BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER
HIDALGO — Walking in on a Valley View practice now is no different than any other practice the Tigers held last season. Coaches direct players’ movements and players fine-tune those movements to a point where they should become second nature. Coaches then direct a different set of movements, the players oblige and the process continues.
The only tangible difference now is that Valley View is 6-0. The Tigers have outscored opponents 240-31 and haven’t allowed a team to score more than seven points in any game this season. They have rolled through their first two district games with relative ease (71-7 combined score in Weeks 5 and 6).
The team is aware of that 6-0 record too, but doesn’t appear to have thought about it much. After all, it is only the first time the Tigers have had a start like this in their 13 years of fielding a varsity football team.
“It takes a lot of hard work,” Valley View coach Eli Esquivel said. “Now the kids realize that football is year-round. It’s not for three months. Once we finished No. 1 in total defense last year (247.2 yards/game in District 31-5A), I told them that for us to continue it, they need to put in the work in the offseason. The offense needed to get there, the defense needed to get there and the kicking game needed to get there. Our seniors have done a great job of leading us. In return, we have the No. 1 defense again.”
Valley View’s defense allows 162.3 yards on average through six games this season, which is the lowest total of any team in the Valley. Weslaco East (174.0 yards/game) and La Feria (178.0 yards/game) are the two teams in the closest proximity to the Tigers.
Valley View’s defense has also forced the opposition into turnovers. They’ve forced 12 fumbles, recovered as many fumbles and picked off opposing quarterback 11 times this season.
One of the best examples of the defense’s dominance is its Week 6 thrashing of Edcouch-Elsa. The Tigers went into Benny Layton Sr. Memorial Stadium and quieted the black hole almost immediately. Valley View sacked Edcouch-Elsa quarterback Raven Rojas in the end zone for the game’s first points and the onslaught went on uninterrupted.
The defense sacked Yellow Jacket quarterbacks four more times and forced them into two interceptions.
Senior Javier Lopez, a free safety who doubles as a wide receiver on offense, had one of those picks last Friday and now leads the team with five interceptions on the season. Lopez took two of his previous four interceptions back for touchdowns.
“It’s all mental. If you really want to win, then you set aside feeling tired and keep going,” Lopez said. “And it’s an everyday thing. You’ve got to work on that mentality and staying positive every day. I really love playing defense. I don’t keep up with stats. I just do what I do for the team.”
“He’s committed and he takes great care of himself, so he’s in shape,” Esquivel said. “We’ll rest him on defense, but lately, he doesn’t ever want to come out. He’s an athlete. He’s a competitor.”
Middle linebacker Luis Sanchez had a team-high 11 tackles against E-E last week and has been yet another disruptor on defense. His three fumble recoveries are tied for most on the club.
“We met with him earlier in the season and we told him that we needed him to be the quarterback of our defense,” Esquivel said. “What our kids do is line up according to the opponent’s offense, and Luis calls the defense. He’s come a long way for us.”
“It’s not just the ‘me’ part because the whole defense helps me do my job,” Sanchez said. “I give them the directions and they do what they do. Our expectations are high, not only for ourselves, but because people think we’re underdogs. We want to prove ourselves, especially the seniors. We want to be on top. The results are showing.”
Junior defensive end Adrian Rojas is coming of age this season. He leads the Tigers with 3.5 sacks and five quarterback hurries through six games.
“I’ve seen myself go from eating dirt to being an alright player,” Rojas said. “If you look at the secondary, the linebackers and us linemen, there is no weak link. We have the guys and the experience to do well.”
Valley View’s 33-0 win was the first over the Yellow Jackets in nine tries. Friday would be the last game for first-year E-E coach Bradly Chavez, who was fired along with defensive coordinator James Jefferson the next morning.
The Tigers’ 2-0 start in district play throws a monkey wrench into the preseason projections for the brand-new District 16-5A Division II. Mercedes and Edcouch-Elsa are 1-3 combined through two weeks while the Tigers, Rattlers and Diamondbacks remain undefeated in district competition.
Sharyland Pioneer (3-2, 1-0) will head south to Valley View ISD Stadium at 7:30 Friday night in what could be another flashpoint moment for the Tigers against another formidable opponent.
“They’ve got two quarterbacks (senior Jacob Rosales and sophomore Eddie Marburger) who have good arms,” Rojas said. “We need to add pressure on them, so they won’t have time to throw and our secondary can have a good game.”
“It’s a different offense than what we’ve seen,” Esquivel said. “We’ve seen mostly run teams and now we’re going to see a spread offense. If we line up correctly, I know we’ll have a shot to win.”