Devine takes the short trip to Pleasanton to take on the 2-1 Eagles Friday night at 7:00pm. The Warhorses are 3-0 and face what many believe to be their first real challenge of the season in the 2-1 Eagles.
The Horses have won three in a row, all in blowout fashion while Pleasanton enters the ballgame with a season-opening 42-13 victory over San Antonio Edison, a 19-17 loss to San Antonio Antonian, and last Friday’s 42-26 win over a now winless Jourdanton squad.
Gomez’s take
Devine Head Coach Paul Gomez and his staff look forward to the challenge that Pleasanton presents as the Warhorses inch closer and closer to district competition.
“This is the best team that we will face so far in our preseason games. Pleasanton is big, aggressive and well coached. Coach Liska and his staff do a great job over there. Pleasanton is 2-1 with their only loss being a 19-17 dogfight with San Antonio Antonian Prep. They are a much improved team from a year ago and we are definitely excited for the challenge. I told our players that great teams play better against better competition and it’s time for us to raise the bar and continue to improve! We need a great week of work, because like I keep saying, games are won Monday-Thursday. I believe our boys will meet the intensity and I look forward to a great week of practice!
Devine’s power offense has battered their first three opponents into submission, recording crazy rushing stats in each ballgame. The Eagles are another test for the Warhorse offensive line, and Devine ball carriers.
“Defensively, Pleasanton runs a ‘50’ defense. They have big athletic tackles with #82 Jathan Martinez being their best one and a big nose guard in #67 Quaid Campbell. Those guys are tough to move. Their linebackers are very good with #21 Jayce Krauskopf and #28 Michael Castillo. Defensive ends #15 Oscar Leal and #2 Adriano Ayala do a good job on the edge and they have a really good safety in #24 Jeremiah Morales who is very active in the running game.”
Just as the Eagles present a stiff challenge defensively, Devine is welcoming the challenge of trying to contain the Eagles pro-style offense.
“They have a really big offensive line where most return from last year. Sean Ramos does a great job running the offense as their quarterback and leads a balanced offense attack. He really throws the ball well. They have their starting all-everything running back in Joel Arevalo who has been on varsity since he was a freshman. He is a very good runner. He is fast but lowers his shoulders and will try to run defenders over as well. They have a very good pair of wide receivers in Jayden Palacios who is a tall and very fast receiver who makes great plays for them and Juan Lopez who can also run after the catch and makes great plays for them.”
New opportunity
With each approaching ballgame, the Warhorses get their chance to showcase their talents and put their hearts and souls into the desire to pull out another Devine victory. Games against similarly talented opponents usually come down to a few intangibles and to who makes the least amount of mistakes.
“I’m really excited for our boys. We get a chance to see where we stand as a football team. This will be a close game and I believe turnovers and special teams will decide the outcome.”
Eagle scouts
Sean Ramos (#8) quarterbacks Pleasanton and is 37 of 64 passing on the season for 601 yards. He has thrown for 8 touchdowns and has been intercepted 3 times. His two favorite targets in the passing game are receivers Jayden Palacios and Diego Luna.
Palacios (#13) has 13 receptions for 275 yards and 3 touchdowns while Luna (#88) has 12 catches for 143 yards and a touchdown. Jayce Krauskoph (#21) only has four receptions in three games but two of those have been for Eagle touchdowns. Warhorse defenders should be on the lookout for Krauskoph if Pleasanton gets in a goal-to-go situation
Joel Arevalo, Michael Castillo, and JJ Morales have handled most of the ball carrying responsibilities for the Eagles. Those three have combined to score 5 of Pleasanton’s six rushing touchdowns.
Arevalo (#4) has 27 carries for 177 yards and two touchdowns while Castillo (#28) has also rushed 27 times for 2 scores but has only 60 yards. Morales (#24) has 14 attempts for 95 yards and a single score.
Game time, maybe 🙂
Game time kickoffs have fluctuated at times early in the season. All of Pleasanton’s home games are scheduled for 7:00pm so that is what I am going with this Wednesday morning.
Pregame ceremonies
Pleasanton Athletic Department sent out the following information regarding Friday night’s pregame ceremonies.
6:45pm Friendship Token Exchange
6:47pm Devine Alma Mater
6:49pm Pleasanton Alma Mater
6:51pm Devine players tunnel run-out
6:57pm National Anthem
6:59pm Mock Coin Flip
7:00pm Kickoff
By Jerel Beaty
Staff Writer