By CLAIRE CRUZ, Staff Writer
Football season is finally in full swing this week as Class 5A and 6A programs from across the East Valley return to action.
Santa Rosa got things started with a rare Wednesday game, opening their season in Hebbronville with a District 16-3A Division II South Zone contest against the Longhorns.
Brownsville Porter will be the first East Valley 5A team to hit the field, as the Cowboys take on Donna High at 7 p.m. Thursday at Sams Memorial Stadium. Brownsville Lopez will battle PSJA Memorial at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Sams, and the Brownsville Veterans Memorial Chargers will be on the road to open their season at 7:30 p.m. Friday at PSJA Southwest.
Harlingen High and Weslaco High won’t be playing their season and District 32-6A opener after Weslaco ISD announced Saturday that the Panthers’ first two scheduled games will be postponed due to positive COVID-19 cases within the program.
The other six teams in the district will be kicking off their seasons at 7 p.m. Friday. The Brownsville Hanna Golden Eagles will face the San Benito Greyhounds at Bobby Morrow Stadium, Los Fresnos plays host to Brownsville Rivera and the Harlingen South Hawks will be on the road to take on the Donna North Chiefs.
The District 16-4A Division I La Feria Lions play host to Kingsville King at 7:30 p.m. Friday. La Feria is 2-0 heading into the matchup after notching a 45-14 win over Grulla last week. Despite being young on defense with two returning starters, the Lions have allowed a combined 27 points to their first two opponents.
Quarterback Dario Sanchez, athlete Dereck Perez and running back Angel Garcia, all seniors, are leading the offense. Junior receiver Aaron Trevino had a big game against the Gators and will continue to contribute as La Feria aims to clinch a playoff berth.
Once again, Raymondville will be absent from action as the Bearkats had to cancel their second game in as many weeks due to COVID-19 concerns. The Bearkats had a non-district game scheduled with Hidalgo.
The Lyford Bulldogs won their first District 16-3A Division I Zone A game against Santa Gertrudis Academy in their home opener last Friday to improve to 3-0 on the season. They’ll play host to the La Villa Cardinals at 7 p.m. this Friday.
Through three games, the Bulldogs are outscoring opponents 148-22. Lyford’s defense hasn’t allowed a double-digit score, but the offense has improved from week to week. Originally, the Bulldogs were scheduled to have a Zone A game against Progreso, but the Red Ants canceled fall sports due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Brownsville St. Joseph will look to bounce back from a loss last week when it faces Austin Regents at 5 p.m. Friday at Canales Field.