NATHANIEL MATA | STAFF WRITER
McALLEN — Don’t forget that the McAllen High Bulldogs reached the 2017 playoffs. And don’t forget that McHi was a young team, even if their top two yard-earners, Gunnar Henderson and Roy Gutierrez, played their final high school game last season.
McHi stumbled out of the gate and needed a late-season push and some dramatic wins to advance to the postseason. Reaching the playoffs was an exciting ride that was fittingly clinched on the back and legs of a hobbling Henderson against Mission High in Week 11.
The Bulldogs hear the chatter that this year might be more difficult than last. Their district loses La Joya Palmview but gains PSJA High and PSJA North.
“Some say that it’s going to be a tougher season because of that solely,” all-district defensive end Mason Brewer said. “We’re ready for the competition. It’s only going to make us better each week. As we go through each game, we’re just going to get better. It’s going to help us through the season and toward the end of our season.”
Sixth-year coach Kevin Brewer said that reaching the playoffs was an important accomplishment after a “bit of an up-and-down year.” The experience, in his eyes, was priceless.
“When you can take a team that can has 12 sophomores on varsity — and I think eight of them that were starting at one point — and fight, and with the last two district ball games get into the playoffs, that’s huge,” Kevin Brewer said.
The Bulldogs hope that they’ve found another explosive all-purpose back with junior Octavian Lewis. The running back, who is also ready to catch balls out of the backfield, will get the bulk of the touches, according to Kevin Brewer.
“Lewis is going to start at tailback … but we also have Troy Martinez back there. We have Sadge Diaz back there,” Kevin Brewer said. “We have a nice little stable of tailbacks that we can roll in there and maybe kind of get that thunder and lightning going that we had.”
The Bulldogs suffered some notable losses, but Kevin Brewer said he hopes the team will be a different beast once it starts clicking.
“You reload, and I feel really good about what we’re reloading with,” he said.
NEW MAN UNDER CENTER
Aaron Nixon decided to dedicate his last two high school seasons to the diamond, as the University of Texas Longhorns baseball commit hangs up his football cleats. He ran 39 times last season and passed for 815 yards after becoming the full-time starter during district play.
“You always hate to see kids not finish their football career, but that being said, I never wavered as far as the young man that we got that’s going to start the season for us, and that’s Brian Garza,” Kevin Brewer said. “I don’t think we’re going to miss a beat. He’s doing a great job. I think our offense is going to keep rocking and rolling.”
Enter junior quarterback Brian Garza, who worked as the No. 1 QB during the spring while Nixon was in the midst of the baseball team’s playoff run. Garza said the time working with his projected first unit helped, and the group had already built chemistry and laid a foundation coming into the first week of practice.
“It gave me confidence going into this fall, and it gave me a lot of time and opportunity to work with my receivers. That way, we can mesh and get good on our routes,” Garza said. “We have really good athletes on both sides of the ball. We can play both ways.
They can do a lot with the ball in their hands, or even when it’s not. Octavian (Lewis) is someone we can depend to get the ball when the game is on the line to get us first downs.”
Blocking for the offense will be two returners and three newcomers to the O-line.
CHOMPING AT THE BIT
The Bulldogs defense wants to be better. That’s no secret. Linebacker Trace Gagne said during the spring that an attitude change would help the group handle adversity and difficult stretches.
McHi ranked at the bottom of District 30-6A in run defense and total yards against. The Bulldogs gave up 2,386 yards on the ground and 3,873 overall. On offense, McHi gained 2,959 total yards.
Mason Brewer said the group will benefit from playing an entire year together.
“Last year, a lot of us young guys had been on the sub-varsities before that, and then we had our first year all together last year,” Mason Brewer said. “We’ve already experienced it. We went through it all. We went through a whole season together. We have a better idea of what we need to do individually and as a team to stop the run.”
The Bulldogs return three of their top five leading tacklers in Jackson Helmcamp (80), Daniel Chiquito (60) and Trace Gagne (56).
“Almost all of our defense is coming back. We only had one graduating this past year,” Mason Brewer said. “We have guys that have really been working on the run game since the offseason began. We’ve been working on it, because we had a tough time last year against big running backs and stuff. We need to figure out what we’re doing against certain schemes and certain plays.”
KEYS TO THE SEASON
For McAllen High to move past the era of Gunnar Henderson, Roy Gutierrez and Aaron Nixon, the Bulldogs will need the whole team pulling a bit of the rope. They can reach the playoffs and should have an easy time staying in the hunt in a district full of parity. They won’t get in unless they are stingier on defense and get offensive contributions from a host of athletes, led by Octavian Lewis and Brian Garza.
2017 record: 4-7
Returning starters O/D: 4/10
COACH’S TENURE
Coach: Kevin Brewer
Year at school: 6th
Record at school: 29-26