Eagle Pass Eagles Incredulously Rally from 31 Points Deficit to Snatch Victory Over PSJA Bears 42-31 in Bi-District Championship
By: Ricardo E. Calderon, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc., Copyright 2019
The mighty Eagle Pass High School Eagles incredulously rallied from a 31 points deficit with 2:42 minutes remaining in the second quarter to score 42 unanswered consecutive points to snatch victory over the District 30-6A Champions Pharr San Juan Alamo High School Bears in the 2019 University Interscholastic League (UIL) Region IV, Class 6A-Division 2, Bi-District Football Championship on Friday, November 15, 2019 at Pharr Stadium in Pharr, Texas.
The Herculean effort by the Eagles to battle back from the 31 points deficit almost immediately before halftime while shutting out the PSJA Bears during the remainder of the game has certainly earned the 2019 Eagles a place in the storied annals of the Eagle Pass High School Eagles Football Program as one of the best, if not the best, performances and most important playoff victories. No prior Eagles football team had rallied from such a large deficit as 31 points to earn a playoff win.
The Eagles won the pre-game coin flip and chose to defer to the second half, awarding the Bears the opening game possession.
The Bears took their first possession at their 27 yard line and engineered a long drive with a hurry-up offensive scheme using short passes and runs, culminating with a field goal to take an early 3-0 lead with 8:55 minutes remaining in the first quarter.
The Eagles first possession started at their own 30 yard line, but the Bears managed to intercept an aerial pass from quarterback Allan Rodriguez at the Eagles 40 yard line for their second possession of the game.
The Bears capitalized on the interception turnover by quickly driving 40 yards into the Eagles end zone on a one yard dive by quarterback Justin Morales and the point after attempt was good to extend the Bears lead 10-0 over the Eagles with 6:05 minutes left in the first quarter.
The Eagles self-proclaimed “War Eagle” offensive unit showed promise of moving the ball on the second possession, but were forced to punt by the Bears defense.
The Bears patented hurry-up offense wasted no time in striking a quick score on a 51 yard touchdown pass from quarterback Justin Morales to wide receiver Marco Guajardo and the extra point was good, enlarging the Bears lead 17-0 over the Eagles with 31 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
On the Eagles third possession, the Bears hard-hitting defense caused the Eagles to fumble the pigskin and the Bears pounced on the loose football to regain possession at the Eagles 30 yard line, stunning the Eagles.
On the Bears fourth possession, the Eagles self-proclaimed “Land Sharks” defense finally made adjustments to the Bears hurry-up offensive scheme and managed to hold the Bears and took over on downs at the Eagles 39 yard line. The crushing Eagles’ Land Sharks defensive unit pressured and chased Bears quarterback Justin Morales, causing Morales to injure one of his ankles.
The Eagles offense went three and out on their fourth possession, punting to the Bears.
The Bears hurry-up offense kept giving the Eagles stout defense trouble adjusting to the quick pace of game and orchestrated a 66 yard touchdown drive on their fifth possession, culminating with a ten (10) yard touchdown pass from quarterback Justin Morales to wide receiver Miguel Flores and the point after attempt was good to extend the Bears lead 24-0 with 8:07 minutes left in the second stanza.
With momentum temporarily on their side, the Bears pulled a blooper on-side kickoff surprising the Eagles kick-off return team and recovered the football at the Eagles own 35 yard line to regain possession.
The Bears took only a few plays to tally another score on a five yard scamper by running back Ethan Castillo and the extra point went through to extend the Bears lead 31-0 over the Eagles with 7:32 minutes remaining in the second quarter.
On their fifth possession, the Eagles took the ball at their own 39 yard line and marched down the field to the Bears four yard line but failed to score on a fourth and four yards/goal situation, turning the ball over on downs to the Bears. Although the Eagles did not score, the Eagles offense began to show signs of being able to move the ball downfield against the stingy Bears defense.
The Eagles’ Land Sharks defense held the Bears on their next possession, forcing them to punt. The Eagles defense began to catch-on to the Bears hurry-up offensive scheme.
With 4:13 minutes remaining before halftime, the Eagles fifth possession began at their own 40 yard line trailing 31-0. The Eagles combined passes and runs by running back Isaac Caballero to march down the field. Eagles quarterback Allan Rodriguez connected with wide receiver Jacob Ruiz on a touchdown pass and the point after attempt by place kicker Erick Ramirez went through the uprights to score the Eagles first score of the game, and commenced the largest comeback win in Eagles history, narrowing the scoreboard 31-7 in favor of the Bears with 2:42 minutes in the second quarter.
The Eagles’ Land Sharks defense went to work immediately and Eagles defensive back Orly Martinez intercepted an errant Justin Morales aerial pass to give the Eagles offense a lifeline at the Bears 45 yard line with 2:25 minutes left before halftime.
The newly inspired Eagles offensive unit capitalized on the interception turnover and quickly struck pay dirt on a sensational 23 yard run by running back Isaac Caballero against the Bears defense and Erick Ramirez’s point after attempt sailed through the uprights to shorten the lead to 31-14 in favor of the Bears with 1:34 minutes remaining in the second quarter. The Eagles defense stopped the Bears to close out the first-half at 31-14.
The Eagles brain trust led by Head Coach Tom Gonzalez and staff made key adjustments at half-time to unleash a surge of momentum against the Bears.
In the third quarter, the Eagles received the opening second half kick-off but turned the football over on an interception at the Eagles 34 yard line.
The Eagles’ Land Shark defense pressured Bears quarterback Justin Morales into hurrying up in throwing a pass and Eagles defensive back Orly Martinez snatched the pass from the moonlit night and raced down the sideline for a pick six touchdown return of 78 yards and Erick Ramirez’s point after attempt was good to narrow the gap to 31-21 in favor of the Bears with 9:10 minutes remaining in the third quarter. Clearly, the momentum shifted to the Eagles as the Bears began to think about their 31 points lead chopped to 10 points.
The game became a defensive struggle as both teams stopped each other’s offense and exchanged possessions without scoring.
The Eagles’ Land Shark defense led by defensive ends Charlie Schuessler and MJ McGehee, defensive tackles Andres Conde, Tommy Cantu, and Santana Martinez, linebackers Saul Peralez, Joe Samaniego, and Jacob Salinas, and defensive backs Kristin Barcena, Orly Martinez, David Lopez, and Jose Hernandez began to dominate the Bears offensive line and unit in the second-half.
Late in the third quarter, the Eagles’ War Eagle offensive unit led by quarter back Allan Rodriguez went to work at their own 34 yard line and orchestrated a patented 66 yard touchdown drive, culminating on an 11 yards touchdown pass from Rodriguez to wide receiver Jacob Ruiz and Erick Ramirez’s extra point was good to narrow the score to 31-28 in favor of the Bears with 9 seconds left in the third period.
On the Bears ensuing possession, the Eagles’ Land Sharks defense smashed the Bears wide receiver forcing him to fumble the football and the Eagles pounced on the loose pigskin to recover it at the Eagles 32 yard line.
The Eagles quickly capitalized on the fumble recovery on what was a 68 yard touchdown pass from quarterback Allan Rodriguez to wide receiver Jacob Ruiz, but the referees denied the touchdown on a sideline warning infraction, thus giving the Eagles possession on that pass play at the Bears 19 yard line instead of the TD. However, the Eagles kept plugging away against the Bears and quarterback Allan Rodriguez dove into the end zone on a two yard run and Erick Ramirez’s point after attempt was good to give the Eagles their first lead of the game 35-31 with 11:02 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, stunning the Bears, coaches, and fans.
Both teams battled defensively through the early to mid-fourth quarter as the Bears sought to regain the lead while the Eagles held down the fort against the Bears’ hurry-up offense.
Eagles quarterback Allan Rodriguez temporarily left the game with a slight injury in the mid-fourth quarter, but reserve quarterback Fernando Sarabia kept the offense going on a key drive to allow time for Rodriguez to return to the game with 5:37 minutes left. Rodriguez shook-off the slight injury and managed to guide the Eagles’ War Eagle Offense into the Bears end zone on a 20 yards touchdown strike to wide receiver Dakota Kypuros and Erick Ramirez made his seventh point after attempt good to extend the Eagles lead to 42-31 with 4:52 minutes remaining in the ball game.
The never say die Bears managed to drive from their own 26 yard line to the Eagles three yard line on the ensuing possession, but Eagles defensive tackle Tommy Cantu recovered a Justin Morales fumble in the end zone to deny the score and return possession of the ball to the Eagles.
The Eagles’ Land Shark Defense closed out the Bears on their following final possession to secure the hard fought 42-31 victory against the Bears for the coveted Bi-District Championship in the largest comeback in the history of Eagles Football Program.
The Eagles victory is attributed to the players having confidence and perseverance against all odds and playing as a total team. The incredible victory was a total team effort.
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