RGVSports.com

The final week of the regular season led to almost no change in the RGVSports.com top 10 poll, as the Valley’s best teams took care of business heading toward the playoffs.

The top three teams in the poll all picked up dominating shutouts to maintain their positions. No. 1 San Benito pummeled Harlingen High 53-0, No. 2 Edinburg Vela crushed Edinburg Economedes 52-0, and Brownsville Veterans cruised past Donna High 27-0.

The poll’s 10 responding voters are the writers and editors who cover RGV high school football for AIM Media’s three newspapers: The Monitor, Valley Morning Star, and Brownsville Herald.

McAllen Memorial held steady at No. 4 with a 60-21 win against McAllen Rowe, and Mission Veterans checked in at No. 5 for the second consecutive week after a 21-14 win against Valley View.

Last week’s No. 6, Brownsville Hanna, fell to No. 9 with a 42-35 loss to Weslaco East. As a result, the team’s ranked No. 7-9 last week all moved up.

Mercedes went from 7 to 6 after a 70-0 win against Donna North, Weslaco East went from 8 to 7 with the win against Hanna, and Los Fresnos shifted from 9 into a tie for 7 with a 29-2 win against Weslaco High.

Sharyland High entered the poll at No. 10, marking the first time the Rattlers have been ranked this season. Sharyland is 8-2 and has taken down Mission Veterans and Rio Grande City during the past two weeks.

The start of the playoffs means every team will be tested, though No. 2 Edinburg Vela’s clash with No. 9 Brownsville Hanna is the only meeting of ranked teams.

The following are the teams in the RGVSports.com top 10 poll, with first-place votes in parentheses and total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through 1 point for a 10th-place vote. The 10 responding voters are the writers and editors who cover RGV high school football for AIM Media’s three newspapers: The Monitor, Valley Morning Star, and Brownsville Herald.

1. San Benito (9)	10-0	99	1
2. Edinburg Vela (1)	10-0	91	2
3. Brownsville Veterans	9-1	77	3
4. McAllen Memorial	8-2	66	4
5. Mission Veterans	9-1	53	5
6. Mercedes	8-2	47	7
T-7. Weslaco East	7-3	39	8
T-7. Los Fresnos	7-3	39	9
9. Brownsville Hanna	7-3	13	6
10. Sharyland High	8-2	9	NR

Other teams receiving votes: Rio Hondo (8); Brownsville Lopez (5); PSJA High (4).

The final week of the regular season is in the books. Who reached the postseason, and who was left on the outside looking in? The Monitor writers Saul Berrios-Thomas, Nathaniel Mata and Nate Kotisso join host and Monitor sports editor Greg Luca to break down all the action.

The podcast is available on iTunes. Follow this link to subscribe.

What’s on the line entering the final week of the regular season? The Monitor writers Saul Berrios-Thomas, Nate Kotisso and Nathaniel Mata join host and Monitor sports editor Greg Luca to define the stakes and pick a winner in every 5A and 6A game, plus the sub-5A highlights. The guys also debate whether San Benito or Edinburg Vela is the Valley’s true No. 1 team.

The podcast is available on iTunes. Follow this link to subscribe.

RGVSports.com

Mission Veterans and PSJA High both suffered their first losses in Week 10, causing a major shift in the RGVSports.com top 10 poll heading into the final week of the regular season.

PSJA High, which lost to Edinburg Vela 70-22 on Thursday, dropped from No. 5 to No. 10. And Mission Veterans, on the heels of a 48-42 loss to Sharyland High on Friday, slipped from No. 3 to No. 5.

The poll’s 10 responding voters are the writers and editors who cover RGV high school football for AIM Media’s three newspapers: The Monitor, Valley Morning Star, and Brownsville Herald.

San Benito held steady in the No. 1 spot with a 64-14 win against Weslaco High, while Vela kept at No. 2 with the victory over PSJA High.

Brownsville Veterans took Mission Vets’ spot at No. 3, marking the highest the Chargers have been ranked this season. Brownsville Vets’ previous highest ranking was No. 4 — the position the Chargers ascended to the past two weeks after ranking No. 10 in the preseason. In Week 10, Brownsville Vets routed Donna North 49-0.

McAllen Memorial re-entered the top 5 for the first time since Week 4, moving up from No. 6 to No. 4 this week after a 50-7 win against La Joya Juarez-Lincoln.

The big riser in this week’s poll was Brownsville Hanna, which checked in at No. 6 after being unranked entering Week 10. Hanna thoroughly defeated Harlingen High 32-6 on Friday to earn a playoff berth for the first time since 2009.

Mercedes and Weslaco East swapped places from last week. The Tigers moved up one space to No. 7 after a 54-0 win against Brownsville Porter, while Weslaco East moved down one spot to No. 8 following a 49-21 win against Harlingen South.

Los Fresnos took care of business 28-14 against Brownsville Rivera on Saturday to stand pat at No. 9.

Week 11 features only one matchup between top 10 teams, as Weslaco East travels to Brownsville for clash with Hanna.

The following are the teams in the RGVSports.com top 10 poll, with first-place votes in parentheses and total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through 1 point for a 10th-place vote. The 10 responding voters are the writers and editors who cover RGV high school football for AIM Media’s three newspapers: The Monitor, Valley Morning Star, and Brownsville Herald.

1. San Benito (9)	9-0	99	1
2. Edinburg Vela (1)	9-0	91	2
3. Brownsville Veterans	8-1	75	4
4. McAllen Memorial	7-2	64	6
5. Mission Veterans	8-1	46	3
6. Brownsville Hanna	7-2	41	NR
7. Mercedes	7-2	40	8
8. Weslaco East	6-3	38	7
9. Los Fresnos	6-3	25	9
10. PSJA High	8-1	19	5

Other teams receiving votes: Sharyland High (8); Rio Hondo (4).

Just as the playoff picture was starting to look more clear, Week 10 decided to change the equation. With only one week remaining in the regular season, unexpected teams are still establishing themselves as contenders in Districts 30-6A and 31-6A. Some district title chases grew more clear, like when Edinburg Vela blew out PSJA High, and others became more muddled, like when Sharyland High upset Mission Veterans. New faces like Brownsville Hanna and Brownsville Pace have punched their postseason tickets, while traditional powers Harlingen High and Edcouch-Elsa will be on the outside looking in. The Monitor writers Saul Berrios-Thomas, Nate Kotisso and Nathaniel Mata join host Greg Luca to break down all the action and lay out the new playoff scenarios.

The podcast is available on iTunes. Follow this link to subscribe.

With just two weeks remaining in the regular season, most of the matchups on the Week 10 schedule have playoff and district title implications. Unbeatens Edinburg Vela and PSJA High clash for the District 31-6A title, Mission Veterans looks to lock down the 31-5A crown against Sharyland High, and McAllen Memorial and McAllen Rowe try to stay unbeaten to set up a de facto District 30-6A title game in Week 11. The Monitor writers Saul Berrios-Thomas, Nathaniel Mata and Nate Kotisso join host Greg Luca to break down all of the matchups in each district that will shape the postseason picture.

The podcast is available on iTunes. Follow this link to subscribe.

RGVSports.com

While the bottom half of the rankings saw a little bit of a shake-up, the top five teams were unchanged in the latest RGVSports.com top 10 poll.

The poll’s 10 voters are the writers and editors who cover RGV high school football for AIM Media’s three newspapers: The Monitor, Valley Morning Star, and Brownsville Herald.

San Benito held steady at No. 1, as the Greyhounds were hardly tested in a 51-27 win against the then-No. 9 Brownsville Hanna Golden Eagles.

Edinburg Vela once again checked in right behind San Benito, also cruising to an easy 48-7 win against PSJA North.

Mission Veterans survived a surprising test from Rio Grande City 26-24 to maintain its No. 3 ranking, while Brownsville Veterans steamrolled Brownsville Porter 70-0 to stand strong at No. 4.

PSJA High, one of four remaining unbeatens in the Valley, held its spot at No. 5 with a 30-17 win against PSJA Memorial.

McAllen Memorial and Weslaco East each moved up one position to No. 6 and No. 7, respectively. Memorial was off in Week 9, while East cruised past Brownsville Rivera 42-7.

Mercedes jumped up two spots to No. 8 with a 34-7 rout of Brownsville Lopez, and Los Fresnos re-entered the rankings at No. 9 with a 27-20 upset of Harlingen High. That loss dropped Harlingen from No. 6 last week to No. 10 this week. The Cardinals earned 11 voter points, just narrowly beating out McAllen Rowe (10 points) for the final spot in the poll.

Week 10 will be headlined by a pivotal top-five showdown, as No. 2 Edinburg Vela travels to face No. 5 PSJA High on Thursday in a clash of unbeatens that should determine the District 31-6A title.

The following are the teams in the RGVSports.com top 10 poll, with first-place votes in parentheses and total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through 1 point for a 10th-place vote. The 10 responding voters are the writers and editors who cover RGV high school football for AIM Media’s three newspapers: The Monitor, Valley Morning Star, and Brownsville Herald.

1. San Benito (9)	8-0	99	1
2. Edinburg Vela (1)	8-0	91	2
3. Mission Veterans	8-0	69	3
4. Brownsville Veterans	7-1	69	4
5. PSJA High	8-0	57	5
6. McAllen Memorial	6-2	41	7
7. Weslaco East	5-3	34	8
8. Mercedes	6-2	30	10
9. Los Fresnos	5-3	22	NR
10. Harlingen High	5-3	11	6

Other teams receiving votes: McAllen Rowe (10); Rio Hondo (5); Brownsville Hanna (4).

As the season nears the home stretch, each result means more and more for playoff and district title races. San Benito, McAllen Rowe, PSJA High and Mission Veterans helped their district championship chances, while Brownsville Pace, Edcouch-Elsa, Brownsville Lopez, Los Fresnos, Harlingen High and many others saw their postseason odds significantly altered. The Monitor writers Saul Berrios-Thomas, Nate Kotisso and Nathaniel Mata join host and Monitor sports editor Greg Luca to break down all the action.

The podcast is available on iTunes. Follow this link to subscribe.

A few intriguing crosstown rivalry games are on the Week 9 docket, but most of the high-stakes matchups extend beyond city boundaries. No. 1 San Benito travels to face a surging Brownsville Hanna team, while Harlingen High and Los Fresnos are both desperate to get back on track after tough losses. The Valley Morning Star’s Kevin Narro joins host Greg Luca to break down those two tilts, and then The Monitor writers Saul Berrios-Thomas, Nate Kotisso and Nathaniel Mata cover the rest of the week’s action. The guys review the latest top 10, break down the playoff scenarios in District 31-6A and talk about a pair of interesting games: Laredo Nixon at Sharyland High and Brownsville Lopez at Mercedes.

The podcast is available on iTunes. Follow this link to subscribe.

RGVSports.com

The PSJA High Bears moved into the top five for the first time this season, while the Brownsville Hanna Eagles made their rankings debut in the latest RGVSports.com top 10 poll.

The poll’s 11 voters are the writers and editors who cover RGV high school football for AIM Media’s three newspapers: The Monitor, Valley Morning Star, and Brownsville Herald.

PSJA High has been on a gradual climb, debuting at No. 10 in the rankings entering Week 3, jumping to No. 8 in Week 4 and holding steady in that spot before rising to No. 6 in Week 7. After a slip down to No. 7 in last week’s rankings, the Bears made up for lost time, jumping to No. 5. PSJA High is an undefeated 7-0 on the season, most recently picking up a 45-28 win at Edinburg High in Week 8.

Brownsville Hanna hadn’t received a single vote all year before making its debut in the rankings at No. 9 this week. Hanna scored a 10-7 upset win against Los Fresnos on Friday to move to 6-1 on the season. The Eagles sport a six-game winning streak, unbeaten since losing to Edinburg Economedes in Week 1.

The top of the poll remained consistent, with San Benito at No. 1 and Edinburg Vela at No. 2 for the third straight week. San Benito dominated Harlingen South 48-16 in Week 8, while Edinburg Vela beat PSJA Memorial 38-7.

Last week’s No. 3, Harlingen High, dropped to No. 6 after a 20-17 loss to Weslaco East. As a result, Mission Veterans moved up one place to No. 3 despite being off in Week 8, while Brownsville Veterans advanced from No. 5 to No. 4 by surviving a test against Brownsville Lopez 35-21.

McAllen Memorial checked in at No. 7 after a 24-7 win against La Joya High, while Weslaco East moved up from No. 10 to No. 8 following the win against Harlingen.

Hanna at No. 9 was one of two newcomers to the poll, as Mercedes checked in at No. 10 after a 34-14 win against Edcouch-Elsa.

Last week’s No. 6, Los Fresnos, and No. 9, Lopez, dropped from the rankings.

San Benito travels to face Brownsville Hanna on Saturday in Week 9’s only matchup between top-10 teams.

The following are the teams in the RGVSports.com top 10 poll, with first-place votes in parentheses and total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through 1 point for a 10th-place vote. The 11 voters are the writers and editors who cover RGV high school football for AIM Media’s three newspapers: The Monitor, Valley Morning Star, and Brownsville Herald.

1. San Benito (10)	7-0	109	1
2. Edinburg Vela (1)	7-0	99	2
3. Mission Veterans	7-0	86	4
4. Brownsville Veterans	6-1	73	5
5. PSJA High	7-0	56	7
6. Harlingen High	5-2	53	3
7. McAllen Memorial	6-2	39	8
8. Weslaco East	4-3	31	10
9. Brownsville Hanna	6-1	19	NR
10. Mercedes	5-2	15	NR

Other teams receiving votes: Los Fresnos (9); Raymondville (9); McAllen Rowe (3); Sharyland High (2); Brownsville Lopez (2).