Mid-Valley’s finest

MID-VALLEY — Three Mid-Valley athletes were selected as preseason All-State selections by Dave Campbell's Texas Football Magazine.

Weslaco East senior running back Andrew Alvarado and Edcouch-Elsa senior tight end Aaron Tanguma were selected as first-team class 4A selections and La Villa senior offensive lineman Enrique Guzman was selected as a first-team class A selection.

Andrew Alvarado
Weslaco East Wildcats

Alvarado exploded onto the scene in 2007 for the Wildcats and rushed for 1,724 yards and 15 touchdowns in his first full varsity season. The junior running back also played a huge role in leading the Wildcats to their first ever playoff berth in school history, rushing for 259 yards on 36 carries in a 31-27 loss to Corpus Christi Flour Bluff in the class 4A bi-district round.

"I was shocked when I found out about the selection," said Alvarado, the Mid-Valley Town Crier Newcomer of the Year for the 2007-08 season. "But, I have to give credit to the big boys upfront. It is because of them that I put up the numbers that I did. Also, my fullback Ricky Alaniz played a big role in my success."

"This is great for the school and will put us on the map when it comes to Texas football. I am extremely honored to win this award and now need to back it up in the season."

Wildcats head coach Armando Cuellar said that this award is huge for Alvarado, as well as the Weslaco East football program.

"Winning this award speaks well for Andrew and the program," said Cuellar. "He is the type of player that plays and works very hard and is a team player. Our philosophy has been to run the ball and have had huge success with it. Weslaco East has had its share of great running backs and Alvarado is another one we can add to the list."

"However, we have to also give credit to the offensive line, the backs, and the receivers. These guys play a huge role in containing their blocks and opening holes for our backs, and are the primary reason for our stats being as good as they are."

Aaron Tanguma
Edcouch-Elsa Yellowjackets

Edcouch-Elsa has had its share of All-Staters over the past four years and can now add another one to the list. Aaron "Arti" Tanguma, a 6'5, 260-pound tight end, leads a talented Jackets team in hopes of bringing home a sixth consecutive district title.

Tanguma ended his junior year with 350 receiving yards and four touchdowns while battling injuries.

"Last year, Tanguma was battling a previous injury he sustained during his sophomore year and played through it," said Edcouch-Elsa head coach Joe Solis. "He is the type of player that will overcome adversity and play through injuries. He does what needs to be done and is a well versed football player. With his height, it makes it hard for opposing teams to cover him with single and double coverage."

"Arti is only 17 years old and can only get better. I expect big things from him this year and am so proud that he received such a prestigious honor. There are some great athletes at the 4A level and for him to be selected as the top tight end speaks wonders."
Tanguma said that he was at a football camp when he found out he was selected.

"I was at the University of Texas football camp and got a copy of the magazine to see if I was nominated for anything," said Tanguma. "I looked at the top 300 athletes in the state and noticed that my name was not there. I was pretty upset and then proceeded to look at the preseason all-staters and saw my name. I jumped up like a little kid with excitement."
"In fact, the other kids at the camp were making fun of me and calling me mister all-stater."

"But, it is a huge honor and I am going to do whatever it takes to represent my school, as well as the entire Valley and show that there are some outstanding athletes here."

Enrique Guzman
La Villa Cardinals

When La Villa offensive lineman Enrique Guzman got the message that he was selected as an all-stater, he thought people were playing a trick on him.

"My coaches started messaging me and informed me that I was selected as a first-team all-state lineman and I figured they were messing around with me," said Guzman. "But, I got ahold of the book and saw my name there. I was extremely shocked and never imagined that I would be selected for something like this."

Guzman will anchor the offensive line this year and head coach Eugene Garza said that he will look to him as a leader on the field as well.

"Enrique will be the strength of our offensive line and will play an integral role in our new offensive scheme this year," said Garza. "Last year we had J.D. Cisneros at quarterback and Rocky Rodriguez as our primary receiver and were able to spread the ball around through the air."

"Now that our quarterback has graduated, we are going to switch things up and run the ball. So, we will only be as good as our offensive line allows us to be."

Guzman said that he is no stranger to the running game as the Cardinals pounded the ball prior to Garza coming in.

"Our previous coach Joe Salinas philosophy was to run the ball. So, we will have no problem from switching from the passing game to the running game," said Guzman. "The transition will be easy as long as we open up the holes and give our backs time to run the ball."

"Everyone thinks that without J.D. we will not have a successful year," said Guzman. "But, we still have a lot of weapons coming back and are not going to allow another team to take away our district title. It will stay in La Villa for another year."