The cliché in athletics is to give 110% effort. That is what you’ll hear coaches preach on fields across the country. Given the history between the San Marcos Rattlers and the Judson Rockets, it’s fair to say that both sides will be pushing the limits of just how hard a team can play.
Head Coach John Walsh will lead the Rattlers into San Antonio to face off against former Rattler Head Coach Mark Soto. After his eight years in San Marcos, Soto went on to be a part of a complaint against his former school, resulting in UIL suspensions for Rattler coaches and players as well as a playoff ban for the team. In turn, San Marcos accused Soto of fabricating evidence in the complaint and leading a smear campaign against the school. Soto was cleared of any wrongdoing by the UIL in 2023. Friday night will be the first time the players impacted by the recruiting accusations will be on the field to face off against the school and coach who levied the complaint.
Some games jump off the schedule — this one was probably circled twice in bright highlighter.
San Marcos looks to move to 3-1 in district play as the Rattlers face the Judson Rockets.
The Rockets enter the game with a 2-4 overall record. Judson beat San Antonio Roosevelt 2821 in non-district play. They beat East Central in overtime 34-27 to open up district play, but the storied program with six state championships has not lived up to those historical expectations.
Last week, Judson took on Cibolo Steele where the Rockets fell to the Knights 44-12.
The Rockets offense has struggled to put points on the board this year even though they have one of the top prospects in Texas high school football. They have only topped 20 points in a game twice this season, with the 32 points against East Cen- tral being their top-scoring output all year. On the season, Judson has averaged 18.3 points per game.
Sophomore Jai’Storm Knight stands out on the offensive line – literally. Listed in some reports as large as 6-foot-8 and 340 pounds, Knight is considered by recruiting services to be one of the top offensive tackles in the country for the class of 2028. He has received offers from 20 FBS schools including Texas and Texas A&M. Also, lineman Nathaniel Boudy, standing at 6foot-3 and weighing 290 pounds, was selected to play in the San Antonio Sports All-Star Football game that will be held in January after the season is concluded.
The acclaimed offensive line hasn’t done much for the passing game for Judson, which runs more of a spread run-option offense similar to the Rattlers of the Soto era. They are averaging 70.3 yards per game in the air. On the season, they have scored three passing touchdowns with three quarterbacks splitting almost the same amount of attempts. Junior Dominique Davis Jr. is the only quarterback to play in all six games this season passing for 137 yards with 11 completions on 29 attempts. Brayden Smith and Joseph Dimando have taken snaps at quarterback with nearly identical season passing statistics.
The Judson offense is mainly centered around the running game led by junior Kayden Graham, who has 494 yards rushing and eight touchdowns on the season. He averages 86 yards per game but has three games with more than 100 yards rushing this season. He is an explosive back, scoring an 86yard touchdown this year. The next-most prolific runners are the three players who have taken snaps at quarterback. Smith leads the way with 124 yards rushing on the season.
The only receiver to cross the century mark on the season is AK Davis, who has eight receptions for 131 yards.
Defensively, Judson has allowed 33 points per game this season. The lowest total they have held an opponent to was the 21 points given up to San Antonio Roosevelt. The most impactful players on defense are easy to spot wearing numbers 0, 1 and 2. No. 1 linebacker Marcel Smith leads the team in total tackles with 48 and interceptions with four. No. 0 linebacker Asa Duhart hasn’t played in the last two games, but was leading the team in tackles through the first four games of the season. Both players were recently selected to the San Antonio Sports All-Star Football game. Ayden Ramirez, who plays both defensive back and linebacker, is another defender to watch out for.
This will be the 20th all-time meeting between the Rattlers and the Rockets with the series dating back to the 1970s.
The first-ever meeting between San Marcos and Judson took place in 1974 where the Rattlers defeated the Rockets 350. San Marcos would follow up with another win over Judson in 1975, with a 62-13 win.
Since San Marcos’ victory in 1975, Judson has won 17 consecutive games against the Rattlers as the Rockets turned into a high school football powerhouse under head coach D.W. Rutledge, winning six state championships from 1983 through 2002.
Kickoff for the game will be at 7:30 p.m. at D.W. Rutledge Stadium, 9150 FM 1516 N, Converse on Friday.
San Marcos will look to bounce back after dropping their first district game of the season as the Rattlers go on the road to Converse to battle the Judson Rockets. The Rattlers enter the game with a 4-3 overall record and a 2-1 district record. Daily Record photo by Gerald Castillo
