BENT ON MAKING 2017 A SUCCESSFUL SEASON, ODESSA HIGH LEADERS ARE STEPPING UP ON BOTH SIDES OF THE FOOTBALL

As Boy Hernandez pulled his Bronchos helmet off for the final time, Aaron Ochoa wrapped an arm around him. When Colt Beard stepped in line to salute the Odessa High band for the last time as a player, Zay Brown stood firm there in line with him. And after the Bronchos kneeled down in the south end zone to pray, Chase Webster looked to Jorge Lopez and nodded, as his fellow captain offered parting advice. It was a chilly November 2016 night in Midland, and the Bronchos’ then-seniors, like Hernandez, Beard and Lopez, had just seen their last game as part of the Odessa High football team go by. Odessa High had just finished its season 0-10. And somewhere along the line — whether it was when Ochoa and the rest gathered themselves up from that end zone and started walking back to the locker room, or whether it was when Brown and others peered out the bus window on the way back west to Odessa, or whether it was when Webster and his fellow returners first looked toward 2017 when they stepped off that bus and back into the middle of the night in the school parking lot — those returning players made a vow. At some point, they promised their departing teammates, their coaches, or even just themselves, that the 2017 season would be different, and that they’d do anything to make it happen. Anything — and everything. Now, as that new season and new opportunity dawns on Odessa High football, and the Bronchos move through practice at Coleman Field in preparation for their season opener Aug. 31 against Lubbock Monterey, that promise, and that bitter feeling from that November night, looms as large as ever. Surely, that’s in the back of Ochoa’s mind, when the cornerback switches over to receiver in practice and starts catching passes. It is part of Brown’s motivation when he leaves his fellow receivers to go try to make tackles as a safety. When Webster goes out for routes in the slot or lines up in his stance as a linebacker, that’s all part of his promise. The Bronchos are doing everything they can to make this year different, and for several of them, that includes learning positions on both sides of the field to try to contribute any way they can on Friday nights this fall, whether it be on offense or on defense. They’re bent on doing whatever it takes. “I think it says a lot about their character,” Odessa High head coach Danny Servance said. Servance sat in his office in the fieldhouse as he spoke, just before heading out to the field for another grueling August two-a-days workout — thinking back to the spring, when he and the rest of the coaching staff first opened this door to the Bronchos players. Through all of spring training, Odessa High worked every player on both sides of the ball during each practice, assigning each player two positions, and giving each player a chance to help the team in two different ways. It was a rare move for a Class 6A team to make, and the plan was always just to see which select few might keep going both ways in the fall when most the squad returned to normal operation. But Servance wanted to give his players a chance to embrace that opportunity — and the chance, as it turned out, to fulfill those personal vows. They’ve done just that. You can tell that, bottom line, they just want to win,” Servance said. “That’s what’s important to them. “And that’s what I love about this group, is that they just want to win no matter what.” Several Bronchos seniors are primed and ready to take to the field wherever needed, on either side of the ball, when kickoff comes against Lubbock Monterey, including Brown, who’s playing at receiver and safety, Webster, who’s working at slot receiver and linebacker, and Ochoa, who’s playing corner and receiver. Defensive end Joseph Chavez is also taking repetitions at tight end. Tight end Jacob Munoz is crossing over to the other side at defensive end. Tony Carrasco is at linebacker, but also ready to take handoffs in the backfield at running back. Juniors Tyrone Caufield, Ke’Evan Majors, Julian Galindo, Caedon Murry and Kameron Gonzales are all still working out on both sides this fall, too. It’s a challenge for all of them to step out of their comfort zone and move into another position — but it’s one each of them has accepted. “I think that’s how all our team is,” Carrasco said. “If coach says we need to sacrifice and go to a different spot, then I know everybody’s going to do it. “I know the one goal for us is just trying to win.” It’s one goal — and the Bronchos are ready to reach it by any means necessary. “You want your best players on the field,” Webster said. “That’s what it takes, for guys to play both sides of the ball in the game, so I’m all for it — trying to win some games.” As the Odessa High coaches can see, the way last year went is part of that drive. “They’re so hungry, after last year,” Bronchos defensive coordinator Matt Anastasio said. “They’re so hungry that they want to do anything and everything they can to get over that hump.” Through all of it, Servance, Anastasio and the others admit they wouldn’t have been surprised if they heard complaints. Admittedly, it’s a lot to ask of an upperclassman player to go start over back at square one at some other position — or to miss out on repetitions at their main spot when they go do that. But, they said, they’ve never heard a single thing — other than that desire to go help the team however possible. “It’s a mentality with our guys,” Servance said. “That’s what I find. They think they can do anything. “That’s a great mentality to have — and an unselfish act by any of them, and all of them, to take on that role of playing wherever coach asks them to play.” Caufield, a receiver, is taking snaps at corner, which is something he did in emergency situations last year. Majors and Murry are both playing along both the offensive and defensive lines. Galindo is playing at slot receiver and linebacker. Gonzales, a junior quarterback taking snaps alongside apparent starter Trey Smith, is taking reps at cornerback, and could get on the field there if Smith takes strong hold of the reins behind center. All of them are embracing those chances, even after that trial period in the spring was over. “We made all of them do it in the spring, and that sparked the interest,” offensive coordinator Dean Garza said. “Some are like, ‘Coach, I want to go do this, I want to do that.’ “It did open the door. It did kind of spur them there to say, ‘Hey, it’s my opportunity.’” Now, the Bronchos have been glad to take up that challenge — and they’ve enjoyed seeing their teammates step up in that effort, as well. “It shows that they have a lot of heart and dedication for this team and this program, to play something they’ve never really played before,” Chavez said. “I feel like the coaches really know what they’re doing, getting us ready for the season.” That’s the plan, for Bronchos playmakers to have as many chances as they can to get on the field and make plays, on one side or the other. “I want to score touchdowns, too — but I also don’t want them to score,” Brown laughed. “If I can stay on the field and make sure that don’t happen, then I’ll do it.” The same kind of mindset is there for all those crossover players, and everyone on the Bronchos roster looking to make 2017 a bounce-back season. And it’s been that way ever since that November night last fall. “Those are the things that highlight this football team, is having those type of kids, right there, who are unselfish, and who will almost sacrifice themselves for the sake of the team,” Servance said. “When you get kids like that, they’re special. They’re a special breed. “These guys have been terrific in making the transition,” he added. “They know that it’s going to make us better as a football team, and they’re dedicated and committed to doing that.” Dedicated and committed — to do anything, and everything.

BENT ON MAKING 2017 A SUCCESSFUL SEASON, ODESSA HIGH LEADERS ARE STEPPING UP ON BOTH SIDES OF THE FOOTBALL

Photo Credit: Justin Lee

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