BY NATE KOTISSO | THE MONITOR
MISSION — Sharyland High quarterback Edgar Longoria wasn’t sure how many touchdowns he ran for in the Rattlers’ 56-49 victory against rival Sharyland Pioneer in the fourth annual Snakeskin Classic at Richard Thompson Stadium.
“Some teammates told me five, some told me six,” Longoria said. “I don’t know, because I don’t really focus on that. I’m just happy we got the win.”
The junior quarterback tucked it into the end zone five times in the victory. His first came on a 15-yard scamper in the opening quarter to pull the Rattlers within seven of the Diamondbacks.
Longoria’s final rushing touchdown was exponentially more important, breaking a 49-49 tie with an 8-yard gallop around a block from his left tackle to put Sharyland High in front to stay with nine seconds remaining in regulation.
Early on, the Sharyland High celebration didn’t look like it would happen on Friday night. Pioneer scored 21 unanswered points in the first quarter and took advantage of Longoria’s first interception of the season to lead 21-7.
The Rattlers (6-1, 5-0) roared back with 21 points of their own in the second quarter and forced Pioneer quarterback Jacob Rosales to throw a pick to equal Longoria’s first-quarter miscue.
“A lot of times, when a game takes a turn like that, the tendency would be to panic or get off of our game plan, but we didn’t do that,” Sharyland High coach Ron Adame said. “They didn’t do that as players, and we didn’t do that as coaches. You’ve got to keep grinding and believing in what you prepared for, because running plays that you haven’t worked on much could be shooting yourself in the foot. The perseverance, calm and collective nature of our boys, carried us tonight.”
With the Rattlers driving, tied at 35 late in the third quarter, Longoria took the snap and ran down what seemed like an open road inside the Diamondbacks 20 before he endured a hit that made even Pioneer fans ooh in empathy.
“I got lit up,” Longoria said. “Right after that, I realized that I needed to get out of bounds, slide or do whatever I have to do to not get injured that way in the future.”
Longoria got up, continued the drive and capped it with a 1-yard run into the end zone to give the Rattlers a 42-35 advantage. The lead was the Rattlers’ first since senior running back/wide receiver Blake Klein took their first play from scrimmage 75 yards for a touchdown.
After a 4-0 sweep through Valley View, Laredo Martin, Laredo Cigarroa and Roma, Friday began the second half of Sharyland’s back-loaded District 31-5A schedule. Pioneer posed a fierce challenge, but Sharyland will still have to contend with three more teams either fighting for playoff seeding (Laredo Nixon, Rio Grande City) or looking for a perfect district record (Mission Veterans).
“We can’t control the schedule that we have and the order that it’s in,” Adame said. “All we can control is our preparation and our performance. Now we’re going to go back to the drawing board and prepare for Laredo Nixon. I know they’re going to challenge us.”