SAN ANTONIO — The sights and sounds from Southside High School tell you a lot about this Cardinals team. It just tells you a bit more about its quarterback, though.
"(My teammates ask) me what kind of music are we going to play today and I say, 'let's play some country,'" senior quarterback Alejandro Escamilla said. "They're like, 'nah.'"
Cardinals head coach Ricky Lock said, "Yeah, he's a cowboy. Little cowboy there. He's a good kid."
Senior quarterback Alejandro Escamilla has two homes. One on the turf, and one on his parents' ranch. "I grew up on a saddle. My dad had me on the saddle before I could walk, and I've been riding ever since," Escamilla said.
That lifestyle has trickled over into his mentality as a football player. It's something his head coach has noticed since day one.
"He's tough," Lock said. "He's taken some big hits in his career and got up and bounced back from them. I think that has something to do with it and he's just a tough, gritty kid."
The Cardinals have followed Escamilla's lead. While the signal-caller continues to set program passing and touchdown records, it is his 19-and-counting wins which stand out the most.
"He started when he was a freshman on varsity, so he knows more than anybody else, but yeah, he knows the expectation," senior wide receiver and best friend Michael Hernandez said. "I guess we've never had anybody like him."
Lock said: "He's been there. He understands the heat of the moment. He's been through the grind and tough games. We're very fortunate to have Alejandro."
In 2018, the team captured its first-ever playoff victory and nine-win season. In 2019, Escamilla is hoping to take this school a step further.
"The bar is set high for the team and coaches and I don't want to let anybody down. I wanna do all I can," Escamilla said.
By hook or by crook for this Cowboy.