Robstown, Tx. – Port Isabel’s season came to an abrupt end Friday night, falling to the Robstown Cotton Pickers, 38-28, in a hard-fought battle.
At one point, the Tarpons looked destined to make their fifth consecutive Area round appearance, taking a 13-10 lead halfway through the second quarter.
But P.I. committed five fumbles on the evening, with two of them directly resulting in Robstown touchdowns late in the first half, helping propel the Cotton Pickers to their first playoff victory in 15 seasons.
Seniors Luis Ramos (92 yards, 2 TDs, 1 fumble, 4 tackles) and Edward Garza (37 yards, 1 TD, 1 fumble recovery, 3 TFL) turned in star efforts on both sides of the ball in their final game as Tarpons, but it wasn’t enough to overcome costly turnovers and a big-play Robstown offense.
First Half
The Tarpons took nearly six minutes off the clock on their opening possession, moving the ball down to the 17-yard line before RB Garza was stuffed behind the line of scrimmage on a fourth down conversion attempt.
QB Trevon Crowley led his team on to the field and caught the seawall defense by surprise, completing a deep pass to WR Mike Williams for an 80-yard touchdown strike on Robstown’s first play from scrimmage. after a successful PAT, the Cotton Pickers took an early 7-0 lead.
P.I. responded with a quick scoring drive of their own, capped off by a 13-yard reverse to Ramos where he showed off his patented speed, outpacing defenders and stretching over the pylon for the Tarpons’ first points of the contest.
After a failed two-point conversion, Port Isabel trailed 7-6 late in the first quarter.
Robstown tested Port Isabel’s run defense with a mix of power and speed on their next possession. RB’s Isaiah Gutierrez and Timothy Sanchez picked up a few big gains to get the Cotton Pickers within scoring distance, before QB Crowley dropped back for another pass attempt on second down. This time he was pressured by LB Michael Finona, who laid the wood on the Junior quarterback as he threw his first incomplete pass of the night.
The Cotton Pickers drove down to the 5-yard line, but the Seawall defense made a firm stand, recording two consecutive tackles for loss, including a gang tackle by Garza and DB Tristan Green, followed by a deflected pass in the endzone by Ramos to upend Robstown’s touchdown hopes.
The Cotton Pickers would settle for a field goal to extend their lead 10-6 with 9:02 to go in the second quarter.
Port Isabel’s offensive line continued to dig in and push around Robstown’s defense, carving the way for multiple big runs on P.I.’s next possession. They drove 67 yards down the field and into Cotton Picker territory, with ball-carrying duties being split between the running back committee of Ramos, Garza, Finona, Alvaro Rocha, and Bryan Ramirez, who also caught a 13-yard reception on the drive.
Senior QB Bryan Martinez (3/7 passing, 27 yards, 25 rush yards, 1 TD, 3 fumbles) capped off the drive with a 1-yard quarterback sneak for a touchdown to give the Tarpons their first lead of the evening.
Senior Kicker Luis Uolla — who wowed the crowd at halftime with multiple 55-yard field goal attempts — sent the PAT sailing above the goal posts to put the Tarpons up 13-10 with 6:07 to go in the first half.
After forcing the Cotton Pickers into a three-and-out on its next possession, all signs were pointing towards an inevitable Tarpon route in the making.
Robstown punted the ball down to the 25-yard line, where P.I.’s offense took the field again, hoping to extend their lead before the first half came to a close.
Instead, the Cotton Pickers’ defense would catch a big break on the first play of the drive when RB Rocha fumbled the ball while fighting for extra yards. Robstown’s Williams scooped up the loose ball and ran 30 yards in the opposite direction, finding the endzone for his second score of the evening to put the Cotton Pickers back on top, 18-13 after a successful two-point conversion attempt.
On the ensuing kickoff, Robstown executed an awkward pooch kick that landed right in between a few Tarpon return men. While Tristan Green attempted to secure the loose ball, he was met by a gang of Cotton Pickers who plucked it away from him, giving possession right back to Robstown.
They would quickly capitalize with a beautiful 19-yard touchdown pass from Crowley to WR Miles Rodriguez, who secured the jump ball in the back of the endzone despite amazing coverage by DB Ramos.
They missed the PAT, but in a matter of seconds the game had taken a 14-point swing, as the Cotton Pickers now held a commanding 24-13 lead headed into halftime.
Second Half
The seawall defense rose to the occasion to begin the third quarter, forcing Robstown into a three-&-out during its first drive. On third-&-7 deep in their own territory, QB Crowley attempted to keep the ball himself but was tackled at the line of scrimmage by defensive linemen Miles Moore and Jahi Vasquez, forcing the Cotton Pickers to punt it back to P.I.
Starting the drive at Robstown’s 41-yard line, RB Finona picked up a couple short gains to set up a third-&-five for the Tarpons. Ramos received a pitch to the right side and appeared to have picked up enough for the first down, but was stripped by the Cotton Pickers while fighting for extra yardage.
Robstown would get the ball back but was forced into a second consecutive three-&-out as the seawall defense continued to rattle the Cotton Pickers.
With 7:02 to go in the third quarter, the Tarpons offense finally strung together another meaningful possession. RB Ramirez picked up 25 yards on a beautiful run to start the drive, followed by an onslaught of positive gains by seniors Garza, Ramos, and Martinez to get the Tarpons down to the goal line. Ramos capped off the drive with a 5-yard touchdown run up the middle, and Garza would tack on a two-point run attempt to cut Robstown’s lead to 24-21 with under two minutes remaining in the third period.
The Cotton Pickers appeared on the verge of unraveling to start their next possession. Facing a 2nd-&-long deep in their own territory, a false start pushed them back five more yards. Just as the seawall defense seemed poised to make a game-changing play, the Cotton Pickers ran a jet sweep to WR Sanchez, who turned on the boosters and sailed to the endzone for a 60-yard score to extend their lead, 31-21.
Robstown would attempt a questionable onside kick on the next play that was recovered by P.I. to give the Tarpons amazing starting field position. Port Isabel elected to attempt three consecutive run plays, without much success. On fourth-&-six, Martinez bobbled the snap and was tackled to give possession back to Robstown.
As momentum dwindled, the Tarpons received a big defensive play from DB Green, who came crashing into a Robstown running back on the first play of the next drive, jarring the ball loose and allowing LB Garza to recover the fumble, giving Port Isabel another chance to get back in the ballgame.
Port Isabel drove down the field in 12 plays, receiving great effort from linemen, blocking backs, and ball-runners alike, while also converting a crucial fourth-&-three to extend the drive. RB Garza stamped the possession with a 2-yard score up the middle to put the Tarpons back within three points, 31-28, with 6:04 to go in the ballgame.
But on this night, Robstown would not be denied. Led by bruiser RB Gutierrez, the Cotton Pickers ran the ball at will against an exhausted Port Isabel front seven who had done their best to contain the big ball carrier all night. Combined with a jet sweep play that seemed unstoppable, Robstown picked up four first downs on their final drive before Gutierrez galloped into the endzone from 16 yards out to put the Pickers up for good, 38-28.
P.I. would get the ball back with 1:51 to go in the game but decided to effectively run out the clock, settling for the 10-point defeat.
Port Isabel’s offense totaled 271 yards on the evening, with 244 of that coming on the ground. The defense gave up 312 total yards.
It was the Cotton Pickers first playoff win since 2010, where they also defeated Port Isabel — [ side note: I was on that 2010 Tarpon team. We got annihilated 37-7 in front of our home crowd at Tarpon Stadium. So kudos to the 2025 Tarpons for actually putting up a fight vs. the Cotton Pickers].
What’s Next
With the victory, Robstown advances to the Area round of the playoffs. Their matchup vs. Wimberley is scheduled for Thursday, November 20 at Beeville Stadium at 7:00pm.
The Tarpons end their season with a 6-5 record. They captured the District 16-4a division ll championship after going undefeated in division play. It was P.I.’s fourth consecutive District title.
Tarpon fans should expect the football program to build off this season’s success. Port Isabel fielded a very young team that made large strides as the season went along. It will be interesting to see what this group looks like after a full offseason.
Also, thank you to the student-athletes who made covering this season such a fun experience. When I began recording the game stats, I really had no clue what I was going to do with the information. But I noticed right away that this team had a story to tell, and I thought that I could help tell a small part of it. This was one of the most enjoyable seasons of Tarpon football I’ve had the pleasure of watching. Thanks for the memories.
Go Big Blue.
P.S. stay tuned for more content from http://www.PortIsabelTimes.com as time goes on. Thank you to the readers for your support and honest feedback throughout the season.
*All stats reported are unofficial. Please feel free to email Jonathan Delgado at johnslawnstx@gmail.com with any comments, corrections, or questions.
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