Back in the 1980s and 1990s, El Paso Irvin considered one of the premier programs in the Sun City consistently winning district championships and producing Division I level talent. Fast forward to 2017 and things are a bit different. The Rockets have not made the playoffs since 2010 and are coming off a 2-8 season last year that was filled with injuries and a tough District 1-5A.
Now in his second season, head coach Joe Urias is optimistic about the upcoming year. The 1983 graduate of Irvin is trying to turn his alma mater back around by re-embracing part of what made the program successful in the past.
El Paso Irvin WR/DB Joel Tarango (Photo via Tony Venegas, TexasHSFootball.com)
“Ironman football is something we’ve done for years,” Urias said, “Here in the Northeast, we know that’s just part of the deal. We did that back in the day when the school was more of a powerhouse but the players took pride in that and the kids today are doing the same thing.”
That mentality has been fully embraced by the players. It’s a challenge but they know that’s part of the deal at a school that is expecting to field 30 to 35 varsity players in 2017.
“It’s just something we’re used to,” said junior receiver and cornerback Joel Tarango, “Our coaches have really conditioned us so we’re ready to play ironman football when it comes and we know what to expect.”
“We just have to be ready,” said junior running back and linebacker Erik Hooks, “We come together as an entire team because of it.”
Building that chemistry will be key for the Rockets this season and according to Urias, it’s been the junior class that has stepped up to provide a sense of direction for the team.
We’re going to be younger and inexperienced, but we have to grow up fast,” Urias said of his team, “I’ve seen a lot of strong leadership from the junior class. They really stepped up over the offseason.”
El Paso Irvin RB/LB Erik Hooks (Photo via Tony Venegas, TexasHSFootball.com)
Among that leadership group are the aforementioned Tarango and Hooks. Both players saw time on both sides of the ball last year on varsity and are ready to take on that leadership role.
“Our biggest key for this season is building chemistry,” Tarango said, “We all know each other really well and are probably closer than what we have been in the past because we push each other to be better.”
Their head coach notes that each of them will be leaders of the team this season and each have their own approach to meet the same goal.
“They’re both going to be building blocks and leaders of this team,” Urias said, “Erik is a motivator. He does a lot more of the talking as the outspoken one. Joel is a guy that works day in and day out. He’s always in the weight room working hard. With His leadership and way of doing things, he holds everyone accountable.”
The Rockets will take on El Paso’s newest program, Pebble Hills, on August 31 in the first regular season game in the state. After a tough first season, Urias and his team are ready to take on the challenge and spur what they hope to be the start of a successful turnaround.
“We had a number of guys get hurt last year and we had to pull up a lot of guys from junior varsity because of that,” Urias said, “We struggled a little bit because of that inexperience but if we stay healthy, I think we’ll be in a lot more ball games this season.”
“We’ve come much closer as a team,” Hooks said, “This team has been through a lot of struggles and we’re ready to come back and change that.”
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