OZONA, TX — Not many teams return a 2,200-yard passer and an 1,100-yard rusher from the previous season.
That’s the kind of the firepower the Ozona Lions have with quarterback Hudson Fowler and running back Christian Villarreal.
The biggest question for Ozona is who will step up around them.
The Lions graduated four of their five starters on the offensive line, and they lost their two leading receivers.
On defense, Ozona returns only three starters.
Lions head coach Jarryd Taylor believes his team can return to the playoffs — and win a playoff game — but a largely new group of players will have to emerge for Ozona to accomplish it.
“I think the biggest thing with all of the new guys we have is we want to be able to improve each week as we go,” Taylor said. “And then when we get to district, the goal is to compete for a district title.”
Ozona went 6-5 last year and finished in a three-way for the district title with Sonora and Forsan.
The Lions then lost their playoff opener 21-14 to Cisco.
“We’ve made the playoffs, but we haven’t been winning that first playoff game, so that’s a big one for us. That’s a chip on our shoulder, getting that playoff win,” Taylor said.
Ozona’s last playoff win came during an 8-4 season in 2019.
Jacoby Ramos, who earned second-team all-district honors as a sophomore, is the only returner on Ozona’s offensive line.
“He got moved up a few games into his freshman year, and he took over the starting role and he’s been doing it ever since,” Taylor said. “He’s got good experience, but those other guys will be rookies.
“We’ll be very new up front, but we’re also now bigger than we have been, so it’s kind of a weird deal. It may be kind of a strength and weakness at the same time. Time will tell on that one.”
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The Lions have a lot of experience back with Fowler, a senior who has seen playing time since his freshman year and started the last two years.
“He’s one of those that lives up here at the field house,” Taylor said about Fowler’s work ethic. “He wants to be as good as he can be, and we’re excited about him and what we hope he can do.”
Fowler threw for 2,261 yards and 22 touchdowns on 57% passing last year.
Taking some pressure off him is Villarreal, who had a breakout sophomore campaign with 1,129 rushing yards and 13 TDs in 10 games.
He averaged 7.8 yards per carry.
“Last year, he became kind of our workhorse,” Taylor said of Villarreal. “We fed him the ball quite a bit, and he did a heck of a job. He missed a couple of district games due to injury, so hopefully we can keep him healthy and he can have a great year.”
Ozona’s receiving corps will have to replace the district’s Offensive MVP, Dusty Smith, and Matthew Daniels. The two combined for 1,164 yards and 13 TDs. Smith also rushed for 511 yards.
“They made a lot of the big plays, a lot of the explosive plays that we had last year, which is a big hit,” Taylor said.
Michael Daniels is the team’s only returning receiver, but he was a big part of the Lions’ passing game last year with 37 catches for 506 yards and 5 TDs.
Daniels was also Ozona’s leading tackler last season with 85 stops from his linebacker position. He had two interceptions, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
Junior JP Garza also returns as a third-year starter at linebacker.
“He’ll be kind of our other leader on the defensive side,” Taylor said.
The depth of Ozona’s defensive line could be a difference maker this year, Taylor said.
“We have a lot of defensive linemen right now, so we’ll be able to rotate those guys quite a bit and stay fresh, unlike last year when our offensive and defensive linemen were the same guys and never came off the field,” Taylor said.
Ozona will kick off its season at home Friday, Aug. 30, against McCamey.
Ozona Lions
2024 schedule
Aug. 30 McCamey
Sept. 6 at Eldorado
Sept. 13 Brady
Sept. 20 at Harper
Sept. 27 Miles
Oct. 11 at Reagan County*
Oct. 18 Sonora*
Oct. 25 at Colorado City*
Nov. 1 Forsan*
Nov. 8 at Christoval*
*District 3-2A Division I game
2023 results
San Angelo TLCA W 65-14
Wink L 36-48
Mason L 20-35
Grape Creek W 57-22
Miles L 68-70
Sonora L 38-49
Christoval W 40-18
Reagan County W 40-31
Forsan W 28-14
Anthony W 29-13
Cisco L 14-21
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