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NB hoping to avoid mistakes vs. Seguin
Published September 8, 2006
SEGUIN — Chalk up one for New Braunfels, which is 1-0 for the first football season since 2003.
That year was also the last time the Unicorns defeated their longtime Guadalupe County rival Seguin, which hosts New Braunfels at 7:30 p.m. today at Matador Stadium.
The keys to winning tonight are the same as they were in last week’s 47-21 opening-game win over Fredericksburg: A balanced offense, tenacious defense, holding on to the football and not falling prey to penalties.
The Unicorns managed to do each of those last Friday against the Billies. The thing is, they’ve got to keep doing them.
“We’re pleased to get off to a good start. All in all I thought the kids played pretty well,” New Braunfels coach Chuck Caniford said. “We were a little bit inconsistent in spots, though that will get better the more we get into the season.”
Never mind that New Braunfels-Seguin is a renewal of a long rivalry. Tonight’s game is just another step in helping define the kind of team New Braunfels will be when District 26-4A play arrives at the end of the month.
“What the nondistrict schedule is about is getting everything ready for that first district game,” Caniford added. “This game is going to be good for us. We need to play people like this if we’re going to be prepared to get into that district race.”
New Braunfels’ 232 rushing yards were the second-most in its 12 games under Caniford. The Unicorns rushed for 238 in a 30-28 win over Dripping Springs in the ninth week last fall.
New Braunfels ended the season by totaling 372 rushing yards in losses to Canyon and Boerne, and finishing with a 130.4-yard per game average. That had to improve in 2006.
“We made a commitment in the spring to become a better running team,” Caniford said. “I think we’re more balanced now. One, our offensive line is a lot more experienced and two, we feel like we have a lot more running backs.”
Junior quarterback Ryan Perez (12-53); junior running back Joey Hernandez (16-97, 2 TDs) and senior tailback Gabe Valadez (8-62, 1 TD) had the lion’s share of rushes last Friday. Perez finished 10 of 12 for 196 yards and a score, as most the Unicorns’ air yards came on big plays by the receivers.
Senior Kurtis Kostan caught six passes for 111 yards and a 31-yard score, while junior Travis Steel finished with one catch for 41 yards. Both players ran back punts — Steel from 38 yards out and Kostan on an 83-yarder that gave the Unicorns a 24-7 lead at halftime. Senior kicker Ben Becker hit on all five of his point-afters and made field goals of 36 and 38 yards.
“We didn’t play well (in special teams) in the scrimmage (against Smithson Valley) and we really worked hard on that during the week,” Caniford said, noting the improvement in his team’s punt and kick coverage. “Our kids have bought into our philosophy of attacking on special teams, and it really paid off for us.”
The defense, led by seven tackles by senior safety Joseph Morton and six by senior inside linebacker Ussiel Dominguez, held the Billies to 292 yards, including 159 through the air against a young secondary. Kostan, used to help shore up that backfield, had a interception late in the game.
While the Billies might have been worn down through the course of the contest, the Unicorns will find no such animal in the Seguin Matadors.
Class 5A Seguin committed three turnovers in the second half against Madison in the first game of the Texas Football Classic, leading to a 23-11 loss last Thursday. Seguin trailed the Mavericks 13-11 with 8:32 left in the third period. But a fumble, an interception, another fumble and a bad snap on a punt prevented the Matadors from getting any closer.
In spite of rebuilding its offense to go along with a defense led by blue-chip defenders Marcus Richardson and Desmond Jackson, Seguin will be a formidable force.
“It will be a good matchup,” said Kostan, whose job will be to outflank Richardson, a linebacker, and Jackson, a defensive back. “We’ve got some players on our offense, too, and we’ll try to make things happen. We’re going to play hard.”
Defensively the Matadors will try to funnel everything to Richardson, and will also try to keep blockers away to keep him free long enough to roam to the play. Jackson, the Oklahoma commitment who bounces around from corner to safety depending on the formation, has a lot of skill, as does defensive end Logan Johnson, Caniford said.
“They have talent and skill at every position,” Caniford said. “They are a real good team. They played a good team in Madison, but they’ve got talent all over the field, and a group of seniors who have started since they were sophomores.”
The Matadors have it on offense, too, and will feature a bunch of receivers, a steady runner in Isaiah Sneed and a mistake-free quarterback in Kevin Smith.
“We know that they’re a pretty good team with a lot of great athletes,” senior free safety Brian Gomez said. “All we’ve got to do is focus on what we do good, and hopefully we will come out with a win in the end.”
Continued on Page 2 »
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