what they ran last year. I saw how the guys played, but I didn’t pay attention to what they went. I know what we’re running this year.”
Among the top returning players to the defense is senior free safety Derrick Ayala. Ayala led the team with 142 tackles, 82 of them solo, five tackles for a loss, two interceptions and two forced fumbles. For the season he put together, Ayala was named to The Monitor’s All-Area Second Team as well as the Texas Associated Press Sports Editors’ All-State Second Team.
Jefferson’s plans include moving playmakers like Ayala and defensive-end-turned-defensive-tackle Cody Alvarado to different spots in the alignment.
“There were some guys that I felt were out of position last year, and I’ve moved them around,” Jefferson said. “Derrick had 82 solo tackles and two interceptions as our free safety. If my free safety is making 82 tackles, are they on the line of scrimmage? They can’t be, so I’m moving him closer to the ball.
“I moved Cody to defensive tackle to better serve his attributes. He’s a powerlifter. He’s strong. He can get people off of him, and he can come off the ball with his speed. I don’t think he turned out to be the player people thought he could be because, in my view, he was out of position. I feel now he’s in the best position to better serve his attributes.”
Jefferson offered his view of what fans should look for from his defense.
“It’s supposed to be fast-moving, sliding, everything even and getting after people,” Jefferson said. “No sitting back. ‘Let’s read this. Let’s read that.’ We’re going to be in your face. If teams are going to beat us, they’re going to have to beat us. We’re not going to watch them beat us. That’s my mindset.”
TRYING OUT THE OFFENSE
Chavez had his sights set on hiring an offensive coordinator. But once his candidates fell through, Chavez took it upon himself to be the play-caller on offense.
“I don’t have a problem calling plays, but it was on more of a need basis,” Chavez said. “Our staff has come along very well. One thing I’ve talked to our guys about is working as an offensive unit, and that includes the coaching staff. We have a lot of meetings, which I don’t think they’re used to as much, but we want to make sure we’re getting our kids in the best possible position to be successful.”
The Yellow Jackets debuted their new offense in their scrimmage against Weslaco East on Thursday night.
“It was a great test for us,” Chavez said. “I was excited that (Weslaco East) coach (Mike) Burget reached out and wanted to scrimmage us. It was a good test for our young men and our toughness and our hitting capabilities. When you’re trying to define your culture, you want to go against somebody that kind of imitates that.”
Senior wide receiver Christian Maldonado said he and his teammates are still getting used to the lingo and formations.
“There are a lot of different concepts to the offense, which is more of a West Coast style,” Maldonado said. “It was a little difficult, because we weren’t playing against ourselves for the first time. We got into a little bit of a groove, putting some good drives together. We only scored once, but we’re still picking up on it every day and every week.”
“They’ve had a lot thrown at them,” Chavez said. “They’re swimming a bit, and that’s OK. We’ll tone it back down as we get ready for (Corpus Christi) Veterans Memorial next week. We’ll simplify it, but we want our kids to learn and not take the easy way out.”
Last year’s starting quarterback, senior Albert Treviño, started against the Wildcats. Sophomore Raven Rojas saw some action, as well, throwing for Edcouch-Elsa’s lone touchdown of the game.
“As of right now, we still have a quarterback battle,” Chavez said. “We have four quarterbacks battling right now. We’ll probably remain that way, until we get to game week. I’ll announce it then.”
HIGH “ESTIM”
One of the strongest areas of the team last year was the offensive line. The group helped guide the way for running back Jorge Gomez to run for more than 1,600 yards.
Among the graduated offensive linemen was Ricky Estimbo. Ricky’s little brother, Joseph, is still a part of Edcouch-Elsa’s front five.
“All these new linemen are young. They were freshmen and sophomores who are coming up now,” Estimbo said. “I’ve shown them all the drills I had to do last year, when I was a younger guy. I’m always there for them if they have any questions. The guys that have been showing up throughout the summer are going to get better.”
Ricky Estimbo is now playing college football at Oklahoma Panhandle State University. The younger Estimbo wants to carve his own niche after high school.
“I’ve thought about it,” Estimbo said. “I would if I really want to. I’m still going to go to college, but I won’t play ball after this.”
EDCOUCH-ELSA’S KEYS TO THE SEASON
Learning a new offense and a new defense against a difficult non-district slate (Corpus Christi Veterans Memorial, Los Fresnos) will likely provide some early hurdles at the start of the year. The Yellow Jackets, however, have a talented enough team to make the playoffs after missing out in 2017.
2017 record: 5-5
Returning starters (O/D): 7/8
COACH’S TENURE
Coach: Bradly Chavez
Year at school: 1st
Record: 0-0