SAN ANTONIO — It was time for Mark Soto to come home.
“My mom still 2.7 miles away, my sister 2.8,” says Soto, who accepted the head coaching job at his alma mater of Judson High in the offseason. “I think I have some street cred over here.”
A player at Judson in the early 1990s, Soto is trying to bring the Rockets back to the postseason after a disappointing 4-6 mark a season ago.
It was the first time since 2006 that the Rockets missed playoff action.
Soto comes to Judson from Johnson, where he turned the Jaguars into a steady playoff fixture. As fate would have it, the Jaguars will open against Soto’s former team Week 1 at the Alamodome.
The cupboard certainly isn’t bare for the first-year head coach, as the Rockets boast two of the top players in the city. Defensive lineman Johnny Bowens was a one-time Texas A&M commit before decommitting in June, but still holds offers from numerous Power-Five programs, including the Aggies.
He’s focusing on ramping it up for his senior year.
“Every play, I feel like I got to play 100%,” says the 265-pound Bowens. “Once I get to 100% for four downs every single play, I feel like I’m going to be that guy.”
Wide receiver Anthony Evans has a number of blue bloods after him. The 5-11 senior holds offers from the likes of Georgia, Oklahoma, Penn State and Texas A&M.
The Rockets are another team who will discover their ceiling early on. Following the opener against Johnson, powerhouse Austin Westlake comes to town in Week 2.
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