3 Straight Wins Then 3 Straight Losses, How Can the Chiefs Find Consistency?

SAN ANGELO, TX — After starting the season 3-0 for the first time since 1983, the Lake View Chiefs have started to look like their old selves.  Coach Guevara’s team has suffered three straight losses to Fort Stockton, Llano, and Brownfield and are sitting at 3-3 two weeks before their first district opponent.  They need to get back on track. 

Saturday’s home game against Hereford is as close to a must win game a team with a guaranteed playoff spot can have.  The difference in attitude and confidence between being 3-4 and 4-3 going into a bye week and district play is tremendous.  Momentum plays a huge role during football games, just ask Snyder players about Austin Bandy’s fumble recovery and touchdown four weeks ago, but it can also have an effect on entire seasons. 

The pressure going into the Seminole game will be much higher if they fall to Hereford.  That pressure is compounded because of how much success they had at the beginning of the season.  If they win, then they can put the past three games behind them for good and go into the bye week with a reclaimed swagger.

So, what needs to happen on Saturday for them win?

First things first, the defense needs to tackle better.  Even when they were winning, Guevara consistently said that effective tackling, or lack thereof, was the biggest issue.  Against Fort Stockton, the defense allowed 396 yards on the ground. Against Llano, they allowed 239. Stout linebacker Logan Sanders and defensive lineman Jeremy Hernandez will have to take charge.  They are both hard hitting seniors and will have to set the tone early Saturday.

On the other side of the ball, Lake View has possibly the most entertaining and quick hitting offense in the area.  When its working that is. Quarterback Albert Rodriguez has the arm to make practically every throw on the field but can be sporadic with his accuracy.  He also has two great targets on the outside and two dynamic pass catching options coming out of the backfield that he can look for.

Wide receivers Johnny Espinosa and Austin Bandy have accounted for more than half of the teams touchdowns this season, including defensive and special teams scores.  They are electric, explosive, and a 50+ yard catch and run could seemingly happen at any moment. The only problem is that defenses have figured that out.  

Espinosa is double teamed regularly and Bandy has been kept in check since the Snyder game.  This has forced offensive coordinator Mejia Daniel to look for other weapons, but they just haven’t had the firepower.  

Running backs Rudy and Anthony Martinez are great receivers, but defenses do not view them as a dangerous threat in the run game.  Rudy nearly doubled his season total for rushing yards with a 104 yard showing against Llano, and neither of them get a ton of touches with the pass happy scheme.  That may need to change in order to keep opposing teams guessing.

Lastly, the one thing the Chiefs have failed to do is play a complete game.  That needs to change. In the opener against Lamesa, they were in front 32-6 in the third quarter and needed a last minute stand to hang on 38-30.  Snyder was down 25-5 at halftime and outscored them in the second half to make things interesting.  

Consistency is not only an issue from quarter to quarter but often from drive to drive as well.  When watching any of their games, it feels like if they do not connect on a big play, then they are not getting in the end zone.  They do not move the ball gradually, only in bursts. Getting the run game humming will be a big factor in solving this problem.

Kickoff against Hereford is Saturday at 2:00 p.m. at San Angelo Stadium.  Saturday’s high is expected to be 71 degrees as of Thursday and should provide a great home environment to get the win.