WASCO, Calif. — Wasco High School had their most successful football season since 2014 in head coach Chad Martinez’s second year.
The Tigers went 9-4 overall, it was partly in thanks to their star running backs Christian Alvarez and Elias Salinas who were nightmares for opposing defenses.
Alvarez rushed for nearly 1700 yards in his sophomore season.
He knows having the one-two punch in the backfield can help get Wasco closer to a state title.
“We’re both trying to compete,” Alvarez said. “We’re both looking forward for the same thing. My goal is to go undefeated, try to win that ring.”
Coach Martinez expects his team to run the ball 40 to 50 times a game with those two out of the backfield.
And returning a lot of talent across the board, he believes this is the year Wasco could get back to their dominance in league play.
“Beat Shafter, win league, win valley, win state,” Martinez emphasized. “We keep our eye on the prize, but we keep it in perspective. We don’t want to get too ahead of ourselves so we keep our goals in that order.”
Martinez and his Tigers hope to check those four goals off the list but of course it won't be an easy task. Wasco is eager to start that journey, but it all begins at home as the Tigers host Tehachapi for their season opener.
Catch 23ABC Sports' "2-A-Days"segment previewing all Kern County high school football teams daily at 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. leading up to the opening week of the 2019 season.
