Major Clash: Bobcats, Pirates collide in district tilt

In a district in which teams play only four league games, almost any contest could determine the eventual champion.

This week’s Hidalgo-Rio Hondo game could very well produce the District 32-3A title winner, and the game has emerged as a contest to watch in Week 7.

Most believed Rio Hondo (7-0, 1-0 32-3A) would be a district favorite, but Hidalgo has turned some heads as it has raced to a 5-1 record. Friday’s game will be Hidalgo’s first district game of the season.

“I think (the Pirates) are a good team,” Bobcats coach Gus Cavazos said. “They have a very simple scheme, but at the same time it is a very sound scheme. They are well coached and are going to give us a good game.”

The Pirates average 401.7 yards per game while yielding only 149.7. Rio Hondo has produced similar numbers, averaging 376.9 yards and giving up a Rio Grande Valley-low 117.3 yards per game.

“I am not going to lie, this is a big game,” Pirates coach Jorge Peña said. “I know it. The players know it. We are playing a team that we knew was going to be very good.”

Vela probable

Rio Hondo quarterback Joseph Vela has missed the last two games with an undisclosed injury to his foot he suffered in practice two weeks ago. It was described as a lower-leg injury when it was thought Vela had sprained his ankle, but the injury occurred on his foot.

“We really can’t say he is going to play for sure,” Cavazos said. “It looks like he will play. It wasn’t as serious as we thought. It was just an aggravation of an old injury.”

Vela (38-of-50 for 521 yards passing) was leading District 32-3A in passing when he went down.

Bulldogs flying high

Lyford has done most of its damage through the air this season. Against Raymondville last week, Lyford had 468 yards passing but recorded no yards on the ground.

On the year, the Bulldogs have only 385 yards rushing to the 1,975 they have passing.

Quarterback Johnny Esparza has thrown for 1,648 yards on 104-of-217 passing. His main target has been wide receiver Andrew Delgado, who has 46 catches for 825 yards and 14 TDs.

Esparza has also gone to David Gonzalez (26-408) and Kevin Thomas (14-260) often.

La Villa rolling along

The disappointing loss to Santa Rosa dampened interest in La Villa, but the Cardinals are right where they expected to be.

They will not finish undefeated, but the expectations are that they will win District 32-A and are headed in that direction after defeating Ben Bolt 42-8 in the district-opening game for both teams.

La Villa is led by QB J.D. Cisneros, who has passed for 1,523 yards and 18 TDs in five games.

3A and 1A odds and ends

La Villa travels to Santa Maria in the only Valley district game for both teams. ... La Villa WR Rocky Rodriguez leads District 32-A with 28 receptions for 621 yards and nine TDs. ... La Feria QB Eleazar Esquivel recorded his best passing day of the year against Port Isabel last week, completing 10-of-19 pass attempts for 170 yards. ... Raymondville RB Dustin Alejo notched 200 yards and two TDs rushing on 13 attempts in Week 6.

Peter Rasmussen covers Class 3A and Class A football for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4448.