GERONIMO — Two games into the season, Navarro head coach Glenn Hill is beginning to learn what his new-look Panthers can become.
Navarro enters Week 3 with a 2-0 record after following its 55-37 win over Floresville. More important to Hill, however, has been watching players who entered the season in unfamiliar roles begin to look increasingly comfortable in them.
“It’s just been nice to kind of discover some of our new playmakers on the team on both sides of the football,” Hill said. “We have some guys who either were on the JV last year or in backup roles, and going into the season, you kind of have an idea that they might be pretty dang good.”
Two victories have provided some early confirmation.
Hill pointed to Brody Zoeller, Jairo Benavidez and Hudson Stadler among the Panthers who have stepped into larger responsibilities, while Navarro is also breaking in three new starting linebackers.
“We’ve got guys stepping into new roles and playing really well,” Hill said.
Friday night gives them another opportunity to prove it.
The Panthers travel to La Grange looking for their first 3-0 start since 2019 and face an opponent capable of testing some of the areas Navarro has been working to improve.
For the Panthers, that improvement has already been noticeable offensively.
Hill felt Navarro took a significant step forward at the line of scrimmage against Floresville. After seeing his offensive line operate at one speed in the opener, he saw something different in Week 2.
“We established the run, and I think everything in our offense comes from doing that,” Hill said. “Our offensive line played fast, and just compared especially to Week 1, I thought they played with a different gear last week.”
That increased speed has not come from simply asking the Panthers to move faster.
Hill believes it is a product of familiarity.
As Navarro’s players become increasingly comfortable with what they’re being asked to do, they’re spending less time thinking about assignments and more time executing them.
“I think part of that is just they’re getting more confident in the schemes,” Hill said. “And with confidence comes your ability to play fast, and they’re showing they can do that.”
That confidence has allowed Navarro to establish the identity Hill wants offensively.
The Panthers want to run the football first and allow everything else to develop from there. Against Floresville, Navarro’s work up front created the cutback opportunities necessary to turn its wide-zone running game into explosive plays.
But Hill also sees an important part of that success in the less noticeable work being done within the offense.
He singled out fullback Isidro Rocha as a player whose understanding of the scheme allows him to correct problems as they develop.
“He does a great job of just fixing things,” Hill said. “Sometimes not everything is absolutely perfect up front, but he’s got a really high football IQ, and he has an ability to fix a leak that goes wrong.”
Not every correction produces an explosive play.
Sometimes it simply turns what could have been a loss into a short gain.
Hill believes those plays matter just as much.
“Some of those turn into three-yard gains; those add up as the game goes on,” Hill said. “I think he’s our fixer. I think he’s the thing that kind of gets our offense going.”
If the Floresville game showed Navarro what its offense can look like when everything starts operating faster, it also gave Hill a clear picture of the Panthers’ next defensive step.
Navarro allowed 37 points, but Hill came away from the film believing the problem wasn’t necessarily where his defenders were.
It was what happened once they got there.
“We just need to tackle,” Hill said. “We have to tackle better in space. Looking back at the film, we were in really good position very often, and we just didn’t finish the play.”
That distinction matters to Hill.
Navarro defended the run well for stretches and consistently put defenders around the football. But missed opportunities to finish tackles allowed Floresville to extend drives and create explosive plays, particularly when its quarterback escaped containment.
Hill isn’t looking for a defensive overhaul.
He’s looking for the Panthers to turn good positioning into completed plays.
“I think we’re in the right spots. I think we’re playing hard,” Hill said. “It’s now when we’re there, let’s finish the play off.”
La Grange should quickly reveal how much progress Navarro has made.
Hill expects the Leopards to stress his defense in multiple ways, particularly through a read game capable of putting the football in the hands of either the quarterback or running back.
That creates a temptation for defenders to spend too much time trying to decipher where the football might go.
Hill wants the opposite.
Rather than attempting to solve every wrinkle La Grange presents, he wants Navarro’s defenders to simplify the challenge.
“We need to not get infatuated with that,” Hill said. “We need to not try to solve any sort of great mystery. We just need to play our keys and know your assignments, and don’t try to do somebody else’s job.”
That discipline will be particularly important against a La Grange offense Hill believes has playmakers capable of punishing mistakes.
The Panthers expect a physical challenge in the running game, where Hill said La Grange features a back (Dillan Johnson – District-leading 234 rushing yards) who regularly runs through initial contact. The Leopards also have the ability to challenge Navarro vertically (343 passing yards/game) and force the Panthers to defend the entire field (20.2 yards/completion).
That brings the week’s defensive emphasis right back to finishing.
“We’re going to have to gang tackle, we’re going to have to wrap up, and we’re going to have to bring some physicality,” Hill said.
Those opportunities are exactly what Hill wants at this point of the season.
Navarro has won its first two games, but Week 3 isn’t simply an opportunity to protect an undefeated record. It’s another chance for Hill to see whether the development he’s noticed from one Friday to the next can continue.
New starters are settling into their roles.
The offensive line is playing faster.
Confidence in the scheme is growing.
Now the defense has to turn positioning and effort into finished plays.
Two weeks have given Hill a better understanding of the football team he has.
Friday night in La Grange gives the Panthers their next opportunity to show what that team is becoming.
Kickoff: Navarro (2-0) vs La Grange, Friday, Sept. 11, 7:00pm.