By Jesus Sanchez | The Brownsville Herald
Once again, the threat of inclement weather has affected football games in the area; this time moving Lopez’s matchup with Rio Grande City to 6 p.m. Saturday at Sams Memorial Stadium.
If weather permits, the Lopez Lobos will face off against the Rio Grande City Rattlers in a District 16-5A Division 1 matchup.
In Week 2, both teams came up short in their respective games with the Lobos falling 32-12 to city-rival Brownsville Veterans Memorial and the Rattlers losing 37-29 to La Joya Palmview.
Lopez coach Armando Gutierrez said the Lobos have shaken off the loss to the Chargers and are ready to take on the Rattlers.
“That game is just one game of many that we got,” Gutierrez said. “We also have to remember that as big as that game was for us, yes, it was the start of district play, but it was also just Week 2 of the season. We’re kind focus on getting into the postseason. The kids bounced back pretty quick, and this week has just been about positives going forward and correcting the mistakes.”
On Rio Grande City’s side, head coach Aaron Garcia said the team likes its chances going against Lopez based on the Rattlers’ potential and talent.
“Obviously, we’ve been in a couple of close games,” Garcia said. “We were expecting to win. We’re a young team with a lot of talent, but, obviously, we haven’t delivered in a couple of places and that has caused us to come up short in the last few weeks.
“Going into Brownsville Lopez, this is a new opponent for us. Obviously, coming down from another district, we’re very familiar that they’ve made playoffs in the (past). We’re not going to take them lightly. We respect Lopez but, you know, our intentions are to go out there and win.”
The Lobos did not let their loss in Week 2 bring them down and are ready to showcase their physicality and ability against Rio Grande City.
As its quest for a postseason showing continues, Lopez will continue to rely on its fundamentals to improve overall going forward, Gutierrez said.
“We felt like we were just as physical as Veterans and any other team, and that’s where we get our energy from,” he said. “Not just our defense’s physicality, but our whole team’s physicality. It’s just like I told the kids. Everyone might outnumber us by 30 to 40 kids, but at the same time, they have 11 on the field just like we do and I think our 11, roundabout, are just more physical.”
In their game last week, the Rattlers trailed La Joya Palmview for most of the first quarter and did not quite get their hands on the ball as much as they’d like, Garcia said.
The Rio Grande City head coach said the team has a lot of speed and weapons it can rely on to create plays and put points up on the board.
“Our kids know that we can score,” he said. “When you replace nine starters on defense, that’s going to affect your play. In this case, we have a 10-team district; we don’t have the luxury of having two or three games under our belts to get ready for district.
“It’s just a matter of eliminating mistakes and having the ball bounce our way and things will be go right for us.”
Both teams will aim to get a win under their belt during their Week 3 battle Saturday.