RGVSports.com
Three District 31-5A teams remain undefeated heading into Week 6, and two are gearing up to battle one another in The Monitor’s Game of the Week.
Boasting 5-0 overall records, including 1-0 in district, Roma will host Edinburg Vela at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Gladiator Arena.
Heading into last week, the Gladiators were the No. 7-ranked team in the RGVSports.com top 10 poll. They used a suffocating defense in the second half of their district opener to beat Rio Grande City 19-14, edging their Starr County rivals in The Monitor’s Game of the Week for a second consecutive year.
Edinburg Vela, ranked No. 2 all season, beat No. 9 Sharyland High in Week 5 for the first time in its four-year history. The SaberCats endured their only regular-season loss in 2014 at the hands of Sharyland, which won 27-24 en route to its third consecutive district crown. That added to the intrigue to this year’s matchup, which again came down to the wire.
With 15 seconds to play, Vela’s Erick Morales forced a fumble on Sharyland quarterback Seth Carter, who was 5 yards from scoring the go-ahead touchdown, as the SaberCats milked the clock to preserve a 48-47 victory at home.
Once again, Vela carries plenty of firepower heading into its matchup against Roma. The SaberCats have consistently ranked among the most potent offenses in district, even with graduation to key players on that side of the ball.
This year, they’re doing it more on the ground, with Robert Guerra rushing for 483 yards on 60 carries through four games. He’s scored seven touchdowns, including twice during last week’s win over the Rattlers.
No team in 31-5A, however, rushes more than Roma, which has totaled 1,618 yards on the ground. In fact, going into Week 5, the Gladiators had rushed for 393 more yards than the runner-up team, Vela, which had 930 at the time.
Ramon Espinoza, the district’s leading back, has ignited Roma with 1,344 yards on 172 carries for 17 touchdowns. Last week, the junior workhorse carried the ball 42 times for 275 yards, scoring all three of his team’s touchdowns in the win over Rio Grande City.
Still, the matchup might be viewed as one of the top defenses (Roma) in district going up against one of the better offenses (Vela).
Both teams had virtually the same identity last year when they met, resulting in a 49-10 win for Vela. That was before Roma made the leap from fringe playoff team to area-round qualifiers, while Vela has improved defensively.
Since losing to the SaberCats as part of a three-game skid, the Gladiators have won eight out of their last nine games, including a 28-24 loss to Gregory-Portland in the second round of the postseason. Meanwhile, Vela has improved from surrendering the second-most yards in district (323 per game) to yielding an average of 265.3 per contest, fourth in 31-5A, going into Week 5.