By ROY HESS, Staff Writer
It was the football game that could have been played but wasn’t.
The Hanna Golden Eagles take on the Donna High Redskins at 7 p.m. Thursday at Donna in a non-district contest that in reality has been more than one year in the making.
When the two teams were supposed to play on a Saturday last season in Brownsville, the game didn’t take place as scheduled due to a tornado warning in Hidalgo County and the anticipated arrival of inclement weather to the Lower Rio Grande Valley. Despite storm warnings mainly for the Upper Valley, it turned out to be an ideal day for football in Brownsville with sunny, non-threatening skies. Still, there was no game. It was too late to play as the contest already had been called off.
The cancellation on Sept. 13, 2014, left both teams without their final scheduled tuneups before the start of district play.
“There were a lot of things (figuring into the decision),” Hanna coach Rene Medrano said at the time. “We did our best (to try to play).”
The Eagles (2-0) and Redskins (0-2) are hoping Mother Nature allows this year’s matchup to be played Thursday at Donna’s Bennie LaPrade Stadium.
Another non-district game at 7 p.m. Thursday involving a Metro-area team finds Rivera (0-2) at Sharyland High (0-2).
Hanna, coming off a 42-28 victory against Mission High, is 2-0 for the first time under Medrano, now in his fourth season directing the Eagles.
Despite its better record, Hanna is quite wary of a Redskins team that has come up short against a pair of opponents that are ranked in the Valley’s top 10. During the past two weeks, Donna High lost to No. 7 Brownsville Veterans Memorial (42-29) and No. 5 Weslaco High (28-13).
“Donna (High) has a darn good football team, and they’ve been in some big games,” Medrano said. “They’re explosive and quick, and we’re going over to their place to play.
“For us, it’s real simple,” Medrano added. “We have to execute and make plays. We can’t turn the ball over.”
The Eagles have a standout quarterback this season in senior Andy Lopez, who has passed for three scores and more than 200 yards in each of Hanna’s first two victories. He’s completed 31 of 58 attempts for 477 yards with no interceptions. The Eagles also have a solid performer at running back in Ramon Delgado, another senior, who is averaging 5.2 yards per carry on 34 rushes for 178 yards and one touchdown.
“We didn’t get to play Hanna last year, but I’m very impressed with them on film,” Redskins coach Ramiro Leal said. “Their quarterback is the real deal, and he’s got some good receivers. Hanna is playing good football, and that’s why they’re 2-0.
“Yes, we’re 0-2, but we feel that we’ve played some good teams,” Leal added. “That’s the whole concept (behind our non-district schedule). We want to be the best in District 32-5A, so we know we have to play the highest caliber teams we can, if possible from (Class) 6A. We feel we need that strong competition to be ready for our district. I give our players a lot of credit for playing some good-caliber teams.”
Medrano said the Eagles have to be keenly aware of Redskins running back Amonte Bowen and QB Edward Dougherty. Bowen and Dougherty rushed for 176 and 84 yards, respectively, last week against Weslaco High. Bowen scored both of his team’s TDs.
Rivera, meanwhile, just like Hanna, is playing on the road Thursday against an 0-2 team in Sharyland High that has lost its first two games against some strong competition as well. The Rattlers opened with a 42-18 setback against McAllen Memorial, the Valley’s No. 1 team, and last week they were beaten 55-35 by Laredo United, a team led by QB Ignacio Tellez, who threw for 440 yards and eight TDs.
Rivera has many new players at key positions after advancing three rounds in the 6A playoffs last season. During their first two games, the Raiders have fallen against Weslaco East (53-21) and Edinburg North (23-7).
Angel Tolentino, a senior QB for the Raiders and a newcomer to the starting lineup as a signal caller, has shown he is a dual threat through two games by passing for 220 yards and two scores, and rushing for 176 yards and one TD.
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess.