BY JON R. LaFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER
MISSION — Coaches always warn Landry Gilpin about the inevitability of football — kids get hurt, so always be prepared to step up. That mantra goes double for Gilpin, whose father David coaches Mission Veterans Memorial football.
During the Patriots’ 34-3 win over Roma on Friday, the inevitable happened. Junior quarterback Diego Hernandez suffered a left ankle injury during a sack early during the second quarter. As the leading passer in District 31-5A limped to the sideline, Gilpin got the call.
“I was nervous, for sure,” the freshman said. “I didn’t want go out there and let my teammates down. I knew we needed to get this win.”
Despite his age and the initial butterflies, Gilpin became the catalyst for Mission Veterans’ offense. By the time the final whistle echoed across Tom Landry Stadium, Gilpin had thrown for 90 yards and two touchdowns, while notching 140 yards and a score on the ground.
Gilpin began the game as a wide receiver and caught one pass for 15 yards. Despite getting time at quarterback, Gilpin is a third-stringer at the position. But with backup QB and district-leading wideout Adam Solis no longer with the team for personal reasons, Gilpin was the benefactor of the Patriot’s sudden lack of depth.
“You come in with this big playbook of all kinds of things you want to do, and then it all gets thrown out the window,” the seventh-year coach said. “We had to simplify the offense for him because he’s a freshman, but he wasn’t alone out there tonight. He had a lot of help from kids who have done a lot for us this season.”
Junior receiver Roman De Leon caught two touchdown passes — one from each quarterback — and finished the night with 59 yards receiving. De Leon’s first score, a 14-yard grab in the back of the end zone, came with 8:08 left during the opening quarter to put Mission Vets up 6-0. The Patriots scored on their next drive when Buda Gonzalez wormed his way through defenders on a 38-yard screen to make it 13-0.
“(Roma) was throwing different coverages at us,” Hernandez said. “But guys were able to just find a way to get open and make plays.”
The Patriots, who average 442 yards per game, punted on their first two drives with Gilpin at the helm, but found the end zone on three of their next four possessions to lead by as many as 31.
Gilpin’s most impressive play came during the fourth quarter on a 74-yard scramble on fourth down that turned from a potential sack into a touchdown, putting the Patriots up 34-3 in the final quarter.
“I was able to get away from the tackler, and the guys downfield just made blocks for me,” Glipin said.
While the Patriots (4-2, 1-1) ran wild, Roma ran nowhere. The Gladiators (5-2, 1-2) entered Friday averaging 307 yards per game on the ground, but were held to a measly 86 yards on 36 carries.
Ramon Espinoza, the district’s leading rusher with 1,355 yards, played with an arm injury suffered during a Week 6 loss to Edinburg Vela. He finished with 15 yards on 13 carries and did not play in the second half. David Lozano had nine carries and led Roma with 43 rushing yards.