September 6, 2007 08:14 - San Marcos unrattled by opening defeat
The Hays Highway
If we learned anything from the San Marcos Rattlers last year, it's that pre-district games don't count. Except that the experience is invaluable.
Last year, the Rattlers lost two of their three pre-district games, but came along as the year progressed, finished 4-3 in District 25-5A to qualify as the fourth-place team, then notched a string of dramatic playoff victories before falling in the Region IV championship game for Class 5A Division II. The Rattlers finished 8-6.
The Rattlers returned only five starters from last year's team to this year’s outfit that opened last Friday at Bobcat Stadium against Kerrville Tivy. The defense being especially green, the Rattlers were vulnerable to an explosive quarterback, which partly explains how they lost their opener, 23-14.
Tivy quarterback Colton Palmer rushed for 115 yards in 19 carries, including touchdowns of 42 and 65 yards. Palmer also completed 12 of 16 passes for 30 yards and a touchdown.
San Marcos held a 7-3 lead during the first quarter after a 49-yard touchdown run by D.J. Hemphill, who led the team with 71 yards in seven carries. But the Rattlers couldn't break any more big plays or sustain an attack, as two drives fell to holding penalties and another two ended with interceptions.
Excepting the big plays by Palmer, the Rattlers defense held pretty firm and even put them back in the game when Joel Williams intercepted Palmer and returned 45 yards for a touchdown, bringing the purple back within 17-14 with 8:33 left.
After San Marcos forced a Tivy punt, the Rattlers took over at their own 31 with 4:33 remaining and began to drive down field. But Tivy's Jerry Hunt intercepted San Marcos quarterback Lauren Morales and returned the ball to the San Marcos six. Palmer followed with a five-yard touchdown pass to Alex Johnson, sealing the Tivy victory.
Morales seems to have excited San Marcos coach Steve Van Nest with his potential as a thrower, which could be a useful dimension as it develops. Morales threw 12 times, almost unheard of for a San Marcos quarterback, but completed only three and tossed in two interceptions. Morales also had a 29-yard touchdown pass called back due to penalty.
As Van Nest told the San Marcos daily, the pass protection looked good, so the coaches decided to put it up. The early part of the season is for taking a good look at the team to see what needs to be adjusted for the district season. Van Nest added that the big running plays by Palmer would be easy enough to fix.
As usual, it sounds like a solid plan from Van Nest, despite the disappointment of losing at Bobcat Stadium. Another vigorous tune-up awaits Friday night, when the Rattlers go to New Braunfels Canyon for the home team's season opener.
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September 7, 2007 11:46 - A good fight to fight
By Bill Peterson
High school football can be pretty tough business. Especially when you lose the second game of the season, 33-0.
Lose the opener 33-0, and you can say it's only the first game, much has been learned and the team can improve through practice. Lose the second game 33-0 after a win, and you just have to wonder.
The kids and coaches at Lehman High School really have their work cut out after Thursday night's debacle at Burger Stadium, where Travis put that 33-0 on them. After winning their opener, 18-14, against Johnston a week earlier, the Lobos have to be licking their wounds.
A win is a win, but beating Johnston might create a false sense of achievement. After all, Johnston hasn't won a game in more than three years. Then comes this wipeout against Travis, which figures to be a playoff contender this year, but isn't one of the local Class 4A powers.
That 33-0, sadly, wasn't merely the final score. It was also the halftime score. At least Lehman can hang its hat on staying even in the second half.
Here's the good news for Lehman: the game is a lot different if you eliminate turnovers and breakdowns in the kicking phase, because those areas bear directly on field position.
Thursday night, Lehman fumbled on its first possession, at its own 46. Travis turned it into a touchdown. Later, Lehman allowed an 84-yard punt return for a touchdown. After that, a low Lehman snap on a punt allowed Travis to start on the Lobos' 18, which set up another Travis touchdown.
That's three bad plays basically handing Travis three touchdowns. It's not the entire difference in the game, but it's the difference between having a chance at the end or being out of it at halftime.
If you can just make the other team work for everything it gets, the whole world changes. Every time your offense holds onto the hall, doesn't take a holding penalty and doesn't throw an interception, it's a chance to keep the drive going and keep the other offense off the field. Every time your defense holds tight and doesn't give up a big play, it's another chance that the other offense will drop the ball, take a holding penalty or throw an interception. Every time the kicking units do their jobs, field position improves matters for the offense and the defense.
Whenever you see 33-0, you wonder about a physical mismatch. But when you see fumbles in your own end and punt returns coming all the way back on you for touchdowns, it's just little errors.
Now, Lehman coach Steve Davis and his staff will preach the importance and value of staying upright and working hard to kids who might not understand what's on the other side of that. When you work half-heartedly and half-wittedly, the results are watery. If you work hard and smart, knowing how to play the game, it's a beautiful thing. It's kind of like magic.
The Lobos still have eight games left. Good luck to these guys.
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September 9, 2007 09:56 - Rattlers run past Canyon
The Hays Highway
Apparently, the San Marcos Rattlers have unveiled a new weapon.
The Rattlers held on tight for a 28-21 win at New Braunfels Canyon Friday evening after a virtuous performance by running back Brandon Banks, who not only rushed for 145 yards in nine carries, but returned a punt 80 yards for a touchdown. The punt return early in the second quarter brought the Rattlers to a 7-7 tie early in the second quarter. Two minutes later, after San Marcos regained the ball, Banks ran 70 yards from scrimmage to give the Rattlers a 14-7 lead.
Banks scored his third touchdown of the day in the final minute of the first half, running 17 yards to give the Rattlers a 21-14 halftime lead.
The game went along like that once Banks scored back-to-back touchdowns to give the Rattlers their first lead. Canyon would respond with a touchdown to tie, then the Rattlers would come right back with a touchdown for the lead.
After Canyon’s Tyler Denson ran for a four-yard touchdown to tie the game, 21-21, the Rattlers responded with a four-yard touchdown run by Chris Tovar for a 28-21 lead midway through the fourth quarter.
The rest of this game belonged to the San Marcos defense, which held off Canyon for the last 18 minutes of the game. Neither team scored going down to the end. Playing on the road with the lead against a good team, the Rattlers put up a stiff defensive effort going down the stretch.
That, along with a very effective running game, has to please San Marcos coach Steve Van Nest, whose outfit improved to 1-1. Canyon fell to 1-1.
One interesting development for the Rattlers Friday night was that they threw no passes after putting it up 12 times a week earlier against Kerrville Tivy. Instead, the Rattlers took 323 rushing yards, including 145 for Banks and 145 more for D.J. Hemphill. When you have two dangerous backs working from a slot-T offense that relies so much on deception and misdirection, that's almost as good as a passing attack.
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