Warhorse QB Jacob Sollock pitches to Wero Torres in a recent scrimmage. Photo by Brigid Howard.
Jerel Beaty
Staff Writer
Pleasanton Head Coach Stephen Liska and his Eagle football team try to put their claws into their first victory of the 2023 season as they open in Devine against Head Coach Paul Gomez and his Warhorses. Kickoff is set for 7:30pm, August 25th.
Pleasanton went 6-6 overall in 2022, including a 3-2 runner-up finish in District 15-4A DI. The Eagles beat Tuloso-Midway 42-20 for a Bi-district Championship before falling to Boerne 50-21 in Area.
Gomez’s take
Pleasanton had a great year last year, losing to a good Boerne team in the playoffs. They have a good nucleus returning this year. They have most of their offensive line back anchored by Evan Guardiola. They definitely will be big.
They have a QB in Cade Segura who got the start in the bi-district playoff game last year and led Pleasanton to an overtime win. He’s a big young man (6’2”), he throws the ball well, and he has some good receivers to throw to.
They utilize a running back by committee type offense in that all of their running backs are more than capable to take them to the next level. They are 60%, 40% offense. Defensive Coordinator Coach Evan Eads and his defensive staff will definitely do all they can to put our guys in the best situation to succeed
Defensively, Pleasanton is anchored by big nose guard Justin Olivarri. The linebackers are big and run really well and are led by Chance Hehman. They typically do a great job against the run, so we expect some tough battles up front.
They run a ‘50’ defense and their back end does a good job covering routes. They are a cover-2 defense but also go man-to-man at times. It will definitely be a great game to start off the year.
Offensive Coordinator Coach Heath Poppe and I will put our offense in the best position to succeed. We have a lot of respect for Coach Liska and his staff. They do a great job over there. We just need to worry about ourselves. We can control our effort, our discipline and our focus throughout the week to prepare for the game.