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Huskies hope 2013 is the year

LA JOYA Tomas Garcia can rattle it off like its nothing.

I got it memorized because it hurt, he said with a knowing, frustrated smile.

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln was up 12-8 at the half in its Week 10 game at Donna last season. A win wouldve put the Huskies in the playoffs for the first time in school history.

They lost 24-14.

I want the kids to understand how much its going to hurt, Garcia explained. And its going to fuel us and fire us up this year.

Thats not just something the coaching staff feels. The players 11 starters (six offense, five defense) will be back this season feel the same way.

They were coming of age and growing up in the Huskies system when the team was topping out at two or three wins a year. Last season, they won five and finished at .500 for the first time. It still wasnt enough.

Every day, every Friday we would just ask ourselves, running back Martin Diaz said. We were that close to making it. It was tough, its tough, still. We think about it and its hard.

Clearly, thats been with the Huskies throughout the winter and into spring practice, which they are in the midst of now. Diaz, as the key returning player on offense, has been an integral part of that.

The junior ran for 742 yards and five touchdowns in 2012. With partner in crime Pedro Reyes gone, he will get help from newcomer Victor Bocanegra and fullback Joe Rodriguez. Quarterback Ramiro Garza, currently nursing a knee injury, is also back for his third varsity season, but with a new set of receivers along the outside, it might take some time to break them in.

Which brings it all back to Diaz. Hes the man now.

Basically yes, Garcia said. We lost the receivers I would have like to have thrown a little more last year but it was our first year. We tried to keep it simple. Well open it up. If these kids come through early in the season, I see us opening it up more than we did last year.

Those new receivers, which include Brandon Ramirez and Felipe Pintor, could wind up being a big part of that. But for now, Garcia is putting a lot on Diaz. And hes quite alright with it.

Thats what Im looking forward (to), Im excited, Diaz said. Really excited. Hopefully we can get things done this year.

A key to helping the Huskies do that will be their offensive line. Three starters are back guards Frank Contreras and Erick Cleto and center Joe Garza.

Were going to keep doing the same thing as last year, Contreras said. We (had) a pretty good offensive line last year, but this year we have better linemen. The running backs are better, theyre practicing better. We have more speed.

And the Huskies still have Diaz.

They surprised a lot of people last season by finishing in fifth place in District 30-5A and coming within one win of the postseason. Now, the goals sheet has been adjusted. Garcia, in his second year as coach, doesnt just expect the playoffs. He expects to win a few games while hes there. He expects to compete for a district title with his running back paving the way.

Were hoping of course that Martin has a breakout year. A huge breakout year, Garcia said. And then the other guys will compliment him. We just want to make sure to be smart about it, because of our numbers. We want to be sure that we dont overuse them.