McAllen High clinches playoff berth

LA JOYA — A good way to ignore the fact that McAllen High’s top skill players are all hurting is to celebrate the team’s playoff berth.

The Bulldogs defeated the La Joya Palmview Lobos 38-13 on Thursday at La Joya ISD Stadium to clinch their fourth straight playoff appearance.

“It just feels good to be in the playoffs this year,” Bulldogs coach Tony Harris said about his team that is now 7-2 overall and 5-1 in District 30-5A.

The Bulldogs entered the game without starting quarterback Austin Griffith and minus tight end and backup QB Adam Ramos. Running back Trey Dube missed most of the second half of last week’s game.

If that wasn’t enough, Nick Garza went down with an injured calf in the first half of the game and didn’t return.

“We are not going to take any chances,” Harris said about bringing Garza back in the game, adding that the all-purpose standout should be OK.

There is no indication all these injuries will affect the Bulldogs. After all, Dube played. He rushed for a game-high 163 yards and two touchdowns.

“When we found out (Dube) could play, I rested a lot easier (Wednesday),” Harris said. “You can see that he played hard and ran hard. When we had to sit Nick down Trey picked up his slack.”

McHi also had to rely on names such as Angel Mora, Manny Mendoza and Jake Wiggins.

All three stepped in nicely to make sure the Bulldogs punched their ticket to the playoffs. Mora completed 10 of 12 for 113 yards and a 43 yard TD pass to Mendoza (five receptions, 77 yards). Wiggins rushed for 86 yards and an 8-yard TD.

“Everyone stepped up,” Dube said. “Everyone had to step up and play their game. This is what we practice for so that everyone knows everyone else’s positions.”

Lobos QB Javier Femat went down with an ankle injury early in the game but Carlos Siller filled in nicely on the ground with 150 yards rushing. Femat leads the district in rushing but is expected to play next week.

“(Siller) is a tough runner,” Lobos coach Manuel Flores said. “He has been very durable for us and a pleasant surprise.”

Peter Rasmussen covers District 30-5A football for Valley Freedom Newspapers. You can reach him at (956) 683-4448.