Football: Bronchos want to finish what they've started

With one game to play and the District 2-5A crown already residing at 13th and Dotsy, Odessa High coach Ron King could be tempted to get some much-needed rest for some of his starters when the Bronchos travel to face Midland Lee at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

King, though, isn’t one that is going to give in to temptation.

“We still have goals that we want to achieve, like going through district undefeated,” he said. “And I don’t think that it benefits anyone to give them a rest when we are playing well or to tell a player that he’s only going to play half a game because then he might not go all out and ends up getting hurt.

“Midland Lee is a good football team and we are going to have to play well to win and we are going to put our best players on the field.”

Midland Lee earned a tough 17-14 victory last season when OHS took the field without quarterback Derrick Teegarden, who had injured a knee the week previously against Midland High.

Should the Bronchos (8-1 overall, 8-0 in district) emerge victorious Friday at Grande Communications Stadium, it would be the first perfect trip through district foes since 1953, when the Bronchos eventually lost in the state championship game to Houston Lamar.

It also would give them nine consecutive victories since the season-opening loss at El Paso Montwood and give OHS the momentum that King is hoping for heading into the postseason for the second consecutive year.

“You want to go into the playoffs with some confidence,” King said. “Our kids have been playing well lately and you want to see that continue and carry over into the playoffs.

“The kids have a lot of pride and I’m sure that will come out on Friday.”

>> CLOSING IN: Never in the history of Odessa High has a quarterback thrown for at least 5,000 yards his career. Until the 2008 season the OHS record had been just more than 2,700 yards, set by Carl Schlemeyer in 1953.

Teegarden shattered the record last year, finishing his first two seasons at the helm of the program with 3,483 yards. He has continued to climb toward the 5,000-yard mark and now, with the final regular-season game in front of him, will likely break it very quickly against the Rebels — he needs just six yards.

After throwing for just 93 yards last week against Midland High as the Bronchos decided to utilize their running attack for 299 yards, Teegarden has passed for 4,994 yards in 30 career games, an average of 166.5 yards per game.

Should he get the six yards, Teegarden would become the first Class 5A quarterback in the Permian Basin to reach that mark.

>> LOST: Bronchos center Jachin Hammack left the field on crutches Friday night after the victory against Midland High and it’s not known if his services will be available against Midland Lee. If Hammack is unable to play, sophomore Ben Cline will move into the middle of the OHS line.

>> DON’T NEED A PROGRAM: For the second consecutive year, the fans in the stands won’t need a program when the Bronchos take the field for the bi-district playoff game against either El Paso Franklin or El Paso El Dorado.

That’s because, in keeping with a long-standing tradition, the players will have their names adorning the back of their game jerseys.

>> LOWER LEVELS: Both the junior varsity and sophomore teams lost last week to Midland High. Both squads will be in action Thursday in the regular-season finale against Midland Lee.

The sophomores will take the field at 5 p.m. at Ratliff Stadium, with the JV following at 7 p.m.

Some of the JV players, however, likely will not be playing their final game of the year as King often times promotes players to the playoff roster for their season-long performances. 

>> ODESSA HIGH PLAYER OF THE WEEK 

RONNIE MARQUEZ

Height: 5-foot-10

Weight: 180

Class: Senior.

Position: Running back.

Highlights: Marquez, seeing his first action in three weeks because of injuries, carried the ball 23 times for 175 yards in a 28-21 victory over Midland High that clinched the outright District 2-5A crown for the Bronchos. Marquez now has 434 yards on 58 carries, with five touchdowns, this season. 

>> ODESSA HIGH AT MIDLAND LEE

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday

Where: Grande Communications Stadium, 801 N. Loop 250 W, Midland.

Records: Odessa High 8-1, 8-0; Midland Lee is 5-4, 5-3.

Last year: Midland Lee 17, Odessa High 14.

Radio: KHKX (99.1-FM).