Making a stand

By Lee Goddard
Caller-Times

George Tulley/Caller-Times

The Ray offense (right) prepares to battle the Harlingen defense for the final yads on its way to a touchdown during the Texans victory over the Hawks.

On any Friday night, a defense might find itself tested, backs to the goal line and forced to attempt a stand. If it holds, the game can turn on those four plays. Should the offense score, momentum can switch.
   It was little more than two weeks ago when Odem running back Rey Lopez found an opportunity to wreck a stand by the George West defense. Trailing 7-0 just before the half, Odem faced fourth and goal at the 5-yard line and Lopez, the Owls' leading rusher and scorer, was ready for the ball.
   So when the ball was snapped to quarterback Brenton Stalcup, Lopez broke right looking for the pitch with an eye toward out-racing the Longhorns' defense around the corner and into the end zone.
   First and goal
   In a sense, Lopez had set up the whole scenario. He hauled in a pass from Stalcup and raced 43 yards to the George West 7-yard line before being brought down, giving the Owls a first and goal.
   The Longhorns regrouped and went about making their stand.
   "You shake off the big play," George West linebacker Drew Self said. "This is where you start rebuilding. This is where you start thinking about making a stand."
   Things start well for George West. On first down, Lopez gets the handoff and sweeps right. But defensive end Brent James stunts to the outside, blocking Lopez's path and forcing him inside.
   The entire George West defense seemsto be waiting for him, and Lopez is mobbed and dragged down after a 1-yard gain.
   Second and goal
   The Owls still have three more shots to score, but James impedes them yet again.
   James stunts to the outside and once more forces the play in. This time, Stalcup can't pitch and James dives and clips Stalcup's heel, tripping him. The pursuit is there again and J.R. Wood and Jarrett Stewart finish off Stalcup at the 3.
   Two plays, four yards. Confidence is high on defense.
   "We have hope we can stop them now," James said. "Just two more times and we get the ball."
   Third and goal
   James makes another strong play, but it won't be appear in any official statistics. Stalcup goes under center, finds the Owls are in the wrong formation and requests a timeout. The officials, however, don't seem to notice the request.
   As soon as the ball is snapped, James drills Stalcup. But the play is for naught, as the referee blows his whistle and grants the timeout.
   "We just ended up discussing the play," Stalcup said of his trip to the sideline. "Things weren't going well for me at this point."
   Things got worse. When Stalcup takes the third-down snap, he heads left, away from James. But Wood breaks through untouched and hauls Stalcup down at the 5, a loss of two yards.
   Defensively, the play is set up by Self, who moves up and lines up over guard Javier Roman prior to the snap. Self becomes Roman's man to block - which he does - but the maneuver means the center must take Wood. The linebacker is lined up too far left and gets too quick a jump for that to happen.
   "I had no idea he was coming in," Stalcup said of Wood. "There was just too much coming in at me at one time."
   The option is stuffed. Wood jumps the quarterback, while Luke Boyea eludes a block by fullback Rey Brown and steers Stalcup inside. Safety Edward Cuevas charges in, helping Boyea shadow Lopez - the pitch man.
   "That quarterback looks like he weighs 110, but he doesn't like pitching," Wood said. "He likes to keep. The fullback wasn't even looking for the ball, but the tailback was looking a little."
   The tailback was definitely looking for the ball.
   "That's funny. That's the play where I told Brenton to get me the ball," Lopez said. "I'm not being selfish, if I score it's for the team. If Brenton or Rey (Brown) score, it's for the team. I just wanted to try."
   He would get the chance.
   Fourth down - last chance
   With the likelihood of a stand becoming stronger, frustration reigns on Odem's side of the field. The Owls have managed a total of two yards in three plays.
   "I felt impatience," Roman said later. "I just want to get the ball in."
   On the last chance to score, Stalcup rolls the option right. But strong safety Morgan Freeborn fires through the line and forces a quick pitch.
   Lopez gets his wish, as the ball is in his hands at the 11 and he heads toward the corner.
   It's the subtle, almost unnoticed aspects of the play that determine if Lopez will score. Wingback Lupito Rodriguez chips - or tips his shoulder pad into an opponent's chest - James and heads into the secondary. James recovers, but then Brown lunges into him, ruining James' timing.
   James isn't supposed to make the tackle, but his job is to force Lopez inside on the option. But with the running back's speed, and the fact that he has fought off two blockers, James won't get outside of Lopez.
   Off balance and at the 7, the senior end swipes at Lopez, but comes up empty.
   "I was supposed to cut him back inside," James said. "I got outside of the blockers, but didn't get outside the back. He just beat me to the corner."
   Lopez hits the corner and turns upfield at the 6.
   Inside, Wood loses his chance of reaching Lopez. After making a block on the line, Roman brushes Wood enough to make the linebacker lose stride.
   "That little bump does a lot," Wood said. "You lose a second and that takes you out of the play."
   The defensive backs can still stop Lopez. Cuevas has a shot at the 3, but he also is late getting to the outside. Taught to check pass first, Cuevas naturally hesitates at the snap before breaking outside.
   Cuevas can't take a straight line toward Lopez - he must slide by Rodriguez, who is charging upfield - causing Cuevas to run an arc-like pattern, starting at the goal line, moving to the 5 and curving back toward Lopez at the 3.
   "I hesitated just a little," Cuevas said. "I thought I had him, but he started pulling away. So I dove."
   Cuevas' hand brushes Lopez, but does nothing more. Lopez is now at the 2, and only Hector Cortez can keep the stand intact.
   Like Cuevas, Cortez is taught to check pass first, but sees Rodriguez coming up to block him. Again, the block didn't wipe out the defender but, as Cortez said, "he got enough to slow me."
   Cortez closes on Lopez and hits him, forcing him out of bounds - just beyond the end-zone pylon.
   Touchdown.
   "When I get the ball in that type of situation, I always think I'll score," Lopez said.
   The Owls can collectively exhale.
   "It was relief," Roman said.
   "You know you can score," Stalcup added. "You've got hope."
   The reaction from George West, of course, was a bit different.
   "It's disappointing," James said. "We would've liked to stop them, but sometimes that won't happen. If we stopped them, that would've killed their hope right there."