Bulldogs finish 10-0 after Cotton Bowl victory

RAYMONDVILLE — For the first time since the Nixon administration, the Lyford Bulldogs are perfect.

Lyford broke a 40-year stretch and ended up 10-0 as the Bulldogs held off a scrappy Raymondville squad 36-23 on Friday night at Burnett Stadium.

The last time the Bulldogs went undefeated was 1969 and head coach Jaime Infante said he is glad his 2009 squad could share the limelight with them.

“I am happy with what we accomplished and these kids definitely earned it,” Infante said. “We tried to downplay it all week but we knew that it was in the back of their minds. They will join a list of four other Lyford teams who ended up undefeated.

“I have to give credit to Raymondville though. They played a heck of a game and gave a great effort. Now we will get ready for the playoffs and make a run.”

Lyford (10-0, 7-0) will face Mathis in bi-district next Friday night with the place to be determined. Raymondville ends its season at 2-5 in District 32-3A and 4-6 overall.

The Bulldogs got on the board first as quarterback Johnny Esparza hooked up with Sammy Ambriz for a 10-yard strike giving them a 7-0 lead with 6:16 left in the first quarter.

But, Raymondville cut the lead to 7-3 as they connected on a 34-yard field goal by David Medina with 4 minutes left in the first quarter.

Then the Bearkats took a 9-7 lead when quarterback Bobby De La Paz hit Skylore Janes on a 22-yard touchdown pass with 9:44 left in the second quarter.

The Kats extended their lead to 15-7 as De La Paz threw his second touchdown pass of the night, a five-yard touchdown pass to C.J. Medrano with 6:58 left in the second quarter.

Lyford trimmed the lead to 15-13 on a 22-yard touchdown pass from Esparza to Cuahtli Quiroz with 5:10 left in the second quarter. The Bulldogs attempted to go for two-points but were unsuccessful.

The Bulldogs retook the lead 19-15 as Esparza threw his third touchdown pass of the night as he found Jose Sierra all alone in the end zone from 37-yards out with 44 seconds left in the first half.

However, Raymondville drove the ball 60 yards in less than 40 seconds and scored on a 20-yard touchdown pass from De La Paz, his third to Alex Montalvo as time expired as they took a 23-19 lead into the half.

After half, Esparza continued to work his magic as he ran it in from 19 yards out giving the Bulldogs a 26-23 lead with 6:23 left in the third quarter. They extended the lead as Esparza ran it in from six yards out with 4:10 left in the third to go up 10.

Overall, Esparza had another great night as he accounted for 291 total yards (240 passing, 51 passing) and five touchdowns (three passing, two rushing).

“Johnny exemplifies a great player and came through in the clutch for us,” Infante said.

Raymondville head coach Alex Leal said that this might be the end of his career after his 30th year of coaching.

“Right now I am a tired man and if I had no make a decision tonight, I would say it is about time to bring in a younger man to take over for me,” Leal said. “Now I am not saying I am quitting just yet. I am going to take a few days off and them make a decision.”