FREDDY GONZALEZ | Staff Writer
For mathematical purposes, 1 plus 1 naturally equals 2, but in sports, can 1 plus 1 equal zero sometimes?
Well, maybe if some cross-cancelling is involved.
Nevertheless, since the La Feria Lions and the Raymondville Bearkats decided to start up their old rivalry again in 2016, the teams have split the wins. But in each of the two games there’s been a common factor: The team that wins has had a nice win streak follow.
In 2016, former La Feria wide receiver Brandon Perez and former quarterback Jonathan Lejia stole the show, and led the Lions to a 47-14 victory over the Bearkats. But rivalries aren’t without emotion, as five players were ejected during the game. The Bearkats had four players ejected, and the Lions had one. The victory paved the way for the Lions to grab six wins during their next seven games.
In 2017, the Bearkats, got some revenge as Raymondville returned the favor and began the season with a win. During that game, former quarterback Daniel Gutierrez threw for roughly 100 yards and rushed for another 128 yards to help the Bearkats cruise to a 22-12 victory, a win that would propel the Bearkats to a seven-game winning streak.
Coincidence? Maybe. But game both coaches will want a win to start the season off on the right foot.
BREAKDOWNS
Offensively, the Lions bring back the attacking pair of Darius and Dorian Hernandez (no relation). Last season, the duo combined for 34 touchdowns, as a then-sophomore Dorian threw for 1,716 yards and 19 touchdowns and rushed for 584 yards and seven TDs.
On defense, the Lions also return a trove of talent beginning with Victor Luna and Aja Hernandez. Last season, Luna led the team with 130 tackles, and Aja had 78 tackles and eight sacks.
The Bearkats also return a bevy of talent. On defense, Raymondville will hope to match last season’s stingy defense, which will be led by Noe Zambrano and Jacob Posas. While the team did lose two key defensive ends on defense, the team also brings back other weapons, namely Thomas Zambrano, Rudy Tijerina and Deion Castillo. That’s without the addition of Harlingen South transfer Cole Cooley, who will only bolster the defense.
Offensively, the team graduated Gutierrez, but with the dual-threat Posas under center, Capetillo in the backfield and Xavier Ledesma at the wide receiver position, the Bearkats have no shortage in attacking weapons.
QUESTION MARKS
However, for all the talent with which the teams come into the contest, each also comes in with question marks. For the Lions, that question comes in the form of a young offensive line that may need time to catch up to the speed of the game.
For the Bearkats, the question mark comes in the form of how well Posas can handle the pressure that being a quarterback entails. He was the team’s No. 2 last season but didn’t get much snaps at the position.