Legacy focused on new business
Some high school teams might find it difficult to focus after a victory like the one Legacy got last week.
But all the Longhorns had to do was see Palo Verde on the schedule.
After edging Cimarron-Memorial 30-29 in overtime last week, third-ranked Legacy (6-0, 4-0 Northwest League) hosts the second-ranked Panthers (6-0, 4-0) at 7 tonight.
''We knew that we had business to take care of this week,’’ senior offensive lineman Dom Fuiava said. ''We took care of business to beat Cimarron, and now it’s Palo. Road to the top.’’
The Longhorns’ win over Cimarron couldn’t have been much more emotional. The Spartans appeared to have won when Legacy missed an extra point in overtime. But a penalty gave the Longhorns a second chance, and a 2-point conversion gave them the win.
''If anything it helped us even more with that win,’’ said senior Billy Purcell, who scored the winning conversion. ''It was such a huge win for our program and for the seniors. And it just motivated us to want to keep it going, especially this week against a team like Palo Verde.’’
The Panthers have earned a reputation as one of the area’s best teams. They have played in seven consecutive state semifinal games and lost 13-12 to McQueen in last year’s Class 4A state championship.
But Purcell said Legacy is trying to maintain its normal focus this week and not get too excited about playing the Panthers.
''Palo’s a good team, but we’re just looking at them like they’re just any other regular team that we’ve played so far,’’ Purcell said.
“We’re not trying to hype them up. We’re coming into this game to play a team that dresses in black and silver.”
Taking that attitude is one thing, but stopping the Panthers is another.
Palo Verde has outscored opponents 260-48 this season.
“They’re going to get theirs, and we’ve just got to make sure we get ours when we get our opportunity,” Longhorns coach Dave Snyder said. “We’ve got to score with them.”
Legacy hasn’t had much trouble scoring this season, averaging 41 points. Its big-play threat has been running back Deshae Edwards (992 rushing yards, 14 touchdowns), and quarterback Devin Weidemann rushed for two TDs and passed for another against Cimarron.
For either of those players to have a good game, Fuiava said the pressure is on the offensive line.
“We’ve got to make sure Deshae Edwards has a great game and Devin Weidemann stays off his back,” Fuiava said. “The game will be won in the trenches.”
Palo Verde has an abundance of offensive weapons in its double-wing offense. Running backs Tyrone Blake (608 yards, eight TDs), Brandon Wright (532 yards, 10 TDs) and Chappell Thomas (512 yards, eight TDs) give opponents plenty to think about.
“That double-wing offense that they run is always a threat,” Purcell said. “But I know if we read our keys and stay disciplined like we have been doing we can do a good job and have a good chance of beating them.”
And no matter the outcome, a matchup of undefeated teams at this point in the season is always special.
“To be this late in the season and have two undefeated teams go at each other, that’s exciting,” Palo Verde coach Darwin Rost said. “I told the kids that you can go your whole life and not go through something like this.”
