NATHANIEL MATA | THE MONITOR
McALLEN — Sean Skaugen showed off his track speed on multiple occasions and the McAllen Memorial Mustangs had no trouble in their bi-district matchup, routing the Laredo United South Panthers 44-6.
United South tried to surprise Memorial early with an onside kick, but the Mustangs were ready and recovered the ball. The Mustangs needed only one snap to make the visitors pay. Quarterback Skaugen went 51 yards on a read-option keeper to put his team ahead just 12 seconds into the game.
“When you score on the very first play of the game, it really does set the tone. It’s really hard to come back from that, because it really shifts our momentum,” Skaugen said after the game. “We just kept rolling.”
Two drives later, running back Campbell Speights ran to the outside for a 33-yard score. The Mustangs were off and running.
Memorial was exceptional on defense, allowing less than 200 yards in the game and holding United South to a lone touchdown.
The Mustangs are back into the area round after missing out following last year’s bi-district loss. Memorial will have another shot against San Benito at 7:30 p.m. Friday in San Benito. The Greyhounds beat the Mustangs 31-7 in Week 3.
Memorial defensive back Kelechi Nwachuku says the team’s confidence on defense is peaking.
“It’s sky high,” Nwachuku, a UTSA commit, said. “We know we can hang with San Benito. It was 14-7 in the fourth quarter last time we played them. Our offense is tons better. It’ll be a good game. It’ll be a dogfight.”
Nwachuku said his teammates make it easy to play with power.
“This whole year, we’ve been holding our hat on defense,” Nwachuku said. “We know if our defense comes out with the intensity, and all our guys are flying around, starting from the D-line. All our energy comes from the D-line, the big guys, the guys that nobody talks about. Mark Gutierrez, Chris Lara, everybody flying around.”
Chris Lara was a part of two big sacks on United South quarterback Ismael Contreras that pushed the Panthers back 12 and 19 yards.
Nathan Sanchez was quick to the return man on runs and kickoff coverage, and Isagani Luistro nearly had an interception return for a touchdown.
Skaugen ended the night with three rushing scores. Emiliano Cruz also reached paydirt in the win. Skaugen’s night on offense was highlighted by a 77-yard run. The junior eluded the front seven and used a hop to get out of the grasp of the last would-be tackler.
He said he was just looking to move the chains, but the blocking allowed for a much bigger gain.
“Of course, you can’t forget the play of our offensive line,” Skaugen said. “We have a very, very good leadership core on our offensive line. Our O-line has really grown since our season has gone through. I’m really happy to see where we are right now.”
Memorial lost to San Benito at home on Sept. 15, then lost the following week against Los Fresnos, also in McAllen. The Mustangs haven’t dropped a game since.
In the seven games since those losses, Memorial has outscored its opponents 345-97.
Coach Bill Littleton knows San Benito will be a tough opponent but feels his team has a good chance to advance.
“We’re fixin’ to play a heck of a good football team. A lot of people think they’re the best football team in the Valley,” Littleton said. “A lot of people predict them to go to the semifinals in the state playoffs. We like our chances. We know it’s an uphill battle for us. They already beat us once.”
Littleton likes the idea of being underdogs in San Benito’s house.
“They’re 11-0. We’re 9-2. I think all the pressure’s on them,” Littleton said. “We’ll see what happens.”