BY SAUL BERRIOS-THOMAS | STAFF WRITER
PHARR — Sophomore Izaiah Rangel blew into PSJA North like a breath of fresh air.
“He can play multiple positions, but right now he is going straight quarterback,” PSJA North coach Marcus Kaufmann said. “He’s learning the offense and learning the system. And he is doing such a good job of that, that he will probably be the quarterback.”
Rangel transferred to PSJA North from Edinburg North shortly after the basketball season this year. PSJA North senior quarterback Randy Reyna will be graduating this spring, leaving an opening for the 2018 team.
“Originally, we were thinking we might do (junior) Arturo (Beltran) at quarterback and Izaiah at wide receiver,” Kaufmann said, “but now it’s looking more like Arturo will be playing running back and receiver, and Izaiah will be the quarterback. He is doing a great job of handling the offense and taking the leadership role. He’s pretty much running everything right now, and the kids are taking a liking to him. It’s crazy how much of a leader he has become in such a short amount of time.”
Rangel’s father recently took a coaching job at PSJA North, which prompted Rangel’s move. Rangel’s father is a freshman coach for the Raiders, but he also works with the varsity receivers.
At Edinburg North, Rangel played receiver for much of his career but slotted into the starting quarterback role last season after the Cougars suffered injuries at the position. He completed 34 of 62 passes for a 54.8 completion percentage, and he threw for 319 yards. He also rushed for 309 yards and four touchdowns.
“He has been even better than we expected,” Kaufmann said. “I think he even surprised himself with some of the things he is capable of. He has the potential to be really good next year. And he can see that, too, which is why he is working so hard here.”
Rangel isn’t the only new addition to the Raiders’ offense. They also added an offensive coordinator in Jeff LeFevre, who came over from Weslaco East.
“He won 80-something games at Ben Bolt,” Kaufmann said. “He was at Los Fresnos, and then his son was the quarterback at Weslaco East. So he has a whole lot of head coaching experience and a lot of spread passing game, but also a lot of run out of the spread. So he is here for that, and then we have the power run game covered on our end.”
Rangel said he has picked up the new system well, and he is excited to let some deep balls fly.
“That’s all I do really, throw it up there and let those guys go get it,” Rangel said. “I trust my arm, and I trust my receivers to be able to go get it, like DeSean Jackson.”
Rangel has gotten close to his skill position players quickly. Beltran was one of the first people to welcome Rangel to the Raiders, and they clicked right away.
“(Rangel) has become one of my best friends,” Beltran said. “He was my enemy last year, but this year, I am glad that he is on our side. Me and him are really learning together from our new coaches.”
“Yeah, we bonded right away,” Rangel said. “We were in the locker room, and he just came over to say hi, and I already knew. I could tell he is a goofy guy.”
Because Rangel is a former receiver, he said he has always had a close bond with his receivers. Sophomore John Garza, who moved over after playing in the defensive secondary last year, was one of the receivers who clicked with Rangel right away. Nathan Salinas is another weapon Rangel can’t wait deploy on opposing defenses. Salinas is a pole vaulter who brings the athleticism of a track star to the perimeter game of the offense. Kaufmann described Salinas as a “great athlete” who has come in with a refreshing work ethic.
The Raiders will certainly still be willing to pound opposing defensive lines with their patented power run game, but with all of the new tools in place, the offense could start to move at a quicker pace at times, as well.
MAN IN THE MIDDLE
Junior middle linebacker Ryan Reyna is ready to be the heart and soul of the defense in his senior year. Reyna, who is the younger brother of Randy Reyna, has been a leader on the defense over the last few years. But in his senior season, and with the trust of his teammates, he believes he can take that to the next level.
“That is my goal for this year, to lead the team and help the brothers beside me and make sure we are doing it right,” he said.
Kaufmann has been lauding the importance of Reyna’s leadership all offseason.
“He’s pretty much going to be the glue on that defense,” Kaufmann said. “He’s running the show and making the calls up front.”
One key for Reyna is making sure the younger players understand the Raiders identity that has been in place for generations. That includes the new signal-caller.
“We try to welcome our newcomers with our black shirts, our hitting and our tackling,” Reyna said. “We are aggressive, and we don’t apologize for it. We have to make it known to everybody. And he has done a good job, so he will be a big part of this team, but we had to make sure he understood what Raider football was all about.”
“This defense is crazy,” Rangel said. “They hit hard every single time. They never let up. I can’t wait to see them play in a game. … They did welcome me to the team. I had a bunch of bruises after my first few days.”
The brain trust behind the Raiders’ defense often links up online to play Fortnite, a popular video game that allows players to combine into teams of four. Reyna joins sophomore safety Seven Sanchez, who calls the plays in the secondary, and junior defensive back Marco Salinas. Many other Raiders have played as their fourth, including Rangel.
“We play like every night,” Reyna said with a laugh. “We talk about the team on there, too. We will watch our film, and then we will get on there and talk about what we saw and how to make adjustments.”
Rangel said when he joins in, he tends to stick to trash talk, since the competition between offense and defense doesn’t end until they get to hit other teams again.
ENDING THE CURSE
Kaufmann jokes that the Raiders are cursed. The injuries over the past two seasons have reached astonishing totals.
Last year, the Raiders felt that their front seven was the strength of their defense. Then, after two games, three of their defensive linemen were lost to injury.
“That curse that someone put on me, I think it will only last two years,” Kaufmann said. “Somebody did something. I have never had this many injuries. That first year I was like, ‘Wow.’ But then the next year, it was less, but it was still a ton.”
On the offensive line, four of the five missed time with injury last year. What that means now, though, is that the Raiders have eight linemen with game experience.
“We are returning starters that only got to start half the games, and then we have the kids who stepped in returning, and they also got to play half the games,” Kaufmann said. “It’s a pretty good situation to be in. I think all of the troubles from last year are going to pay off this year, because of all the kids getting all of that experience. We were in a lot of close ball games. We were within a touchdown in the fourth quarter of pretty much every game except Vela.”
Combined with Rangel and the new pieces Kaufmann has added on the coaching staff, that notion gives the Raiders optimism for the 2018 season.
“We have the parts now,” Kaufmann said. “Now it is up to us to put them in the right places and let them be successful. … All of those guys have a ton of experience. And then the guys behind them, they are guys that played last year as well.
“If we can avoid many of those injuries — which I think we will, we have put in a lot of work this offseason to be ready — I think we will be able to compete with anyone in the district.”
PSJA NORTH
Returning starters (O/D): 8/7
Returning lettermen: 35
Key Players: QB Izaiah Rangel, RB/WR/ATH Arturo Beltran, MLB Ryan Reyna, S Seven Sanchez, DL Albert Elizondo, DB Marco Salinas, WR Nathan Salinas
Coach: Marcus Kaufmann, 3rd year at school
2017 Record: 2-8, 2-5