“You’re going to see a lot of team speed, they’re 9-1 for a reason. Coach Simper does a great job,” said Villaseñor. “They’re a well-coached ball club and we anticipate a real tough ball game on Friday night.”
When asked what the Mavericks need to do to win this game, Coach Villaseñor said, “We’ve just got to be consistent, make sure we’re moving the chains. We can’t afford any three and outs. They’re explosive on offense. We always preach that we can’t turn the ball over, we’ve got to convert on third downs, making sure that we’re executing the game plan.”
Coach said he’s happy to see the team is in good shape going into the big game, which will be played at Lenhoff Stadium in the Schertz ISD, the home of the Steele Raiders and the Clemens Buffaloes.
“We are healthy, the kids are excited that they’re in the playoffs. You’ve got to be at your best, if you’re not, you’re going to find yourself packing your bags. So records really don’t matter,” said Villaseñor. “We’ve been telling the kids all week. Everybody’s 0-0. Anything can happen. We’ve seen teams upset, heavily favored opponents. You know anything can happen. You’ve got to execute and you do your job that night.”
When asked about final preparations for the game on Friday, Villaseñor said they’re trying to keep things business as usual.
“We want to keep the routine as normal as possible. We don’t want to throw the kids off of what they’re used to. Again, it’s the playoffs. It’s special and it’s not guaranteed,” said Villaseñor. “You see a lot of teams that were accustomed to making the playoffs and they’re not in the bracket this year. We tell them to cherish the moment because these are special moments. Back-to-back playoff appearances is really tough. We’ve got to take advantage of the opportunity in front of us and that’s the Corpus Christi Veterans Memorial Eagles.”
We rounded off our conversation on a positive note having mentioned the fact that our Eagle Pass Eagles made the playoffs and in a very convincing fashion, and Coach Villaseñor had nothing but praise for Coach Gonzalez and his staff.
“Credit goes to Coach Gonzalez and his staff. They’ve got a great football team. On behalf of the Mavericks, we want to wish them the best of luck. Whenever two teams from the same community qualify for the State Playoffs, it says a lot about our coaching staffs,” said Villaseñor. “Football is the premier sport, not only here, but in communities across Texas. People follow high school football here in Eagle Pass and in the state of Texas and two teams from the same community says a lot about our programs.”
When asked about the venue they will be playing at, Villaseñor says he hasn’t been there since ’09 when he was coaching at EP High, but he’s sure there have been renovations made to it.
“It’s a great venue. Our kids are excited about it. One thing about the playoffs is that you get to play in venues you’ve never been to before unless you win the flip and you’re fortunate enough to have a game at home.”
He was audibly excited when we reminded him of the fact that the Eagles will be hosting their Bi-District game right here at Foster-Veterans Memorial Stadium.
“It’s kind of icing on the cake there when you’re hosting a playoff game. It keeps the routine pretty normal. You’re used to the facilities. You have a slight advantage, I’ll tell you that.”
This reporter also alluded to the fact that the season hasn’t gone exactly how they had planned, but that could all change on Friday night.
“It sure can and the kids are resilient, they’re tough. We were a couple of plays away from winning some ball games here and there, but nonetheless it makes you tougher, it makes you better, but I told the kids, to be in the playoffs is special. Not many teams across the state can say that. Some of them are putting their equipment away. Their coaching staffs are thinking about what they’re going to do in the off-season. We’re fortunate enough that we’re not.”
One of those teams is the South San Bobcats who according to Offensive Coordinator Javier Cardenas were lacking something intangible that kept them from winning games. Especially this past weekend where they lost by less than a touchdown to Southwest that would’ve given the Eagles the outright district championship.
“It’s a mindset,” said Villaseñor. “The kids here at Winn believe they can do it. They did it and we’re in. That says a lot about how far we’ve come. You know, we may have been a former doormat so to speak, a couple of years ago. We’re not that anymore.”