Rattlers ready to take the field against San Antonio Holmes

Gilbert Rodriguez huddled the defense on the side of the 20-yard line inside San Marcos Toyota Rattler Stadium, encouraging them to speak up.

“This is the most important part right here,” the defensive coordinator told his players. “Now’s the time to ask questions. Don’t wait until the game.”

San Marcos was going through its last walkthrough of the offseason on Thursday, preparing for its preseason scrimmage against San Antonio Holmes. The Rattlers had practiced hard all week long. Now, it was time to put on the finishing touches.

Head coach Mark Soto worked his team through its weekly “kick-the-field” drill, making sure the players knew the proper rotations and where they would line up in every special teams situation.

“The biggest thing for this is: don’t make any mistakes,” Soto said.

Soto doesn’t even want mistakes before the game. The Rattlers practiced coming out of the locker room, splitting up into their position groups and starting their pre-game routines.

With walkthroughs over, San Marcos should be prepared. The players have all improved their conditioning, the coaches have worked to help them memorize the playbook and the team is buzzing with energy.

All that’s left to do now is play. Are there any nerves?

“I’d be lying if I said no,” Soto said. “I’m more just anxious than anything. Anxious to see how we look, anxious to see if the defense runs to the ball, anxious to see if the offense can get going.

“As coaches, you know, we’re not on the field. All we can do is prepare, cheer and support our players. So, you want it for them.”

What about the players?

“There’s a little bit of nerves,” senior defensive lineman Brandon Rangel said. “But there ain’t nothing wrong with a little bit of nerves, you’ve just got to let it all out.”

“I’m just excited to show out,” senior offensive tackle Christian Marmolejo said. “(To just) show what we’ve got, who we’ve got and just show the amount of work we’ve put in.”

Soto said fans should expect this year’s team to be extra resilient. The Rattlers, it appears, aren’t easily rattled.

His players agreed.

“This team ain’t going to stop,” Rangel said. “We’re just going to fight through everything that we’ve got. We’re just going to claw our way through this district. We ain’t never backing down.”

“I feel like this team has more heart,” Marmolejo said. “We have more resiliency to just come back and show out in this new district.”

San Marcos will have its first opportunity to prove it on Friday. The Rattlers travel to face Holmes in their lone scrimmage of the season at Gustafson Stadium in San Antonio at 10 a.m.