The 2020-21 school and athletic year was challenging for many across Texas and beyond, and the East Valley was no exception.
Some football teams didn’t play a single game, and others played just one before COVID-19 ended their seasons. Most teams played far less than a typical 10-game regular season.
But this year, things are looking up. The 2021 season will kick off with the first day of practice Monday. Full contact follows Aug. 7, and Week 1 begins Aug. 26.
For the Santa Maria Cougars, who saw their season get cut short after one game and had a big dip in participation as parents chose to keep their kids from playing amid a pandemic, Monday has been a long time coming.
“Oh man, we’re excited,” Cougars coach Israel Gracia said. “We’ve been waiting for a long time, and we’ve had a great turnout this summer. We’ve got a lot of kids out that didn’t get a chance to play last year, so our numbers right now are positive. The kids are ready to have a full schedule and the excitement of Friday night lights. Last year … we were left hanging. This year, up to this point, we’re going to keep praying that things keep getting better and we’ll be able to start on time.”
Santa Maria, like other programs, will continue with some of the COVID-19 protocols put in place last season even though they’re no longer mandatory from the UIL or TAPPS. Gracia said the Cougars will monitor temperatures, sanitize often, recommend masks and social distancing when appropriate, and other things.
Brownsville Hanna coach Mark Guess, Port Isabel coach Tony Villarreal and Brownsville St. Joseph’s Tino Villarreal echoed Gracia’s belief that certain safety procedures will become a common practice to keep everyone safe.
“With the current spike and the new (Delta) variant, we always like to be a little precautious,” Tino Villarreal said. “We’re going to strongly recommend masks, but because it’s an outdoor activity it’s going to be up to their preference. Most everyone now, hopefully, is vaccinated, but it’s still better to be safe than sorry because the last thing you want is to act like everything is back to normal and then have an outbreak and have to sit out.”
Villarreal’s Bloodhounds, which play under TAPPS rules, were the first team in the Metro area to hit the gridiron last season and played the most games, 10. But they still started much later than district opponents because of Cameron County rules. Once again, SJA will open the season with a “Midnight Madness” practice at Canales Field, and the stroke of midnight can’t come soon enough.
“Excitement is an understatement,” Villarreal said. “We were six weeks behind our district opponents last year. So we’re all back on an even playing field, and that makes us feel good. And being able to play regular football in and of itself is just a huge plus. We’re just so excited to be able to play football on opening day without anything holding us back.”
With the UIL allowing some sport-specific training and the return of summer strength and conditioning, coaches and players are ready to “hit the ground running” Monday. Guess said the extra work and having scrimmages and non-district games again will allow teams to assess players and nail down positions with more clarity.
“The good thing is we had a great summer with the kids and they’re ready to really get serious about football. They’re excited and ready to go, just like the coaching staff,” Guess said. “No doubt we get a lot more preparation, and we get to figure out before we start games who’s going to be fitting in at what spot. That’s huge for us, being able to go into a season and really know and figure out the spots we need to fill, and giving them a much better opportunity to be ready for it.”
Tony Villarreal’s Tarpons didn’t begin practice until mid-October in 2020, then after one non-district game, their season abruptly ended. Though it was disappointing, the Tarpons learned a lot from last season.
Villarreal said he saw the special toughness Port Isabel athletes have in the three weeks he got to work with his team in his first year since returning to the program. After having a good summer of strength and conditioning, he’s ready “to go full force” and get the Tarpons ready for success.
“We start fast and furious on Monday, and everybody better be ready for Coach Tony because I can hardly wait,” Tony Villarreal said. “My attitude is, you may never get to coach again, so you better go hard right now and give it all you got because tomorrow is not guaranteed. So whether we have 30 or 40 or 50 or 28 (kids), they’re going to be well-coached and in great condition and supported by the community. Port Isabel has tradition, and the tradition and expectations of having a winning football program is front and center.”
