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CLASS 3A, DIVISION II BI-DISTRICT PLAYOFFS

Cotulla rushes to 21-0 first quarter lead in 50-7 rout of Santa Rosa at bi-district.

Santa Rosa was outmatched, outgunner and outdone by Cotulla as the Cowboys ran wild, racking up over 300 yards rushing en route to a lopsided 50-7 win in the Class 3A, Division II bi-district playoffs last Thursday, November 14 at San Diego’s Vaquero Stadium.
The win marked Cotulla’s first playoff victory since a 21-14 win over Santa Gertrudis in 2014.
“I feel that we are one of the better teams in the area, and now it’s time to show it,” CHS AD and Head Football Coach Esteban Rodriguez said. “We will continue to take it one week at a time and continue improving on what we do best.
“As for Santa Rosa, we knew we could out physical them up front, and out run them on the edges. The boys had an outstanding week of practice leading up to the game, and it showed on Friday night. We also knew that Santa Rosa had quite a bit of youth on both sides of the ball, so we wanted to take advantage of them in those areas.”
The win vaults Cotulla into the area round of the playoffs where they will take on Van Vleck Friday, November 22 at 7 p.m. in Odem.
The Leopards tied for fourth in District 14-3A, Division II but advanced on a tiebreaker over Boling. Van Vleck is 5-6 this year but 2-4 in a very tough district field that includes Tidehaven and East Bernard.

Cotulla’s Eric Aldaco (#22) and Alberto Aguero (#52) combine to bring down a Santa Rosa runner during the Cowboys’ 50-7 bi-district rout of the Warriors last Thursday, November 14 at San Diego’s Vaquero Stadium. (CURRENT photo: Manuel Azocar III)

Van Vleck upset Blanco in their bi-district matchup, winning a 48-41 shootout.
In the win over Santa Rosa, Cotulla took command from the outset, jumping out to a 21-0 first quarter lead and never looked back.
Senior running back Jose Gonzales set the tone early, breaking free for a 43-yard touchdown run less than a minute into the game. He finished with 156 yards on only nine carries and a pair of touchdowns.
Sophomore quarterback Frank Torres also finished with 129 yards of total offense, going four of five passing for 88 yards and a touchdown and rushing for 41 yards on six carries.
Gonzalez’ run quickly put the Cowboys up 7-0.
Later in the first, Eric Aldaco went in from two yards out and Marco Benavidez added a three-yard run with just over a minute to go in the first as the Cowboys blitzed their way to a 21-0 lead.
Both teams settled down in the second until Alex Medina broke free on a 33-yard jaunt with minutes to go in the half. Three minutes later, Torres found Aldaco on a 49-yard touchdown pass as Cotulla’s lead ballooned to 35-0 going into halftime.
Santa Rosa came out in the second half with an impressive drive, going the length of the field and finally scoring on a one-yard plunge to make it 35-7 midway through the third.
Gonzalez would answer later in the stanza with a 39-yard scoring run to build a 42-7 Cotulla lead.
Sophomore Rene Barrera iced things in the fourth with a nine-yard scoring run and converted for two as the Cowboys capped the scoring at 50-7.
Barrera carried six times for 98 yards and a score on the night.
The Cowboys racked up 495 yards of total offense, passing for 101 yards and rushing for 394 yards.
“These boys were determined to come out firing on all cylinders. From the moment we left the high school, it was all business,” Coach Rodriguez said of his team. “We have a very mature group of young men that have their mind set on making a run in the playoffs. I always preach ‘act like you’ve been here before,’ so when we dominate, you are not caught by surprise.”