KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer
BROWNSVILLE— It was a tale of two halves for the Lopez Lobos.
After a lackluster first half, the Lobos strung together a strong second half fueled by their defense and the senior duo of quarterback Jose Cruz and running back Luis Barrera.
Barrera scored two second-half touchdowns and Cruz threw for one score and ran in for another Lopez beat PSJA Memorial 31-18 on Saturday night.
Saturday marked the final home game of the season for the Lobos, and the win was their second of the year. Cruz, who was filled with emotion after the game, felt the adjustments made at halftime helped the Lobos complete the comeback.
“In the beginning of the game, we had some flags and there was miscommunication,” Cruz said. “But in the second half the coaches got on us, and us seniors, we knew we wanted it, and we wanted this win and we went and got it. This feels great. This is the best moment in my life to get a win here at home for the last time.”
The Lobos trailed 12-0 early and, after a field goal, went into the half trailing 12-3. After last week’s offensive effort put up 49 points, the second half was a much more balanced attack.
On their first drive of the second half, Cruz hit Jacob Cortinas down the sideline for a 37-yard touchdown, cutting the lead to 12-10. On the ensuing kickoff, the Lobos recovered a fumble and took advantage. Cruz gave the Lobos their first lead of the night 17-12 on a 9-yard touchdown run.
“Part of it was adjustments,” Lobos coach Armando Gutierrez said. “But like I have always said all year, I’m proud of this coaching staff. We know what adjustments need to be made and we come together, and the Lobo community has been great. The kids (are) coming together week by week, and putting up offensive numbers and getting the younger kids going in the right direction.”
The Lopez defense forced two second-half turnovers and came up with a stop on fourth down as the Lobos outscored the Wolverines 28-6 in the half.
Barrera scored the final two touchdowns for the Lobos. After Barrera’s first score, the Lobos led 24-12 with 4:30 left. The Wolverines answered with an 85-yard kick return for a touchdown and cut the lead to 24-18.
Lopez wasn’t fazed and answered with another strong drive. The Lobos milked the clock and capped it off with a Barrera touchdown with 1:01 left in the game.
“We would like to get off to a better start,” Gutierrez said. “But our identity is we want to open up the passing game, but when that doesn’t work we have other weapons and we will make the adjustments, and we have the personnel to do that. So, credit to the coaches and the staff. We have been working hard all year.”
The Lobos (2-7, 2-6) wrap up their season next week at Mission Veterans Memorial. PSJA Memorial (0-9, 0-8) will look for its first win of the season when they take on the Donna High Redskins next week.