By Brian Argabright
The 830 Times
Thursday, Del Rio Rams head football coach Rod Taylor looked unhappy as he walked through the halls of the Carl P. Guys Memorial Gymnasium.
“It’s been a long day,” is all he said when asked about the day.
Friday night, Taylor was all smiles as his Rams defeated both Eagle Pass C.C. Winn and Fort Stockton in the final preseason tune-up for Del Rio.
Del Rio beat both teams 6-0 in the game simulated portion of the tri-scrimmage, but the Rams’ offense and defense was full speed ahead every time the players took the field.
Youth was served throughout the evening as sophomores accounted for the winning scores in both contests. Quarterback Zack Taylor, Coach Taylor’s son, scrambled 11 yards to the end zone for the score against Fort Stockton on Del Rio’s second possession of the session.
Del Rio sputtered in its first possession against Fort Stockton, and the defense was kept on its heels by a combination of strong runs and short passes that chewed up yards. But after Del Rio was able to sack Fort Stockton’s quarterback and force a punt, a big run through the middle of the defense set up the score by Taylor.
Against Winn, it was Del Rio’s defense that struck first as senior Nathan Reyes leapt in front of a fellow Rams defender and intercepted the pass to give the offense a chance.
While the Rams couldn’t do much early on, they saved the best for last.
After forcing a Winn punt, Del Rio quickly moved inside the Mavericks’ 15-yard line with a big pass. Del Rio stopped the clock when Taylor spiked the ball, and the next play was a run around the left side that put Del Rio inside the 5-yard line, but a holding penalty pushed Del Rio back to the 19-yard line with 13 seconds left to play.
On the next play, Taylor took the snap and fired a strike to a streaking Alan Dobbins. The sophomore crossed the goal line untouched with two seconds left to play, but coaches from both teams agreed to bring an end to the scrimmage following the score.
Taylor said he was pleased with his team’s performance, especially with the fact they did not turn the ball over during the contest. The only fumble the Rams had was recovered by Del Rio.
“Now if we can just play like that next week,” Taylor said, referencing Del Rio’s season opener Thursday at San Antonio Veterans Memorial.
Taylor showed off his speed throughout the scrimmage, rushing for two scores, including a 96-yard sprint. He also threw three touchdowns.
Sophomore Ethan Vasquez had two touchdowns, and sophomore Mitch Melton also accounted for a touchdown reception.
On defense, Taylor praised the work of sophomore Manuel Padilla who registered two sacks and four tackles for loss. He also singled out senior linebackers Diego Piña and Jesus De Luna.
Among the sub-varsity players, junior varsity tight end Art Ibarra had two receiving touchdowns, and freshman Zane Hughes rushed for multiple touchdowns.
For the most part, Del Rio’s players emerged relatively healthy from the scrimmage. The Rams did lose the services of all-district punter Arnulfo Ramirez, who was injured while playing on defense. There has been no word as to how long he will be out of action.
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Contact the author at drnhsports@gmail.com
