MARK MOLINA | Staff Writer
Despite taking a 28-24 loss to Weslaco in their opener, the Harlingen South Hawks had a lot of bright spots to build on going forward.
One of the notable things came under center.
Starting quarterback Troy Jensen got his first varsity start over Brandon Villarreal, who was held out with an ankle injury.
Jensen led the Hawks and made good decisions with the football throughout the night and kept mistakes to a minimum in his first varsity action.
Jensen passed for 129 yards on 8-of-18 passing and an interception.
He also tossed a pair of touchdowns, a 59-yard pass to a wide open Darren Perez and a 34-yard pass to Joseph Alonzo in double coverage to help keep the Hawks in the game Friday.
”Troy played really well for us during his first varsity action,” South head coach Lanny Wilson said. “However, we have two quarterbacks; we didn’t want to send Brandon out there limping this past week and get him hurt.”
Wilson said Villarreal’s ankle is still coming along and is being monitored by the Hawks’ coaching staff, and there will be no need to rush him back if Jensen stays consistent.
EAGER BIRDS: For the second consecutive year, the Harlingen Cardinals will open their season in Week 2 against San Antonio Reagan.
Despite having an extra week of preparation, the Cards have been chomping at the bit.
“It’s difficult because everyone is playing and we weren’t, but that’s how the cards fell and the schedule was set up,” said Harlingen head coach Manny Gomez. “Good things come to those who wait and we’ve been patiently waiting for Friday.”
The Reagan Rattlers will head into Boggus Stadium Friday night looking for win No. 2 after dismissing San Antonio O’ Connor 42-19.
STILL SCORING: San Benito lost running back Gabriel Vasquez and quarterback Cristian Sierra to graduation, but their offense looked just as volatile in a 45-0 win over Edinburg last week.
Leading the way was Edward Alvarez, who made the most of 16 carries, posting 195 yards and three touchdowns.
Meanwhile, quarterback JR Gaitan was solid for the ‘Hounds, passing for 133 yards and one touchdown. He also rushed for 76 yards.
San Benito racked up 532 yards of total offense.