ALICE, TX — One phrase has echoed through the city of Alice since last week: AC DC — and not the rock band, but Alice Coyotes District Champs. The Alice Coyotes changed the narrative this football season.
Last season the Coyotes didn't play a single game at home and went 1-9 during a season players described as an embarrassment. But with a new stadium and a new season, the slate was clean when football started this year.
The hard work — and the skills — of this year's team have brought the Coyotes a long way since last season. They went undefeated, about as far from the 1-9 record as you can get. But players say it's going to take more now that the playoffs are here.
"You know, we let the town of Alice down. No it's a football city, know it's a football town, and it's embarrassing when you go 1 and 9. It really was, and we knew it was. It was a reality check, but we had to come back and fight a little harder to fight adversity," Maddex Carrillo, an Alice High School senior, said.
Players say their edge heading into the postseason will come from toughness rather than physical measurements.
"We're not gonna beat teams because of our size or our speed. We're gonna beat them because of our mental toughness and our physicality, and I think that's really the mentality going into the playoffs this year is physicality and being the most physical," Ayden Martin, an Alice High School senior, said.
Alice may be 10-0 with a district championship, but head coach JR Castellano says the team is now 0-0 going into the playoffs, and all that matters is a win Friday night against Tuloso-Midway.
"We're not guaranteed anything next week uh we're not guaranteed any games next week if you look at our schedule right now it has Toloso-Midway on it and there's nothing after that," Castellano said.
Win or lose in the playoffs, everyone loves a comeback story — and the Coyotes going from one win to undefeated on the heels of getting a new stadium is certainly a story worth mentioning.
Alice hosts Tuloso-Midway on Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Memorial Stadium. We'll see if the Coyotes win their first playoff matchup in the new stadium or if the Warriors win their first postseason football game in school history.
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