Heading into Week Four, a majority of the Valley’s bigger schools have a bye week, including Harlingen, Harlingen South and San Benito, who have two weeks to prepare for their district openers.
The Cardinals pulled off an upset win against San Antonio Reagan and have momentum in their favor heading into the bye week. A late safety by Eladio Flores gave the Cards at 22-20 win over San Antonio Reagan.
Senior quarterback Daniel Ramirez went 20 for 29 for 212 yards and two touchdowns with just one interception. Senior wide receiver Joe Reyna finished with six catches for 91 yards and a score while Ethan Martinez hauled in four catches for 49 yards.
Ramirez’s two biggest passes of the night came on a pair of touchdown passes. He hit Reyna for a 43-yard score that gave Harlingen a 13-7 lead at halftime and his second touchdown pass went to Martinez on a 7-yard strike that put Big Red up 20-7 in the third quarter.
The Cards have won two in a row and will prepare for Harlingen South in their district opener on Sept. 29.
HOUNDS CONTINUE TO WIN: Running back Tyrone Harper made his presence known Friday night against McAllen Memorial.
The senior returned the opening kickoff for a score en route to a 31-7 win over the Mustangs. Harper set the tone and finished the night with 24 carries for 182 yards and a score.
San Benito’s defense once again did a number against the Mustangs, holding their offense to seven points for a second year in a row. Memorial running back Campbell Speights finished with 21 carries for 91 yards, which was a season low.
The Hounds’ defense was led by Ryan Reza and Pedro Gomez. Reza finished with 14 tackles while Gomez was a force with 19.
San Benito rolls into the bye week as RGVSports.com’s No. 1 team and opens district play against Los Fresnos at home on Sept. 29.
HAWKS LOOKING FOR ANSWERS: Harlingen South is still looking for a complete performance this season. The Hawks fell behind the eight ball against Edinburg North last Thursday and couldn’t catch up as they lost the game 24-7 and dropped to 1-2 overall.
Over the first two weeks, a strong rushing attack fueled a relentless pass rush. However, that just wasn’t the case Thursday night.
Harlingen South struggled to find its passing game while the Cougars’ defense held their own against the run.
Hawks running back Jorge Alicea’s 1-yard touchdown run cut the lead to 10-7 early in the third quarter, but he finished the night with 21 carries for just 72 yards.
On the bright side, sophomore cornerback Enrique Alvarado picked off his third interception of the season and senior defensive end Brandon Bennett added to his sack total by finishing the night with three.
