By ANDREW CRUM, Staff Writer
Playing its only scrimmage of the fall before Week 1 of the regular season, Pace seemed to be working out some kinks Friday morning against Edinburg Economedes.
The Vikings moved the ball during the controlled portion of the scrimmage, but failed to find the end zone in a 5-0 loss to the Jaguars. In live action, Edinburg Economedes scored on its first two possessions and pulled away from Pace, 21-10, at Sams Memorial Stadium.
“We have to toughen up, and when we have opportunities to score we have to take advantage of those opportunities,” Pace coach Bill Deen said. “We didn’t take advantage (Friday).”
After finding themselves down by a pair of touchdowns in live action, the Vikings scored on two straight possessions. Following a 33-yard field goal, Pace got the ball back after its defense forced a three-and-out.
A long pass play on the second snap of the drive put them inside the Jaguars’ 15-yard line, and two plays later, the Vikings’ Randy Aguilar scored on a quarterback keeper to put Pace within striking distance at 14-10.
But Economedes wasted no time, ripping off three big runs — including a 40-yard burst — and scored on an 18-yard pass play to seal the live action part of the exhibition.
“With only one scrimmage, it had to come together quickly,” Jaguars coach Gabe Peña said. “We’re pleased with the performance of our number ones. We had some breakdowns, but we’ll work on them.”
Pace had trouble finding a rhythm on offense at times in the controlled part of the scrimmage. Aguilar showed what he could do with his arm and at times, his legs. Gabriel Zapata also received plenty of touches on the offensive side, either running the ball or catching it for the Vikings’ offense. Pace will rely heavily on the pair of juniors this season.
“I thought Randy threw the ball well,” Deen said. “He has a good arm and we’re excited about Randy; we know what he can do.”
Pace found itself deep in Edinburg Economedes territory a few times, but wasn’t able to punch it in the end zone and was held scoreless in the controlled portion.
“I would have liked to see the offense move the ball a little bit better,” Deen added. “We had some big gashes in the (controlled portion), we just couldn’t get it in. You get down to the four (yard line) and you have to score.”
The Jaguars used a heavy dose of their ground attack to open up the field and used a lot of play action to test the Viking defense. Economedes scored touchdowns on four runs while the fifth score came through the air.
Peña thought his team played well and will begin focusing on Hanna, their opponent in Week 1.
“We have the luxury of having a mature team, so they came in with a business-like attitude,” Pena added. “We had a good test from Pace and what they do offensively and defensively. They were big and that’s a lot like Hanna that we face next week.
“We hope it prepared us enough; it’s going to be tough.”
Despite the score between the two scrimmage sessions, Deen was encouraged by the play of his team, but talked about some adjustments that need to be made before their season opener.
“Our defense has to stiffen up and not allow long drives,” he said. “The offense has to move the chains and keep the defense off the field, so it’s a combination of a lot of things. But I saw some great stuff (today). I’m excited.”
Andrew Crum covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6629 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter, he’s @andrewmcrum.