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Hays Rebels footballPosted October 19, 2007, 3 p.m.
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Hays Highway Editor
BUDA – A year ago, the Hays Rebels wheeled out to Del Valle under threat of a trap, considering a game against district leader Schertz Clemens loomed a week later. The Rebels were District 26-4A contenders and Del Valle was a dark horse.
The Rebels confounded the trap with a 30-6 win. Tonight, Del Valle returns the trip to Bob Shelton Stadium (7:30 p.m.). And it's a very different situation.
"They've got the same team back," Shelton said. "We've got a different team."
Hays and Del Valle enter tonight's game with identical records – 4-2 overall and 2-1 in the district. Form says Hays isn't clearly better or more experienced this time. Neither does their common opponent, New Braunfels. Hays lost last week, 24-17, at New Braunfels, while Del Valle lost at home a week earlier to New Braunfels, 21-16.
But the Rebels' loss at New Braunfels last week showed where they stand on the road against a state-ranked opponent (New Braunfels is No. 9 in this week's Associated Press poll). As the game ended, the Rebels looked, probably for the first time, like a football team that can accomplish quite a bit this year.
New Braunfels took away the Rebels' inside running attack, the Rebels only completed 50 percent of their 26 passes, and they still held onto the ball and moved it pretty well. Hays quarterback Clayton Rogers made plays, running 17 times for 100 yards. And the defense did a reasonably good job against a strong quarterback, New Braunfels' Ryan Perez.
"I don't ever feel real good after a loss," Shelton said. "I felt like we played hard and I felt like New Braunfels played their best game. We had some chances, but we just didn't make some of the plays."
Don't be too surprised if the Rebels go back to trying their inside running game tonight with Rogers and fullback Nikki DeSantiago. Shelton didn't sound too convinced Thursday that everyone will shut it down as well as New Braunfels.
"It just depends," Shelton said. "It can change from week to week. New Braunfels played the run real well. I think they have the best linebackers in the district. The problem was blocking them."
While this year's Hays offense is different from its efforts of past years, half the fun of watching the Rebels from week to week is always seeing how they end up moving the ball. The Rebels aren't the offensive powerhouse of 2004 and 2005, when they set their yards-per-game record in back-to-back season. They haven't demonstrated the ability to turn the corner in the running game, so they've stayed away from the option that defined them for decades. And they entered the New Braunfels game averaging only 87.2 passing yards in 49 total attempts.
But when they found themselves unable to run last week, the Rebels put the ball up. And if they didn't complete every pass, they still threw for 149 yards and notched seven first downs through the air.
"I don't ever go into a game saying we're going to have to throw 25 times or we have to run 60 times," Shelton said. "It's just a feeling you have during the game. We thought that to move the ball (against New Braunfels), we had to throw it. I feel like we have good receivers and somebody who can throw the ball."
Adding to this week's mystery is the unpredictability of the Del Valle defense, despite its strong profile. The Cardinals have allowed only 1,029 total yards in six games this year, a sterling average of 171.5. However, the Cardinals allowed 256 rushing yards in last week's 29-28 overtime win at Schertz Clemens.
Perhaps the Clemens game was an aberration, but it's quite a large aberration. In its six games this year, Del Valle has allowed 530 rushing yards (88.3 per game). Only Clemens has rushed for 100 yards or more against Del Valle.
The Rebels certainly have the diversity this year to keep Del Valle's defense on its heels. Rogers not only has rushed for 674 yards, but he has passed for 615. With four catches for 70 yards last week, wide receiver Paul Breyfogle leads the Rebels with nine catches for 188 yards.
Defensively, the Rebels will deal with the top rusher in Central Texas. Del Valle's Travis Collins Johnson averages ten yards per carry with 849 yards in 85 attempts. The Del Valle offense runs through Collins-Johnson, whose rushing yardage accounts for almost half of the team's 1,805 total yards.
The Cardinals have used two quarterbacks, veteran Michael McDowell and newcomer Jozef Cortez. Each has completed only 11 passes this year. Cortez figures as more of a running threat, rushing for 131 yards this season.
At stake tonight is nothing more or less than a chance to stay in the race for one of three playoff spots from the district. New Braunfels Canyon joins Hays and Del Valle at 2-1, while New Braunfels and Cibolo Steele both are 3-0. Canyon plays New Braunfels tonight in the Wurst Bowl.
While Hays contends for the playoffs annually, Del Valle has worked up to this season as its big chance. Taking its lumps with a largely sophomore team two years ago, Del Valle just missed the playoffs last year.
"They're for real," Shelton said.
They're certainly much more than a trap this time.
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