San Marcos High School Football Team Preview

By Nicholas Brady
Sports Reporter

The San Marcos High School football team kicks off a new era of Rattler football Friday night. They will welcome the New Braunfels High School Unicorns to Toyota Rattler Stadium with new head coach John Walsh at the helm.

Coach Walsh comes to San Marcos after over a decade building the Denton Guyer High School program into a perennial state power. At Guyer, Walsh compiled a record of 132-55 including two state championships in four state title game appearances.

The Rattler offense will be led by sophomore quarterback, Isaiah DeLeon, in his first year as the varsity starting quarterback.

Coach Walsh has a reputation for being a great quarterback developer. Walsh coached former University of Texas quarterback Jerrod Heard, former Oklahoma State University quarterback J.W. Walsh and current Texas A&M quarterback commit Eli Stowers during his time at Guyer.

Walsh will look to build his next great quarterback in DeLeon over the next few years. DeLeon already has great size at 6’1 185lbs and a strong arm. He is also a threat to move the chains with his legs on any given play.

DeLeon will look to get the ball in the hands of running back Benito Canales and wide receivers Nathan Henry, Jamil Gordon and Exavion Harris.

Seniors Kannon Webb and Quddus Ogunbase will contribute on both sides of the ball for the Rattlers as receivers and defensive backs. Webb and Ogunbase are the leaders of the Rattlers and bring a lot of varsity playing experience.

Other names to watch defensively are senior linebackers Moses Alva and Nelson Coleman as well as sophomore linebacker Jay Simmons.

An interesting player to watch will be defensive back/receiver, Jon Vega. Vega did not play football in 2019 but did play for the Rattler basketball team. Seniors Webb and Ogunbase describe Vega as someone with the potential to be “special” with his elite athleticism.

Kickoff against the Unicorns is set for 7:30 p.m. and will be broadcasted on KTSW 89.9.

Follow @KTSWSports on twitter for more on Rattler football.

Featured Image by Jude McClaren