The San Saba High School varsity football team fought hard but let a very winnable game slip away late on Friday, August 27, as the Armadillos fell 42-20 on the road to the Eldorado High School Eagles in the 2021 season opener for both teams.
Despite the score, this game was neck-and-neck for the first three quarters, and San Saba started off with a bang. On the very first offensive play of the game, Dillos junior quarterback Lance Taylor connected on a perfect pass to senior wide receiver Wesley Lackey for an exhilarating 65-yard touchdown that gave San Saba the early 6-0 lead.
However, the Eagles had an answer on offense of their own as quarterback Korbin Covarrubiaz engineered a quick Eldorado drive downfield that was capped off by a short touchdown run by Eldorado running back James Kimble to knot the game at 6-6 in the first quarter.
After both teams traded punts and then turnovers, the Dillos would get a really good-looking offensive drive by Taylor that was finished off by a 1-yard touchdown run by junior fullback Tegen Saiz that put San Saba up 12-6 with 19 seconds left in the first quarter.
Unfortunately for the Dillos, turnovers would really start to come back to haunt them as another interception and then a lost fumble would both result in touchdowns by the Eagles to put Eldorado up 20-12 at home.
Midway through the second quarter, the Dillos would respond to the Eagles’ long touchdown run on the keeper by Covarrubiaz with another big score of their own. On the first offensive play following the kickoff, Taylor connected again over the middle with Lackey, and he broke multiple tackles en route to a 64-yard touchdown pass that tied the game up at 20-20.
For the rest of the first half, the San Saba defense would hold its own. On two long Eldorado drives, the Dillos would get clutch plays on driveending interceptions by senior defensive backs Reagan Mejia and Franco Franco. With the interception by Franco on the last play of the second quarter, the Dillos and Eagles were tied 20-20 heading into halftime.
After both teams continued to trade blows in the third quarter, the turnovers would again start to bite the Dillos badly in the fourth quarter as the Eagles began to pull away with 22 unanswered points to end regulation at 42-20. This was especially so with turnovers in the red zone, something which simply can’t happen at any level of football if a team wants to win games. Although the six inter
Although the six interceptions are a tough pill to swallow, there were still a lot of good things to come from Taylor’s first varsity start at quarterback. Completing 28- of-60 pass attempts, Taylor finished with a whopping 403 yards passing to go along with his two touchdown passes and 26 yards rushing on three carries.
Despite the loss, Lackey had a sensational game on both offense and defense for the Dillos. Lackey finished with a superb stat line with 10 catches for an eye-opening 203 yards and two touchdown receptions on offense as well as a team-high 14 tackles, two forced fumbles, one interception, and one sack on defense.
Dillos junior linebacker Zuri Herrera also had doubledigit tackles on the night with 11 stops, while senior defensive lineman Leonel Aranda finished with eight tackles and one sack.
Up next, the Dillos will look to get back to their winning ways as they will remain on the road for a 7:30 p.m. contest on Friday, September 3, when they take on the Rogers High School Eagles (0-1). The Eagles, who lost 38-28 to Academy High School in their season opener last weekend, were defeated 24-21 by San Saba in 2020.
Be sure to check out next week’s edition of the San Saba News & Star for more updates on Dillos and Lady Dillos varsity athletics. Sports editor Andrew Salmi can be contacted via email at salmi.courier@gmail.com or by cell phone at (818) 645-1115.