Rattlers scrimmage United South, shift season opener focus vs Hutto

After nine long months, San Marcos got back on the gridiron Friday.

The Rattlers matched up with Laredo United South in a scrimmage consisting of two periods. The first period was a controlled series of plays for each offense, and the second followed with two 10-minute quarters of live play.

The connection between senior quarterback Kutter Gage Webb and receiver Tony Diaz was apparent from the first series of controlled play. Webb hit Diaz on a deep pass to take the Rattlers into the red zone, and then finished off the drive with an off-balance touchdown pass to Diaz in the left corner of the end zone. Webb and Diaz would connect for two more touchdowns in the controlled period, including a deep dime in stride and an explosive run after the catch from Diaz, making multiple defenders miss.

“(Tony) finished the year last year in that special range of ball skills and route running. What he made a commitment to is that weight room, and he’s changed his body,” head coach John Walsh said. “He’s strong, he’s fast. You know, I’m still perplexed why he doesn’t have a Division One offer, but I think when the film gets out, it’s gonna be pretty obvious he can play college football.

“Kutter’s just got the savviness. I don’t know how many times we called a football play and Kutter made an adjustment on his own from what he saw. I’ve been able to coach a lot of coaches’ sons at quarterback, and Kutter reminded me tonight why it’s so much fun.”

With Webb in his first year as a starter, he’s still working out some of his own passing mechanics– but his creativity and craftiness on the field when the play breaks down more than make up for it.

Senior running back Stefan Stennett also had some explosive runs on the ground, as well.

After two series of the offense testing itself, the San Marcos defense came on the field to rep against the Panthers. With eight senior starters on defense graduating, the Purple and White will have a multitude of two-way starters on defense. Most notably is Diaz, who flashed his ball skills as a defensive back too.

Diaz picked off United South on the third play of their opening drive, and almost took it back to the house before stepping out of bounds.

The Panthers would carve out a drive on their next possession, though, methodically moving the ball up the field, while converting on two, third down attempts, before punching the ball in for a short score on the ground.

The Rattlers and United South played their second and third units the rest of the controlled period.

“I think defensively, coach Kloiber did a good job of mixing it up and playing a whole bunch of people,” Walsh said. “We were flying around. I think when you see live bullets for the first time, you gotta catch up to game speed, and it didn’t take us long to catch up to game speed.”

The live period ended with a 7-0 scoreboard in favor of San Marcos. The period included multiple third down stops from the Rattlers, including a missed field goal and a fourth down stop on the last play of the second quarter, with the Panthers in the red zone to keep them scoreless.

The Rattler offense’s lone scoring drive started off with another San Marcos receiver gaining double- digit yards after the catch, moving the Purple and White into scoring position. Stennett had a rush to push the Rattlers even closer to the end zone, and then Webb connected with another San Marcos receiver outside the pocket for a touchdown.

“If the coaches don’t make the right call, you’ve gotta make them look good. They’re gonna make you look good most of the time,” Webb said. “But when they know when the play breaks down you gotta make something happen– as a coach’s kid–I try to make their job my job too (and make something happen).”

The Purple and White will hit the practice field at San Marcos High School throughout the week to prepare for their season-opening matchup against Hutto. The Rattlers will kickoff against the Hippos at 7:30 p.m. on Aug. 25 at Hutto High School.

“We saw Hutto last night. I think it’s a very winnable game. They got one of the best quarterbacks– if not the best– quarterback in the state,” Walsh said. “So when you got that piece in your puzzle, that makes it hard to beat you. But I think we gotta control the ball with a line of scrimmage, find ways to get the ball to (Diaz), control the ball with the run and I think it’s gonna be a fun night.”

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