Guevara's Second Year Bringing Tradition, Fun Back to Lake View Football

SAN ANGELO, TX-- Despite a 1-4 record, things are looking up for the Lake View Chiefs.

Through the first half of the season, the Chiefs have seen exponential growth in the second year of Hector Guevara’s offense.

“It’s been good,” Guevara said. “We hit some bumps in the road on the way through these past few weeks, but the kids are still working hard. We’ve just gotta improve. We just can’t dwell on the past. We’ve just gotta learn from it and move on.”

The Chiefs’ quarterback, Kendall Blue, has shown solid ability to throw the ball with 981 yards passing and five touchdowns on 79 completions.

“He’s come a long way,” Guevara said of his senior gunslinger. “He’s improving every game. Like I said, we’ve struggled offensively here and there.”

Last year, while transitioning away from the run-oriented offense Doug Kuhlmann ran, Henry Nickias averaged roughly 212 yards passing per game through nine games. Blue, through the first half of the 2018 season, is averaging 245.2 yards passing per game.

“We’re all trying to buy buy into the system,” Blue said. “The past couple of weeks, we’ve struggled on offense.”

Blue shouldered the blame for the Chiefs’ struggles over the last few weeks.

“I’ve been trying to go for the big play only instead of just trusting the system and playing within the system, trying to do something we’re not,” Blue added.

Guevara added the struggle has been dealing with injuries or “the timing is off a little bit.”

Blue, also a staple for the Chief’s basketball team, credits some of Lake View’s growth to having familiar faces on gridiron such as senior receiver Ahmad Daniels, who only played basketball last year. That familiarity helps the Chiefs play loose and enjoy the game.

“We just have fun,” Blue said. “We just go out there and fly around. We already kind of know what each other can and can’t do because of basketball and playing other sports together. So, in football, it’s just adding another layer to the pizza.”

Guevara said Daniels, the team’s leading receiver, brings a “no-quit attitude” to the field.

“He’s a breath of fresh air,” Guevara added. “He’s always trying to improve and he’s always trying to make his teammates better.”

Having that turnout for the school’s athletics, not just football, shows a change in the culture for the Chiefs.

“It’s good to see the kids come out, not necessarily just football kids, but any sport,” Guevara said. “Even kids that didn’t play football, or any sports. It’s good to see them come out and compete in whatever sport it is.”

That also means a bigger pool of athletes to pull from for the different teams.

“It’s more support,” Blue said. “We’ve got a bigger pool to find the best athletes for the best positions.”

The Chiefs host Class 3A Brownfield on Thursday, Oct. 4. Kickoff is slated for 7:00 p.m.