By the numbers series in paper

[FootballGal]

After winning two playoff games against Port Lavaca (15-12) and Del Rio (29-8), San Benito succumbed in the semifinals to Nederland, led by Coach Bum Phillips and his son, Wade, 22-15.

Pretty interesting stuff!

[tigercrazy]

From left: Tuffy Martinez ('80-82), Coach Alex Leal ('82-84) and Gabe Peña ('80-82) were part of Port Isabel's streak of 46 straight district wins from 1978-83.

Tarpon tradition
PI’s mark of 46 straight district wins still a standard
July 11, 2008 - 11:33PM
By ELADIO JAIMEZ/Valley Morning Star
HARLINGEN - They were very businesslike, taking it one game at a time.

They didn't worry about last week's game or looked ahead to next week's.

Their only concern was the next week's opponent.

And before they could even say "dynasty," that's exactly what they had established.

The Port Isabel Tarpons football program is one of the most successful in Valley history and arguably one of the top three ever.

But tradition has to start somewhere. And to many PI and Valley football fans, the Tarpon Tradition began in the late 1970s.

No. 46 in the Valley Morning Star's By the Numbers summer series is the Tarpons' consecutive district game winning streak, which stands at 46.

The streak is still a Valley record and ran from 1977-83.
Tommy Roberts coached the Tarpons from the 1978-82.

Current Raymondville head coach Alex Leal then took over for three years from 82-84 and inherited the winning streak.

But back then, Leal said no one was really concerned with the streak - as far as games were concerned.

Unlike today when the media highly publicized Edcouch-Elsa's regular season win streak in the past few seasons, PI's run didn't grab too much attention from anyone.

"The only win that mattered was the next one," Leal said. "We were paying more attention to the district title streak we had going on then. We weren't a ‘rah-rah' team. We just took care of business every Friday."

And by taking care of business, the Tarpons established a great tradition winning seven straight district pennants during that run.

PI won eight straight counting the 1984 season.

The streak began under Elmer Harbour in 1977. When Harbour left, the legendary Tommy Roberts took over and guided the Tarpons to a 47-4-1 mark over the next five seasons.

Included in that magical run was PI's 1981 team, which reached the Class 3A state semifinals.

Port Isabel lost to Cameron Yoe in the semis, but those Tarpons are still regarded among the Valley's best throughout history.

Weslaco assistant Gabe Peña started on that team and played under Leal during his senior season.

Donald Guillot quarterbacked the '81 Tarpons.

Tuffy Martinez took over the reins as QB during the 1982 season, Leal's first at PI.

The dynasty was established by the time Leal took over.

But Pena and Martinez will tell you that it takes a special coach to keep it going.

And Leal did.

"He was the right person for the job," Peña said of Leal. "He really touched a lot of us. He was a very humble man and he made sure we were too. Now I'm the same way as a coach. He (Leal) always kept us motivated and he never let us get a big head."

By 1982, the Tarpons were "the team" of the Valley.

When Leal took over, he asked his players who they wanted to play during non-district.

"We wanted to play Brownsville Pace, Harlingen and McHi," Martinez said. "Everyone was looking to take down the big dogs."

PI beat Los Fresnos, Pace and Raymondville that season en route to another rout of league teams as the Tarpons ran the tables again.

The streak ended the next season when La Feria handed PI its first district loss in seven years.

It was an uncharacteristic off-night for the famed Seawall Defense that Friday night in '83.

PI led late in a high-scoring game, but the Lions' quarterback completed a long bomb to an open receiver in the end zone to win the game and end one of the most historic runs in Valley football history.

Edcouch-Elsa holds the current longest running streak at 32 consecutive district wins from 2003-07
"When you stop and think about it, it really was something special that we all accomplished," Leal said. "We didn't really know about it at the time. We were more focused on winning games. It's something we all take a lot of pride in."




www.valleymorningstar.com/sports/streak_30471___article.html/one_valley.html
[/b]

[OlympFan]

And again another great story, PI and its winning tradition...

Thanks again for posting it, TC.

[eejackets]

Awesome!

[Ol' Buzzard]

Good read!

[tigercrazy]

Jul 12, 2008 1:33:11 GMT -6 OlympFan said:

And again another great story, PI and its winning tradition...

Thanks again for posting it, TC.

Your welcome!

[wos87]

I think I brought this up when I was piecing together the PI history, but I have always counted 47 consecutive district wins....

Where did I make the mistake??

The streak started in the 2nd district game of '77 after losing the first game to La Feria:

1977 - 6 in a row
1978 - 7 in a row
1979 - 7 in a row
1980 - 8 in a row
1981 - 8 in a row
1982 - 6 in a row
1983 - 5 in a row losing in the final game of the regular season (again to La Feria) 26-28.

TOTAL = 47 in a row



I'm still missing the Sharyland, Rio Hondo and Hidalgo scores from '83 but all three were wins for PI

[xlobo]

Jul 10, 2008 23:15:41 GMT -6 Ol' Buzzard said:

VMS is batting 2 for 3... good stuff.

+1 Good article

[tigercrazy]

Forty-five years ago, the 1963 Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Bears reached the state football finals. They were the last Valley football team to reach the state finals and it was the Bears’ second straight trip.

Border Bandits
45 years ago, the PSJA Bears reached the state finals
July 12, 2008 - 11:32PM
By PAUL CONATZER/Valley Morning Star
In 1963, Pharr-San Juan-Alamo High School reached the Class 3A football state finals for the second straight season.

In the 45 years since, no Valley high school has reached a state championship game.

Those Bears, which put together arguably the best back-to-back seasons by a Valley team, are No. 45 in the Star's "By The Numbers" series.

"We were overachievers," said Poppy Rodriguez, currently McAllen ISD athletic director and a senior running back on the 1962 PSJA team which reached the state final where it lost to Dumas, 14-3.

"It was an incredible time," said Rick Diaz, well-known news anchor on KRGV-TV and a senior defensive lineman on the 1962 squad. "We called ourselves the Border Bandits. Nobody thought we would do much, nobody gave us a chance."

The 1962 squad had to battle to make the playoffs out of District 16-3A. The Bears finished tied for first in the league with San Benito, which reached the state semifinals in 1961. In the regular season, the Bears went 8-1-1 and outscored opponents 146-46.

PSJA earned the league's only playoff spot by having more first downs than San Benito in their 0-0 tie in the last game of the season.

"Some people called it the game of the century," said Rodriguez. "Nobody had any penetrations and we won the game because we had 10 first downs and San Benito had six. Our defense did an incredible job. We held Jim Helms (San Benito's all-state running back) to 29 yards."
The game was played at PSJA's stadium and it might have been the greatest game played in the Valley.

The Bears beat South San Antonio 29-22, Austin Johnson 26-0 and Orange 20-13 to reach the state finals.

"Orange was a brutal game, they outweighed us by about 55 pounds, but we never worried about size," Rodriguez said.

The state championship game was played in Fort Worth at TCU's stadium and the change in climate conditions was a shock for the Bears.

"When we left the Valley, it was 79 degrees and when we got to Fort Worth it was 29 degrees. We didn't like the cold," Rodriguez said.

Dumas outweighed the Bears by about 60 pounds on the line and, in fact, Rodriguez said, Dumas outweighed the University of Texas' offensive line by three pounds.

Despite the disadvantage, the Bears took a 3-0 edge into the final quarter.

"Then they started going to their 6-foot-5 split end Kelly Baker," Rodriguez said. "Our defensive backs were 5-7 and that's how they won."

While Diaz and Rodriguez were mainstays on the 1962 team, they were a number of players who played on both squads.

Julio Ayala played on both squads and was a second-team all-stater as a defensive back in 1963. Phil Hetrick was a first-team offensive tackle on both squads. Ernest Nagy was a guard on both squads. Ayala also later coached his alma mater.

Other standouts were kicker Bucho Gomez, who Diaz said was called "The Golden Toe" on the 1962 team. Linebackers Manuel Garcia and Danny Cantu were among the Bears' first team all-district picks in 1963.

Head coach Charlie Williams was the lynchpin for both squads.

"They made believers out of us," said Rodriguez. "They gave us confidence."

Over the two-season span of 1962 and 1963, the Bears went 21-3-4 under Williams, who is the all-time winningest coach at PSJA with a 96-34-7 mark.

In 1963, the Bears went 8-0-2 in district play and outscored their opponents 220-27.

They beat South San Antonio 27-0 in the first round of the playoffs. Tied 20-20 with Gonzales in the quarterfinals, advancing on more first downs. Then they edged LaMarque 9-7 in the semifinals before losing to Corsicana 7-0 in the state title game.

"You look back at it and remember and it doesn't seem so long ago," Diaz said.



www.valleymorningstar.com/sports/bears_30535___article.html/game_rodriguez.html

[wp2003]

bucho gomez used to coach here in weslaco under bucky rodriguez. he was a good guy.....

[wp2003]

this is an incredible story. he used to talk about it, but i never believed it. nobody i ever knew talked about it.....

[wos87]

[danman071404]

nice series with good info...

[OlympFan]

Former University of Texas coach Fred Akers began his career at Edinburg High School in 1962.

By the Numbers: From Edinburg High to UT
Fred Akers' early coaching career began in the Valley 44 years ago

July 13, 2008 - 8:33PM
By ARMANDO GARZA | Valley Morning Star

EDINBURG - Every good coach has to get his or her start somewhere.
And for Fred Akers, the former University of Texas coach, that start came at Edinburg High in the early 1960s.

As the Star's "By the Numbers" series rolls on to No. 44, Akers' head coaching stint with the Bobcats from 1962-64 (44 seasons ago) is in the spotlight.

Akers' teams went 18-10-1 in his three seasons at Edinburg. After leaving the Valley, Akers had one stint at Lubbock High School before landing on Darrell Royal's staff at Texas from 1966-74.

After a 2-year stay as Wyoming's head coach (10-13 record), he gained notoriety around the country when he became the Longhorns' head coach from 1977-86.

At Texas, Akers coached Heisman winner Earl Campbell in 1977 and had the Longhorns on the cusp of national titles in 1978 and 1984 (Cotton Bowl each time.)

On both occasions, Texas went undefeated in the regular season only to drop the season-ending bowl game.

And while some say he didn't live up to the expectations set by his predecessor Royal, Akers still had a sparkling record with Texas.

But high school is where the legend started. While his stay in the Valley coaching ranks was brief, Akers left quite the impression with those he coached.

While Edinburg competed in District 14-4A's South Zone, Akers guided the Bobcats to a 6-2-1 mark in his first season in 1962. Edinburg finished second to a standout Brownsville High team that year.

After a 5-5 mark in 1963, Akers' Edinburg team finished second to McAllen in the league with a 7-3 mark. A season-ending loss to the Bulldogs eliminated them from a title chance. Back then only the champion advanced to the postseason. McHi advanced to the third round that year.

Edinburg fielded the league's top defense in points allowed, giving up only 80 (34 in district).

Key members of that 1964 Bobcat team included end Rene Alaniz, guard Jesus Luna, linebacker Tom Gernentz and halfback Dan McQuay, as each earned first-team 14-4A All-District honors.

Although his tenure didn't produce a playoff appearance while at Edinburg, Akers did help groom some of the biggest names in Valley football.

Robert Vela, a legendary coach in his own right, who succumbed to cancer last year, was quick to list Akers as a mentor. Vela coached at Edcouch-Elsa and later Edinburg.

Vela's brother Pete does the same. Pete was an all-district end in 1964 under Akers. He later was a successful head coach at Mercedes and McAllen Memorial.

Robert Alaniz, the former Edinburg North head coach and current ECISD athletic director, was also a standout end for Akers.

And earlier this year, at a ceremony marking the 40th anniversary of U.S. Marine Sgt. Freddy Gonzalez's heroism, Akers, who coached Gonzalez, spoke highly of the Edinburg hero, who was killed in Vietnam but saved many lives in the process.

So while his term may not have been lengthy, Akers' mark on Valley high school football still stands today.

www.rgvsports.com/articles/akers_2387___article.html/edinburg_coach.html

[TarpnForce73]

AMNOVA,

In reference to PSJA, Yes they were in the State Finals two years in a row. Poppy Rodriguez was a common name in the papers and radio during the games. I was but 12 years old and most of the Valley was glued to the radio on those State Final games. The early sixties was a very good ERA for Valley football. and as you know by the thread here San Benito was also in the Semis. And of course Donna won State against Quanah. PSJA games were very good and close games could of gone either way.

[OlympFan]

Gabe Hernandez | Valley Morning StarFormer Los Fresnos quarterback Jeremy Springer

By the Numbers: Special season
Los Fresnos QB Jeremy Springer went wild in 2006 with 42 TD passes

July 15, 2008 - 10:54PM
By ELADIO JAIMEZ | Valley Morning Star

Jeremy Springer isn't one to just sit around and wait for something to happen.

The former Los Fresnos quarterback is a doer. He's a mover and a shaker.

Unfortunately, Springer knows that there are times when he just can't help but sit and wait.

Springer did it in high school and he's doing it now as a freshman quarterback at the University of Texas at El Paso.

But patience has always been a strong suit for Springer, a former Valley Morning Star Player of the Year.

When he finally got his break as a high school senior, Springer produced one of the best single-season efforts in Valley high school football history.

No. 42 in the Valley Morning Star's "By The Numbers" series is Springer and his super season in 2006.

Springer threw 42 touchdown passes that year ranking third all-time in the Valley for a single season behind Mission quarterbacks Lupe Rodriguez and Koy Detmer.

But when Springer first suited up on the varsity squad, he went from plenty of playing time on the freshman team to sitting, wishing and waiting on the sideline.

He backed up two-year starter Brandon Kretz at QB, but the athletic Springer saw plenty of action as a receiver especially his junior year.

"I'm not gonna lie, it was a little frustrating not playing quarterback during my sophomore and junior years," Springer said. "But Brandon was a great quarterback. I looked up to him. And when I got my shot as a senior, I wasn't going to let it go. I was going to be all I could be."

What Springer did was nothing short of amazing.

Springer played on a team that produced four Division I football players.

Springer's twin brother Justin is currently playing linebacker at the University of Kansas, offensive linemen Eloy Atkinson is also at UTEP and Mario Benavides is now at the University of Louisville.

So it's no surprise the Falcons went 10-0 and won the District 32-5A championship.

Springer's numbers might have come as a surprise to some, but not many.

At least not Falcons' head coach Scott Ford.

"He bided his time and he exploded when he finally got his shot," Ford said. "I don't think he was ever unconfident. He believed he could play quarterback for us all three years.

"He always played with that confidence. That's one of those intangibles you can't coach. He always had that confidence in his heart. We (as coaches) just got lucky."

Springer completed 202-of-361 pass attempts for 3,502 yards. He also rushed for 627 yards and scored 15 more touchdowns on the ground.

Springer's single-season yardage ranks fourth all-time in the Valley behind Rodriguez and Detmer.

In a playoff game against La Joya that season, Springer passed for 298 yards and six touchdowns. He also rushed for71 yards and two scores.

"I can't imagine what type of numbers Jeremy would have put up if he played all three years," Ford said. "But Jeremy was a team player. He understood that Brandon was our guy."

Today Springer sits and waits again for his turn to explode on the field for the Miners of El Paso.

He's second in the depth chart behind current starter Trevor Vittatoe.

Springer red-shirted last year and is a sophomore with four years of eligibility remaining.

Springer said he's learned a lot about the game during his first season with the Miners.

The biggest and hardest transition was getting used to the speed of Division I football, he said.

But after one year, Springer said he's ready for the call whenever it comes.

"You have to be willing to make sacrifices to be successful," Springer said. "I came here thinking I could play right away. But you have to be patient and disciplined. It might take two or three years to get in the game. But when I do, I'm gonna expect to dominate just like I did my senior year at Los Fresnos."

By the Numbers is a periodic series that corresponds the number of days until the start of the 2008 Valley high school football season with a memorable athlete or moment. Today marks 42 days until kickoff.

www.rgvsports.com/articles/springer_2389___article.html/season_year.html

[son of corb]

In the history of Valley quarterbacks, Jeremy is given the least respect. He was and is a team player and just worked to win games. In that high flying offensive season that he directed, his field presence was amazing. He is a student of the game. He always will be. He's reminiscent of Jim Kelly in the way he played over here.

[GO-LF]

cool story, i was in El Paso this past weekend, they have a cool stadium and campus

[wp2003]

corb, how does he get less respect? there were players who did more than he did, so why would you expect them to get less respect than jeremy?

[tarpon84]

What happened to 43 ??