Niño named All-Valley Player of Year

Erik Niño still feels the disappointment. He still remembers the feeling of walking off the field after Edcouch-Elsa's area-round loss to Port Lavaca Calhoun, knowing that the expectations placed on him and his 'Jackets weren't going to be reached.

For Niño and his teammates, not advancing deep into the postseason was a bitter disappointment, especially since they had talked openly of making history and establishing themselves as a state-wide power.

That Niño couldn't lead E-E to a state championship was about the only way he disappointed this season.

For his performance this season, Niño was voted Valley Freedom Newspapers' All-Valley Most Valuable Player. With extremely high expectations thrust on him, not to mention a target from other teams, Niño passed for 1,724 yards and 26 touchdowns. He also rushed for 1,114 yards and 17 more scores, despite being the player opponents keyed on.

"He responded. He had a lot of pressure," Edcouch-Elsa coach Joe Solis said. "I think Erik accomplished what everybody expected from him."

One thing he did which wasn't that expected was to lead the 'Jackets to a win over Valley nemesis Corpus Christi Calallen. Against a team which hadn't lost to Valley competition since 1990, Niño led E-E to a stunning 14-7 victory, finding tight end Artie Tanguma for the deciding TD.

"In my class, we've been dreaming about that since we were little kids," Niño said. "We wanted to be the ones to beat Calallen. And we did."

That win, while certainly not all of what Niño accomplished this season, was a big part of his deeds. Wins like that one, and the victory one week later over Harlingen High, built up the expectations as the season wore on. As the 'Jackets strolled through their District 32-4A season, Niño's stature kept growing as he kept leading E-E over teams which expected to challenge the defending league champs.

Realistically however, none really did, though Niño knows how much they were all gunning for him and his teammates, and what beating the 'Jackets would have meant to Mercedes or Weslaco East or Mission High.

"It's like that every year. Ever since we were freshmen or in junior high, it's always been ‘Beat Edcouch-Elsa. They're the team to beat,'" Niño said. "We thrived on that."

Though in the end, Port Lavaca Calhoun finally did end the 'Jackets' season. Niño, who has a scholarship offer to play at Texas A&M-Kingsville, isn't quite at the point where he will be able to look back at the 2008 season and remember the glory, not the playoff defeat.

"It wasn't just a great year for me, but for our team," Niño said. "And that's what it was. A good year team-wise."

Solis, who has coached other star performers, didn't hesitate to place Niño at the top level of kids who have played for him. In fact, he seems to realize exactly what he had in his QB, and what he's losing.

"He's a kid who wore his Yellowjacket uniform to the best of his potential," Solis said.

And there's nothing disappointing about that.

Brian Sandalow covers District 32-4A for Valley Freedom Newspapers. You can reach him at (956) 683-4436 or via e-mail at bsandalow@themonitor.com.