By Brian Argabright
The 830 Times
For the second straight year, the Del Rio Rams are in the state football playoffs.
They’ll face the Taft Raiders tonight at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available online at https://nisd.net/athletics/high-school-tickets . Tickets are $7 for adults and $4 for students. Ticket prices will remain that cost until one hour before kickoff, then all tickets will be $8.
For fans that want to watch the game but are unable to attend, the game will be streamed through KSAT-12’s Big Game Coverage app.
While the regular season saw the Rams finish with a sub-.500 record at 4-6, a new season dawns tonight as Del Rio heads to what was once its home away from home – San Antonio’s Gustafson Stadium.
From 1994 until 2007, Del Rio competed against teams from San Antonio’s Northside ISD, including its Bi-District round opponent Friday night, the Taft Raiders. The two teams haven’t played each other since the 2007 season, and Del Rio hasn’t notched a win over the Raiders since 2005.
As Northside ISD expanded over the years, to include Stevens, Warren, O’Connor, Brennan and Harlan, many of the district’s older schools took hits to their enrollment and talent pool. Taft reached the State semifinals in 2004, but in the years that followed the Raiders amassed just one season without a losing record from 2005 until 2020.
Last season was a breakthrough year for Taft. The team went 8-4 including knocking off the District 30-6A champions Eagle Pass. They then advanced to the regional semifinals after Pharr-San-Juan-Alamo North was forced to withdraw from the playoffs due to Covid protocols.
Taft fell in the third round to Buda Hays, 62-41, but instead of regressing this season, the Raiders got better.
Taft finished the regular season 8-2, losing to eventual district champions Brennan 42-28 and O’Connor 35-28.
The Raiders’ success is directly tied to its ground game. They are averaging nearly 300 rushing yards per game, and it starts with senior quarterback Justice Hurt. Hurt leads the team with 1,443 yards rushing and 17 touchdowns. He’s also thrown for 849 yards and 14 more touchdowns. Keeping Hurt contained will be the biggest challenge for the Rams defense.
Right behind Hurt is running back TJ Andrews. Andrews rushed for 987 yards and nine touchdowns.
While Taft doesn’t pass very often, the primary target for its passing game is Jamel Criswell. Criswell has rushed for 214 yards and a touchdown, but he leads the Raiders with 23 catches for 363 yards and nine touchdowns.
On defense, Taft works hard to force takeaways and get the ball back into the offense’s hands. The team has 12 interceptions led by Demetrious Hicks’ four picks. Gabriel Garcia is second on the team with two interceptions, but six other Raiders have at least one interception.
Many of those interceptions come from the pressure the Raiders bring against opposing quarterbacks. The team racked up 11 sacks in its first seven games including four from senior Luis Miranda and three from junior Benjamin Martinez.
Even though the defense is aggressive, it can be scored upon. Taft allows nearly 25 points per contest.
Del Rio enters tonight’s game having lost its last two games. For the Rams to be successful they’ll need to not turn the ball over, reduce the number of penalties they commit and attack the Taft defense directly. The talent the Rams have on offense is strong enough to strike quickly and often. It took two plays for the Rams to score their first touchdown against Eagle Pass, so the potential is there.
Defensively, the Rams must slow down the Raiders running game and keep Hurt in check. If he is able to get out of the pocket, he can do serious damage regardless of the defense thrown at him.
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Contact the author at drnhsports@gmail.com
