By ANDREW CRUM | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD
EDINBURG — Sometimes, football is a cruel game.
Hanna can attest to that after its season ended abruptly against Edinburg Vela.
The Sabercats hit an improbable 54-yard field goal with 24 seconds left to play to take the lead and held on for a 34-32 win over the Golden Eagles in a Class 6A Division II bi-district playoff game Friday at Richard R. Flores Stadium.
“Their kicker had the wind and made a 54-yarder … what more can you say?” Hanna coach Mark Guess said. “A high school kid making a 54-yarder at the end of the game to win it … kudos to him. Their kids played hard, too, but they weren’t a better team than us, I’ll tell you that.”
After the wind-aided field goal by Edinburg Vela senior kicker Austin Garza, Hanna had one last chance. Sophomore quarterback Victor Campos promptly hit senior receiver/running back Joe Cavazos III on a 41-yard pass play to get the ball to the Sabercats’ 36-yard line with just four seconds to play. After Campos spiked the ball to stop the clock, the Eagles had a shot for a 53-yard field goal. Unfortunately, the Hanna kicker slipped during the attempt and the kick felt short.
“Austin is as cool as the other side of the pillow,” Edinburg Vela coach John Campbell said of his kicker. “When they called timeout he smiled at everybody, got a splash of water and told them, ‘I’ve got this.’ He’s that kind of guy … he’s a collegiate type kicker, not just because he has a big leg, but because he has ice water in his veins.
“I don’t want to say I had any doubts, but I was pretty confident in his ability to hit it.”
The Eagles (7-4) gave the Sabercats (11-0) all they could handle through four quarters, but a pair fourth quarter field goals by Garza turned out to be the difference.
After trailing 28-14 at the break, Hanna got back into the game with a pair of touchdowns in the third quarter. Junior running back Aaron Frausto found the end zone after a 3-yard run, but the extra point was blocked and the Eagles cut the deficit to 28-20 with 9:44 left in the third. After the Hanna defense got an interception by junior defensive back Andres Sustaeta, the Eagles capped it off with a 64-yard touchdown pass from Campos to Cavazos III, but a bad snap forced a run conversion and it was stopped as Hanna pulled within 28-26 with 32 seconds left in the third.
Edinburg Vela answered with a 36-yard field goal by Garza to take a 31-26 lead with 8:59 left in the game.
On Hanna’s ensuing drive, junior running back Cesar Mancias scored on a 3-yard touchdown run to give it a 32-31 lead with 5:11 left.
The Eagles defense did its job with three turnovers and forced the long field goal from the 37-yard line, but the kick had enough leg from Garza and enough wind to help push it through the uprights.
“All credit to the Sabercats, they made plays when they had to make plays,” Guess said. “Whether you win by one or 100, a win is a win. They had to make that 54-yarder and they executed.
“Hats off to my kids, they left it all on the field and I love every one of them … I couldn’t ask for a better bunch of kids.”
It was a back-and-forth game throughout as Hanna’s defense helped get it on the board first in the opening quarter. Eagles junior defensive back Bryan Duran got the interception and returned it to the Edinburg Vela 3-yard line. One play later, senior running back/defensive back Matthew Garcia found the end zone on a 3-yard run to give Hanna a 7-0 lead with 10:23 left in the first.
In the second quarter, the Sabercats tied the game at 7 with a 65-yard punt-return touchdown by junior safety Daniel Enriquez with 9:47 left to play in the second.
Hanna answered on its next drive as Campos found senior receiver Rolando Ramirez in the end zone for a 16-yard touchdown pass and a 14-7 lead with 7:15 left in the half.
Edinburg Vela answered with a 4-yard touchdown run by junior running back Aaron Alvarez to tie the game at 14 with 4:26 left in the second.
On the ensuing drive, Hanna threw an interception off a tipped pass deep in its own territory as senior cornerback Bryly Medina had it at the Eagles 14-yard line. The Sabercats took advantage with a 5-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Nate Garcia to junior tight end Nico Rodriguez and a 21-14 lead with 1:22 to play in the half.
Hanna got the ball back and threw another interception, this one by Enriquez who returned it 30 yards for a score and Edinburg Vela took a 28-14 advantage with 45 seconds to go in the first half and took the edge into the break.
“We made it easy for them in the first half with a short field after a couple turnovers,” Guess said. “We gave up a pick-six and a punt return, its just football, but those are things we shouldn’t allow to happen.”
The win keeps the Sabercats unbeaten on the year, but more importantly, advancing to the next round.
“We wanted to get the “monkey” off our back from last year’s disappointing loss,” Campbell said. “It was a little more dramatic than we wanted, but that’s what Texas football playoffs are all about. Hats off to Hanna and their staff, they had a tremendous year. I was nervous all week … they’re a scrappy, explosive team, and they’re well coached.
“Sure enough it was every bit the ball game we thought it was going to be.”
Despite the loss, Hanna built something this season. It started with a group of seniors and continued through the juniors and sophomores that were willing to do what it took to win. For the Eagles, it paid off in the present and made the future look even more promising.
“We’ve been talking since last year, we knew what we had and what we were going to do,” Guess said. “We knew we were going to get into the playoffs, there was never any doubt in the kids or coaches minds. Everyone else out there doubted us except for us and we played that role well. I told the seniors, ‘you started the legacy.’ They were going to start the legacy of the new Hanna football … and they started it. Now it’s up to the current juniors and sophomores to continue that legacy.
“If we didn’t get any respect this year, there’s something wrong with people around here.”
Andrew Crum covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6629 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter, he’s @andrewmcrum.