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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Sports
Friday, September 1, 2000
Eagles, Jackets test changes in opener
By JON FULBRIGHT
Staff Writer
PECOS, Sept. 1, 2000 -- The Pecos Eagles have a new offense. The Kermit
Yellowjackets have a new defense, and both teams will test them out officially
for the first time tonight, when the Eagles travel to Walton Field for
their 2000 season opener against the Jackets.
Kermit also has a new coach and new quarterback to go along with their
defensive changes, following their 1-9 season in 1999. Glen Jones come
over from Lampasas to take over as head coach, and brought his son, Jason,
to take over as the Jackets’ quarterback.
Jones, who was the starter last season at Lampasas before a season-ending
injury, is one of a handful of transfers that will join Kermit’s returning
players in trying to change things around for the team, which has gone
through four head coaches in the past six seasons after being a perennial
Class 3A playoff qualifier in the 1980s and early `90s.
“They’re a basic wing-T team,” said Eagles’ coach Gary Grubbs. “They
run the sweep, the bootleg and get into the I a little bit and run the
counter. They execute well.
Jones said he team was “kind of up and down” in their scrimmages against
Sonora and New Deal. “We’re having trouble getting everybody suited up
and working out.”
“We don’t have a lot of numbers, but we have zero attitude problems
and zero problems off the field,” said Jones, who coached at Ballinger
before going to Lampasas.
He said there were no problems with his son coming in at quarterback.
“He had a good spring. We came in March 1 and he was well received. There
wasn’t any political quarterback situation.”
Kermit does return the same quarterback they had last year when Pecos
scored a 20-0 win. But Jones said Norman Castillo was playing out of position
that night.
“They had four or five kids suspended at that time, including the starting
quarterback, so he was the quarterback then,” Jones said. Castillo was
returned to a running back slot later in the season, which is where he’ll
start tonight against the Eagles, while Allen Smithart returns at tailback
for the Jackets.
Aside from Jones, who threw for over 570 yards before being hurt a year
ago, Kermit also picked up defensive end Michael Sturgis from Midland Lee.
“We’ve got another kid who played with us last year then moved to Monahans,
but has moved back,” the Jackets’ coach added.
At receiver, Kermit returns tight end Manny Munoz, though Grubbs said
he might also be seeing time at flanker this year.
“Defensively, they run the split-6 and are pretty big on defense. Their
ends and tackles are real big,” Grubbs said. “That (Anthony) Glover kid
is probably their best lineman”
“They were fairly aggressive against Sonora, New Deal and Ingram when
we went to watch them. They’re going to be very basic,” he added, while
Jones downplayed his team’s scrimmage results.
“We haven’t fared very well in our scrimmages against 2A schools,” he
said, adding that the change to a different offensive and defensive scheme
played a part in the problems.
“It’s new. We got a little better last week compared to Sonora,” he
said, as the players try to adjust to the split-6 defense and wing-T offense
Kermit will run. “We’re just having a tough time learning the system, and
we’ve got to go real slow with these guys. But I think by the time we get
around to district, the kids will be up to speed and ready to go.”
The Jackets will likely try to do what Carlsbad did to Pecos in their
scrimmage two weeks ago - line-up and push the Eagles back on the offensive
and defensive lines, since Jones said his team speed is not great this
season.
“We’ve got quickness, but we lack speed, and there’s a difference there,”
he said. “When you’re not sure of where your going, you’ve got to count
on aggressiveness to make up for that lack of speed.”
“I don’t think they’re real fast. I feel our defense will have better
speed than them, but they are real aggressive.”
The Eagles were short on aggression in their scrimmage loss to Carlsbad,
though Grubbs said that’s improved over the past two weeks. “We didn’t
get a lot of people to the football, bur we’re doing better in practice.”
Meanwhile, the Eagles will try to improve on their run blocking tonight,
working out of the option attack. Richard Rodriguez will start and split
time with Alex Garcia at quarterback. The two, plus Peter Juarez, threw
for 158 yards and a touchdown against the Cavemen, but Pecos’ backs could
only gain 41 yards rushing on the day.
The Eagles also are still dealing with their share of injuries on the
offensive line. Center Chris Deishler remains out and will be replaced
by Jose Loa, while Sebero Jaquez will handle the right tackle spot in place
of Micah Huffman.
Tonight is the first of five straight games for Pecos against District
4-3A teams. The Eagles will go to Fort Stockton next week, then host Alpine
on Sept. 15 in their home opener.
Granado back for Seminole tourney
PECOS, Sept. 1, 2000 -- After getting their absent coach a first place
trophy last Saturday, the Pecos Eagles are trying to see if they can do
the same thing this weekend for coach Becky Granado with her at the games.
The Eagles began play this morning at the Seminole Invitational in what
figures to be their toughest matches so far this season. The Eagles began
pool round play at 9:30 a.m. against the Midland Lee Rebels, then took
on the Pampa Harvesters at 12:30 p.m. before closing out wit a 2:30 p.m.
match against former District 4-4A rival San Angelo Lake View.
Pecos will play at 8:30 or 9:45 a.m. Saturday if they finish first or
second in their pool, and will play at 8:30 a.m. if they place last today.
The third place team draws a first round bye in the consolation bracket
because there are only three teams in one of the pools, featuring Lubbock
Coronado, Odessa Permian and Amarillo River Road.
Pecos comes into the game with a 13-2 season record, though Granado
was not around to see any of those games due to the illness and eventual
death of her father a week ago. While she has been in touch with assistant
coach Veronica Valenzuela, who ran the team for the first 15 matches, Granado
said as far as the other teams are concerned. “I haven’t been keeping up
with it, but I’ll get back into to tomorrow (today).”
The Eagles defeated Midland Lee 10 days ago in three games on the Rebels’
home court, but haven’t faced Lake View in two years and haven’t gone up
against Pampa in over a decade. The Maidens have dominated the Eagles’
former district the past couple of seasons, and started off fast this year,
but were beaten at home last Saturday in the San Angelo Invitational by
El Paso High, the team Pecos ousted from the Class 4A playoffs a year ago.
The Eagles were then eliminated themselves by Hereford, which went on
to take the state title. The Whitefaces are also in the tournament, paired
with Big Spring, Monahans and Midland High today, while Seminole is matched
up with San Angelo Central, Andrews and Lubbock Estacado.
“Coach (Jackie) Horton from Seminole said Hereford is kind of struggling
right now, but I said they always struggle at the beginning and then pick
it up at the end,” Granado said.
Aside from getting Granado back, the Eagles were also hoping to get
setter Jessica Rodriguez back this weekend, after she fractured her nose
in the first pool round game in the Pecos tournament last Friday. Dee Dee
Molinar handled the sets for the Eagles in the rest of the tournament and
in the victories Tuesday over Alpine and Odessa.
Pecos, Kermit sub-varsities split openers
PECOS, Sept. 1, 2000 -- Two shutouts and two goal line stands decided the
four sub-varsity season opening football games in Pecos Thursday night,
as Pecos’ eighth grade teams split their afternoon games against Kermit,
while the freshman and JV did the same later in the evening against the
Yellowjackets.
At the Crockett Middle School Field, the Jackets stopped the Eagles
on a two-point conversion attempt with just over a minute left to place
to preserve a 14-12 victory in the season-opening `A’ game, after the Eagles’
scored an 8-0 shutout win the `B’ team contest.
At Eagle Stadium, Pecos’ junior varsity stopped Kermit on the two-yard-line
on the final play of the game and held on for a 20-14 victory, after the
Jackets’ freshmen had blanked the Eagles by a 16-0 final score.
Defensive lapses in the first half set up both of Kermit’s scores in
the JV game, before the Eagles rallied with three straight touchdowns to
get the win. The Jackets used an 80-yard run to set up their first score,
and a 98-yard touchdown run one play after Pecos fumbled the ball away
in the second quarter.
After that, the Eagles did score on their next series, off a 22-yard
run by Roy Jimenez, who then added the two-point conversion run. Jimenez
tied the game on the opening series of the second half, on a four yard
run, but the Eagles missed the conversion and didn’t take the lead until
the final period, when quarterback Freddie Torres scored on a nine-yard
option keeper following a Jackets’ turnover.
A 57-yard TD run by Torres later in the quarter was called back by a
penalty, and Kermit then got one last chance to win the game off a fumble
by Torres a few plays later. The Jackets got as far as the two-yard line,
but ran out of time and downs as the game ended.
At Crockett, Kermit took a 14-6 lead with three minutes left on a 16-yard
touchdown run, before Pecos came back and scored on a 14-yard run by Adam
Ybarra. But quarterback Robbie Saldana was stopped short of the end zone
on the tying conversion attempt.
Kermit had taken a 6-0 lead in the first period on a 19-yard run after
a Pecos fumble, but the Eagles tied the game before halftime on a 28-yard
pass from Saldana to Gilbert Gonzales.
The `B’ team got the only touchdown of its game on a run by Jacob Marquez,
with Mark Navarette adding the two-point conversion. In the freshman game,
Kermit got one touchdown in each half, and used a pair of interceptions
to stop Pecos’ second half scoring chances in their shutout win.
Pecos’ seventh graders were scheduled to open their season on Thursday
at Kermit, but instead played a pair of scrimmage games against the Jackets.
The seventh graders instead will start their 2000 season next week on the
road against Fort Stockton.
Pecos’ varsity will open their season tonight in Kermit at 8 p.m. against
the Jackets, the first time the Eagles have begun play on the `zero week’
which was instituted by the University Interscholastic League in 1996 and
allows teams 11 weeks to play their 10-game regular season schedules.
Four of the Eagles’ five District 2-4A opponents are also opening their
seasons tonight on the road, while Clint opens play on Sept. 8. Scores
are available tonight after 11 p.m. over the Internet via Real Audio or
Windows Media Player links at www.krod.com and www.kvia.com.
The other district openers have Canutillo hosting Santa Teresa, Fabens
at Tularosa, N.M., El Paso Mountain View at El Paso Cathedral and San Elizario
at El Paso Parkland.
San Elizario (8-3 in 1999) at El Paso Parkland (10-2):
The two defending district champions from the El Paso area Class 4A
districts meet up, in a battle that should match Parkland’s offense against
San Eli’s defense.
The Eagles do have running backs Mike Tapia, Andy Arrellano
and tight end Albert Jacobo back, and will be hoping one of their three
quarterbacks can do the job Mike Perez did for San Elizario the past two
seasons. Perez was District 2-4A’s MVP a year ago in leading the Eagles
to their first-ever post-season berth.
Parkland returns Matt Austin, who averaged nearly nine
yards per carry last year in rushing for 1,519 yards and two touchdowns
and Artiese Cheeks, who gained 750 yards despite being injured part of
last season. Like the Eagles, the Matadors will be breaking in a new quarterback,
Mike Schure, tonight.
Fabens (3-7) at Tularosa (1-0 in 2000): The Wildcats
return last year’s District 2-4A rushing leader, Vicente Macias, who gained
1,568 yards in 1999, along with quarterback Rigo Estrada, who threw for
almost 1,100 yards. Where they and the rest of the team will be looking
to improve is inside the 20 yard-line, where Fabens had problems at key
moments last season in going winless in 2-4A play.
Tularosa has a one-week head start on the Wildcats, having
opened their 2000 season last Friday with 10-0 victory over Hot Springs,
N.M.
Canutillo (2-8) at Santa Teresa (2-9): Another
District 2-4A team looking to bounce back from last season, the Golden
Eagles will have eight players back on defense and the biggest offensive
line in the district to work with. Outside of running back Noel Rios, they
will have new faces in the backfield on offense, so tonight will be their
first official game test.
However, last week’s scrimmage against Del Valle should
have gotten the Golden Eagles more than ready for Santa Teresa, which also
has Fabens, Mountain View and San Elizario on its pre-district schedule.
The Desert Warriors lost two-thirds of last year’s team to graduation,
and are calling 2000 a rebuilding year.
El Paso Mountain View (5-4) at EP Cathedral (4-6):
The pre-district favorites for 2000 get to start their season against
another team that has four 2-4A schools on their pre-district schedule.
Mountain View’s quarterback Arturo Muniz will have to adjust to new receivers
this season, but other than that, the Lobos return almost all their starters
from a year ago.
According to the El Paso Times, Cathedral’s Rhian Madrid
owns the honor of having won the NFL’s Punt, Pass and Kick competition
for 2000 this past January. He may punt and kick tonight, but passing out
of the defensive end spot is unlikely, and the Fighting Irish do have last
year’s quarterback, James Costanzo, returning.
Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@pecos.net
Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium.
Copyright 2000 by Pecos Enterprise
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