by MARK CAUL

Lehman junior quarterback Matt Angiuano will help lead a Lobos team that has plenty of returning players during the 7-on-7 summer passing league. (Photo by Judy Cooper)

Many of the core group of players who began the 7-on-7 tradition at Lehman have now departed, but Lobo summer-league coach Lee Perry expects another step in the right direction for the team this summer.

This year’s squad will rely on six returning offensive starters from the varsity team that had its best campaign to date along with four lettermen who return on the defensive side of the ball.

“Our primary objective is to get these guys acclimated to the system they will be running in the fall,” Perry said. “But of course we want to win as many games as we can in the process.”

The Lobos will see a few familiar faces in different spaces this summer with last year’s backup quarterback Harvest Trammell expected to get in some reps in as a receiver during the course of the summer.

Trammell, a senior, split the quarterback duties with junior Matt Angiuano last fall.

“I just want to do whatever the coaches want me to do this year,” Trammell said. “They wanted to try me out at receiver so I’m putting in the extra work to try and do what I can to help this team win.”

Trammell’s move to receiver was needed because of the unavailability of junior speedster Jaylon Hardaway, who will be on the shelf for much of the summer due to a couple of lingering injuries from track and football this past school year.

“Not having Jaylon on the team means that he won’t get the reps I would like over the summer,” Lehman varsity head coach Steve Davis said. “But I know Jaylon will continue to take care of himself and be a big part of our offense in the fall.”

In the backfield, senior Richard Porche and junior Charles Williams are expected to give the Lobos a 1-2 punch along with transfer Levi Ridley, who joins the Lehman squad after transferring from Akins High School.

“We didn’t know a lot about Levi coming into the summer because he didn’t transfer to our school until after football season was already over,” said Davis. “But he’ll definitely give us some much needed depth in the backfield.”

Last year’s starting tight end Kevin Ibanez will also be switching positions next fall, shifting to the offensive line to provide the Lobos with a bit more size in the trenches.

“Ibanez is a big, physical guy that can be utilized on our offensive line,” Perry said. “We’ll spend the summer helping him make the transformation from receiver to offensive lineman.”

Junior Matt Riojas and senior Devin Fox will also be two of the receiving weapons for the Lobos in the summer league.

Many of Lehman’s offensive players will also see plenty of action on defense with Fox and Williams among the favorites to receive defensive starting nods when the fall rolls around.

“This summer will give those guys a taste of what it will be like in the fall,” Davis said.

After opening the summer 7-on-7 season with a loss to rival Hays, the Lobos quickly got back on track with an impressive win over Akins to split their opening night schedule.

“Obviously we played a lot better against Akins than we did against Hays,” said Perry. “But the key is for us to be consistent the entire summer in everything we do both offensively and defensively.”

Lehman will play a 12-game regular-season schedule with two games scheduled each Tuesday at Hays. Games will run through July 6.

Lehman will also play in Hays’ state-qualifying tournament on June 26. If the Lobos finish in the top two, they will advance to the 64-team state 7-on-7 tournament in College Station July 9-10.

Perry hopes his troops are among the many elite teams across the state which will be competing at the state 7-on-7 tournament.

“It’s going to take a lot of hard work for us to get there,” Perry said. “But our guys are talented and driven enough to make it happen.”