NATHANIEL MATA | STAFF WRITER
McALLEN — It wasn’t a great start for Weslaco High, but it was a great restart. When George Martinez kicked the opening kickoff out of bounds and had to line up again, the Panthers attempted a squib kick left. Instead of an actual squib, the ball hit the foot of a member of Rowe’s return unit, and Roy Treviño hopped on the ball to give the Panthers possession.
That moment led to the opening points on Thursday at McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium, where Weslaco never looked back, cruising to a comfortable 28-7 win over the Warriors.
“It wasn’t meant to hit the first guy. It was meant to go down the field and roll and give us time to go down there,” Treviño said. “He kicked it powerful enough for it to bounce off to him, and I was just a playmaker.”
When it came to playmakers, Weslaco had multiple on the first drive as it marched from the 50 into the end zone. Running back Peyton Knaub and quarterback Jacob Cavazos had no issue moving the ball with their legs.
The Panthers made their early fortunes count when quarterback Cavazos found Devin Dena for a short passing score.
“We got momentum at the beginning,” Cavazos said. “We came out with a good attitude, ready to fire out and start off the season right. That was just something that worked in our favor, and we did our best to take advantage of it.”
The junior quarterback split time at the position last year, but he quickly proved it was his show on Thursday. Cavazos completed 12 of 20 passes for 140 yards and three touchdowns and carried the ball 17 times for 93 yards and a score.
“We’ve come on a long way,” Cavazos said. “We’re a family more than we are a team. When something comes our way, we stick together. We don’t separate.”
The first half finished 7-0 with both teams failing to convert fourth-down attempts just yards outside of the red zone.
Both teams showed signs they were still finding their way. Weslaco’s offensive line was called for four first-half false starts.
On Rowe’s first drive after a stop in the second half, Axel Camarena picked off Warriors junior Jonas Ortiz and added a monster return to put his Panthers in excellent position to double their lead.
“Our defense is good. We just communicate all the way around. We know what we’re doing,” Camarena said. “We just focus on details. The focus level has got to go up.”
The interception quickly turned into another score when Jacob Cavazos found receiver Jaden Cavazos on a well-executed fade route for a 25-yard strike.
“I think our defense ignited our play tonight,” second-year Weslaco coach Michael Salinas said. “Hats off to our defense, and our defensive staff. I’m proud of the way they competed tonight.”
The interception was the first of two times Ortiz threw to a Panthers player. Rowe also had a pair of turnovers on downs.
Jacob Cavazos used his smarts to escape pressure and dump the ball down to Knaub for his third passing score.
The QB even found the end zone with his legs for good measure to factor in on all four of the Panthers’ touchdowns.
“He did a good job. Obviously, we’re going to go to the drawing board and evaluate it, but I’m proud of the progress he’s made to this point,” Salinas said. “He’s taken ownership, and he’s leading the football team on the offensive side.”
Rowe coach Bobby Flores admitted his team needs to improve but doesn’t think it’s time to sound the alarms for his young group.
Lalo Bosquez scored the lone Rowe touchdown via an 8-yard run in the fourth quarter.
“Weslaco is a well-refined machine,” Flores said. “They came out ready. They came out like they had two scrimmages under their belt and we had one. We shot ourselves a couple of times, making some mistakes, dropping some open passes. We’ve just got to get better. We have to be able to execute to get back to what got us to where we were last year.”
Weslaco High will play its home opener next Thursday as it hosts Edcouch-Elsa, while Rowe will travel to face Mercedes on the road next Friday.