FOOTBALL: Trevino helps return Alpine to Class 2A playoff chase
In a game Alpine had to win to keep its playoff hopes alive, Oscar Trevino made a costly mistake late in the first quarter. He fumbled a punt by Kermit, which recovered the ball and scored a game-tying touchdown shortly thereafter.
Trevino atoned almost immediately, though, returning the ensuing kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown that put the Fightin’ Bucks back on top.
“One of the coaches chewed my butt out,” Trevino said of his gaffe on the punt. “After that (return TD), he didn’t say much.”
Trevino continued to let his play, and specifically his legs, speak for him. The next time the Yellow Jackets punted the ball to him midway through the second quarter, the fleet-footed junior returned it 40 yards for another touchdown.
Trevino’s first two return touchdowns of the season, and the extra points that followed, provided the winning margin in a 35-22 victory that boosted Alpine’s odds of reaching the postseason. The Fightin’ Bucks are in with a win Friday at Denver City, coupled with a Kermit loss against Colorado City.
“They couldn’t have come at a better time for us,” Alpine coach Stacey Martin said of Trevino’s returns. “That’s what we were looking for. We didn’t know where they were going to come from, but we thought somebody was going to have to step up and do it.”
Trevino, a 5-foot-8, 150-pound speedster who starts at wide receiver and free safety, has been coming through for Alpine all season. He’s the area’s third-leading receiver this year with 50 catches for 750 yards and eight touchdowns, and has two interceptions defensively.
Trevino’s role on offense has been especially important because the area’s reception leader last year, Alpine teammate Taylor O’Bryant, missed the first four games this season while recovering from a hamstring injury. Trevino was quarterback Evan Moore’s favorite target early on, and now the Fightin’ Bucks have two big-play weapons in their receiving corps.
“It was kind of Oscar’s time to show what he could do,” Martin said. “Now with Taylor back, we’ve got two of them on opposite sides that can really create problems for people.”
Trevino would like to be problematic — whether he’s playing offense, defense or special teams — for at least one more game. He has confidence in Alpine’s chances to win that game and give itself a chance to qualify for the postseason.
The Fightin’ Bucks needed a spark after losing three games in a row, and Trevino provided it.
“We feel confident,” he said. “We went on that losing streak right there and it kind of brought us down. I think after Kermit, it brought the morale of the team back up.”
>> OSCAR TREVINO, ALPINE
Height: 5-foot-8.
Weight: 150 pounds.
Class: Junior.
Position: WR/FS.
Favorite player: Darrelle Revis.
Favorite NFL team: Baltimore Ravens.
Favorite movie: The Program.
Highlights: Trevino returned a kickoff and punt for touchdowns to help Alpine beat Kermit and keep its playoff hopes alive.
>> Follow Adam Zuvanich on Twitter at @OAZuvanich
