Rattlers secure first victory of 2022, beat Madison 31-24 in OT

After a disappointing week one performance against Hutto, the Rattlers bounced back against visiting San Antonio Madison.

San Marcos controlled most of the game, but gave up a long touchdown pass with 56 seconds left in regulation leading to the purple and white eventually heading to overtime tied with the Mavericks at 24. On San Marcos' first possession in overtime, senior running back Jake Rodriguez-Scholz ran the ball into the end zone on their third play of the period to give the Rattlers a seven-point lead. On the next possession, the San Marcos defense made a fourth down stop to secure a 31-24 victory. 

Penalties and situational mistakes were prevalent once again for the Rattlers in week two, allowing the Mavs to stay in the game. Because of these mishaps, the Rattlers found themselves tied at the end of both halves. San Marcos head coach John Walsh viewed the experience in a positive light due to the experience the purple and white gained for the future.

“I love it as a head coach, you know, do I want to win a game in regulation? Absolutely,” Walsh said. “Do I want to give our kids experiences that we might need later? Absolutely. So it's a win-win for us. We got a win and we got some overtime experience.” 

Just two games into the season, the Rattlers have already faced plenty of adversity whether it’s during a 46-21 loss or playing from behind and pulling out a 31-24 overtime victory. Although these challenges have been difficult to approach, senior edge rusher Jake Darling believes these opportunities are helping the team grow.

“Home openers are known for trying to see where you are, and you know, we've been working really hard this week to try to fix our flaws (from the Hutto game),” Darling said. “And we still made plenty of mistakes, but don't get me wrong — we were able to come together and really, you know, show everyone what we're capable of.”

San Marcos will have a quick turnaround when they travel to former District 27-6A member San Antonio Wagner. The Rattlers play the Thunderbirds in a Thursday night matchup on Sept. 8. It will be the first road trip of 2022 for the purple and white against a difficult Thunderbird offense.

“Wagner is difficult because they run (a) midline triple option, double slot, you know what you see with the academy,” Walsh said. “So that's tough on a short week but we're gonna do a good job and keep it simple and play our tails off.”

Senior quarterback Isaiah DeLeon looks forward to the challenge of a short week but realizes the Rattlers need to limit their penalties in order to be successful.

“For us, we just got to be more consistent, less drive-ending penalties,” DeLeon said. “And if we do that, we'll put a bunch of points up on the board.”

Wagner enters the upcoming week following a loss against Dripping Springs 37-7. The Thunderbirds will be looking for their first win of the season after starting the year 0-2. The Rattlers will meet the Thunderbirds in their home opener in Converse at D.W. Rutledge Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Sept. 8.