Aubrey Washington fills in to lift Legacy past Silverado

With starting running back Isaiah Whitehead nursing a minor injury Friday, Legacy senior Aubrey Washington knew he might get a little extra playing time.

He made the most of the opportunity. Washington rushed 10 times for 88 yards and scored three total touchdowns—all in the first half—to lead the Longhorns to a convincing 46-7 road victory at Silverado in the season opener for both teams.

“(Washington) came to us in the off-season, and he’s been a serious surprise,” Legacy coach John Isola said. “We knew we’d need to use him tonight, and he obviously stepped up.”

Washington was by no means the only standout for Legacy, as quarterback Roberto Valenzuela connected with Antoine Clipper for a 32-yard TD pass midway through the first quarter to give the Longhorns a 6-0 lead.

“He’s a second-year guy,” Isola said of Valenzuela, who completed 12 of 17 passes for 212 yards and four TDs. “You’ll see all the difference in the world when he executes like that.”

The Legacy defense, which held the Skyhawks to negative yards in the first quarter, forced a Silverado fumble on the next play.

“We know we can stop people,” Isola said. “People underestimate our defense, but we showed we can stop guys.”

The turnover resulted in a 9-yard scoring run by Whitehead just more than two minutes later. The Longhorns followed with a successful onside kick that resulted in an 11-yard scoring sprint by Washington to make it 20-0.

Washington scored two more times in the second quarter before the Skyhawks finally got on the board with a 60-yard run by Joshua Lathers late in the half, but Legacy responded two plays later with a 70-yard TD pass from Valenzuela to Clipper to make it 40-7 at halftime.

Elisha Jackson tacked on a 29-yard TD on another Valenzuela pass in the third quarter to end the scoring.

Clipper finished with 140 yards on six receptions, and Jerry Martin added 54 yards on five carries for the Longhorns.