By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD
They are two solid football teams with 10-1 records that have enjoyed successful seasons thus far.
Each wants to see things become even better with a playoff win tonight. But only one of them will advance and get to play in December, which is the goal of every team in the state.
That’s the story line for the Class 5A Division I area-round matchup between District 32-5A champion Brownsville Veterans Memorial and District 30-5A runner-up Corpus Christi Veterans Memorial.
Kickoff is 6 p.m. at Corpus Christi’s Buccaneer Stadium.
“We’re coming and we’re not stopping now,” said Gustavo Vasquez, Brownsville Veterans’ senior quarterback who leads the Chargers with 1,439 yards rushing and 23 touchdowns. “We’re not taking our foot off the gas pedal. We have a lot of heart on this team.”
Tonight’s winner faces District 26-5A champion Dripping Springs (11-0) or District 27-5A runner-up Richmond Foster (7-3) in next week’s regional semifinal round. Those two teams play Saturday in Bryan.
To reach tonight’s game, Brownsville Veterans rallied from a 10-0 deficit to defeat Laredo Nixon 34-10 in bi-district last Saturday. Corpus Christi Veterans won its bi-district game 35-0 last Friday against Eagle Pass Winn.
“Corpus Christi Veterans has a very explosive offense with some large, athletic players,” Chargers coach David Cantu said. “They have a big, aggressive defensive line.
“It’s a real good challenge for us,” he added. “We do feel we match up well with them.”
The only loss for the Chargers was a 34-20 non-district setback at home against Edinburg Vela on Sept. 15. That was eight games ago. The lone defeat for the Eagles was a 46-25 loss at state-ranked Calallen in their 30-5A regular-season finale on Nov. 9.
The Chargers are going up against a balanced opponent that averages 434.5 yards and 45.6 points per game. The Eagles’ rushing attack is led by tailback Frank Jones, who has run for 1,416 yards and 17 TDs. Eagles QB David Soto has passed for 981 yards and 10 TDs, while Sethe Solis, Soto’s favorite receiver, has 60 receptions for 752 yards and 12 TDs.
Brownsville Veterans averages 374.4 yards and 34.3 points a game. Besides Vasquez, who has passed for 976 yards and six TDs, running back Alexis Gomez is second on the team in rushing with 556 yards and six TDs in a relief role for Abel Martinez, now back from an injury. The Chargers have some capable receivers in Cristian Chapa (27 catches, 357 yards), Elijah Masten (21-238) and Carlos Galindo (21-237).
Along with the strong play of the Chargers’ defense, Cantu said another important factor for his team this season is the emergence of the offensive line, which includes Hector Guijarro, Jose Solis, Jacob Banda, Brandon Salazar, Sebastian Sosa and Aaron Barrera.
“Not a single one of them started last year and they’ve exceeded expectations,” the Brownsville Veterans coach said.
Brownsville Veterans is in the playoffs for the third straight season. The Chargers are trying to make it beyond the second round for the first time. The last time the Chargers reached the second round was 2012 and they finished 9-3.
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess