Brownsville Porter got its 2021 season started on the right foot with a commanding 30-2 victory over the Grulla Gators on Thursday at Sams Memorial Stadium.
Porter’s defense stole the show literally from the first play as senior defensive lineman Arath De La Torre busted through the offensive line to spoil a run play. De La Torre and fellow senior lineman Antonio Cortez manhandled Grulla’s offensive line all night, setting the tone for the Cowboys’ dominating win.
“That was awesome. I missed it, man,” De La Torre said. “The work we did, the bond we create every day, it was all worth it. I still think I can do better, not going to lie. I think I can do a lot better. We just need a little more practice and then we’ll be better. Everyone did (great tonight). I loved the intensity from everyone, I loved it.”
Cortez, junior linebacker Giovanni Suarez and senior lineman Jesus Perez combined with De La Torre to record seven sacks in the contest. Porter also notched three turnovers. Defensive backs Sabas Pena and Matthew Garcia each recovered a fumble, and senior DB Adriel Trevino, who was solid throughout in the secondary, snagged an interception on a desperation pass from Grulla late in the fourth quarter.
“Arath doesn’t surprise me, he’s been doing it for three years. I’m glad he was able to do what he did tonight, knowing that people game plan for him,” Porter coach Carlos Uresti said. “I’m extremely happy for the defense. We did make some mistakes that we need to correct, but I’m overall happy with the defense.”
The Cowboys took longer to get going offensively. Their first drive started in Grulla territory on the 31-yard line, and despite getting into first-and-goal, they failed to score. Both teams committed a bevy of penalties during the opening quarter, which contributed to the scoreless stalemate.
Senior quarterback Kyle Aguirre scored the first touchdown of the season on a 1-yard rush, then senior DB Chris Ortiz took a punt return to the house. After a blocked PAT and a failed two-point conversion attempt, Porter held a 12-0 lead at halftime.
Aguirre was not the projected starter at the start of fall camp, but with junior quarterback Alejandro Stevens sidelined by an injury sustained during the first scrimmage, he took on the challenge.
“Kyle Aguirre has stepped up really well, as you saw tonight. He maneuvered the ball enough to get points on the board, so I was happy with that,” Uresti said.
Porter relied primarily on the run game in the first half, handing off the ball to a committee of running backs comprised of Juan Zavala, Marcos Ramirez and Gael Hernandez. Junior receiver Gunnar Williams lined up in the wildcat formation and gained yards in key situations with his legs to keep drives alive.
During the second half, the Cowboys opened up the field and were more efficient moving the ball. Senior receiver Adolfo Gonzalez hauled in some passes to move the chains. Aguirre hit senior receiver Yahir Torres for a 29-yard touchdown on fourth down in the fourth.
Williams and Zavala each rushed for one touchdown on 3- and 5-yard goal line carries, respectively. Porter didn’t score any PATs, whether on a kick or trying to go for two.
“Happy. Not content, but I’m happy that we came out and executed and walked away with the ‘W,’” Uresti said. “That’s a very good ball club, they’re a little hurt and had a couple guys out today. … We kind of killed the momentum early on. Mental mistakes. Everything is fixable from what I saw tonight, and now we just need to get better at the Xs and Os.”
Grulla spoiled the shutout with three minutes left to play. The Gators recovered a muffed punt in the end zone for a safety. Damian Galvan played well on defense, and quarterback Austin Garcia showed promise and had success throwing the ball to move down field.
“I think our kids played hard. We didn’t execute very well today, and Porter played a good game,” Grulla coach Abel Gonzalez III said. “We had some unforced errors, gave them a short field, couldn’t sustain drives. We’re going to go back, re-evaluate, and improve every week. There were some bright spots, we just have to be more consistent on both sides of the ball.”
This was the only non-district game Porter will get to play, and it was a good confidence booster before next week’s District 16-5A Division I opener against Brownsville Veterans Memorial.
“Now we have to go and beat Vets. That’s the real important game. This is the first game, so we’re not going to let our guard down,” De La Torre said. “We’re going to work this week. We just have to work harder and see where we go. Playoffs is my goal.”
