By MARK MOLINA | STAFF WRITER
At first glance, Brownsville Veterans Memorial senior wide receiver Elijah “EJ” Masten isn’t an imposing figure — standing 5 feet 6 inches tall and 135 pounds — but in a Chargers offense filled with playmakers, he stands tall.
As a junior, the third-year wide out proved himself to be a big-play threat and led the Chargers in receiving with 56 receptions for 714 yards and nine touchdowns.
Still, Masten feels he is often overlooked because of his size despite being the Chargers’ main option in the passing game, but he enjoys going out and making opponents pay.
“ I’ve always been looked at as small and overlooked as ‘The Guy’ because of my height” Masten said. “My height is just another thing to pull me down in the eyes of critics and opponents. In games, they double the taller player, but that gives me a little more time in the beginning give them a taste of what I can do. Height has never hurt my game; I think I’ve used it to my advantage, if anything.”
While some still don’t give Masten the proper attention before and during plays, Chargers head coach David Cantu views his veteran receiver in a very different light.
The Veterans Memorial coach said Masten is fearless, has great hands and is full of speed that causes mismatches on bigger defenders, which is the matchup the Chargers want.
And more often than not, when the Chargers needed a big play last season, dialing up a play to Masten seemed to work well as he averaged 12.8 yards per catch last season.
“ Our biggest playmaker has been Elijah Masten,” Cantu said. “I hate to admit this, but if it’s third and long or a very crucial situation, usually something is called where the tendency is that he may get the ball. He has the most varsity experience, has played and started the most varsity games and he has the most playoff experience. There isn’t a situation out there that overwhelms him. He has shattered most of our receiving records, but I’ll be honest, that’s not significant to him. He just wants to have a senior season where we win.”
Cantu said Masten is the ultimate team player and has approached this season in a very unselfish way.
With many new pieces along the offensive line, the Chargers will look to air it out and use their speed on offense.
In an effort to do that, the Chargers have added former defensive back Marlon Montelongo to the backfield as a runner and moved last year’s leading rusher Mauricio Garza as an outside receiver, a move Cantu said was partially Masten’s suggestion.
“ That gives us more size and athleticism on the outside and stretches us and doesn’t keep us so tight like in the run,” Masten said of Garza’s move to the outside. “I understand players’ frustrations and understand how being put in positions they don’t want to be put in shrinks how they play and doesn’t let them become the player they truly are. But Mauricio moving to the outside makes us broader. I feel as a team, not many other teams will be able to figure out real quick. We feel like we can come at teams in all angles. I feel like we’re 360 as a team and not 180.”
Cantu said it was a possibility that added Garza to the outside may cut into Masten’s touches, but the veteran receiver knew it was ultimately for the team.
“ He understood it would take touches away from him as a receiver, but it didn’t matter,” Cantu said. “It’s the kind of mentality EJ has — he just wants to win.”
Just like Masten tries to do time out on the field, the Chargers will attempt to right last year’s wrongs and prove that they deserve to be considered among the top teams in the Rio Grande Valley.
“ I’m just out here to show that Veterans Memorial and I are out there proving everyone wrong,” Masten said. “I feel like we can go out there and show everyone that we’re the best team.”