BANQUETE — Don’t tell the La Villa Cardinals how good Falls City is.

The Beavers (10-0) are state-ranked by the Associated Press and have steamrolled the competition along the way.

The Cards (5-5) know this. But they also know that’s why they play the game, which will be at Bulldog Stadium in Banquete tonight.

It all began with J.C. Dykes, the 1928 McAllen High coach who helped put the Bulldogs on the map. Although the Bulldogs began play in 1914, it wasn’t until 1928 that they made the playoffs for the first time in their almost 100-year history.

Two-a-day football practices are one of the accepted and conventional ways to prepare players for the upcoming season. Practices help acclimate players with their teammates and coaches while testing their bodies and minds during some of the hottest days of the year.

AUSTIN - Texas lawmakers have reached a deal to slash steroid testing of public high school athletes to less than half of the current program, but still leave it big enough to test thousands of athletes over the next two years.

The deal was struck by House and Senate members negotiating the 2010-2011 budget, lawmakers said Tuesday

The current $6 million program was designed to test up to 50,000 students by the end of the current school year. The tentative deal for the new program would slash funding to $2 million over the next two years.

Los Fresnos football coach Scott Ford confirmed with RGVSports.com that he interviewed for the head coaching position Monday morning in Midland Lee High School.Ford flew to Midland on Sunday and interviewed this morning but would not comment further on the interview process.

Midland ISD Executive Director of Athletics Todd Howey and Los Fresnos CISD Superintendent Gonzalo Salazar did not immediately return phone calls and messages left by RGVSports.com seeking comment.

Los Fresnos football coach Scott Ford confirmed with RGVSports.com that he interviewed for the head coaching position Monday morning in Midland Lee High School.Ford flew to Midland on Sunday and interviewed this morning but would not comment further on the interview process.

Midland ISD Executive Director of Athletics Todd Howey and Los Fresnos CISD Superintendent Gonzalo Salazar did not immediately return phone calls and messages left by RGVSports.com seeking comment.

MOUNT LAUREL, N.J. - At one time, testing high school athletes for steroids was seen as the best way to fight performance-enhancing drug use among the young. Now, those efforts are losing steam because of high costs and few positive results.

New Jersey, Florida, Texas and Illinois have tried steroid testing since 2006, and an examination of the results by The Associated Press shows that only 20 tests out of 30,799 have come back positive.

HOUSTON - Tucker Carter completed 20 of 29 for 253 yards and three touchdowns, all three in the second half, as Allen rallied to a 21-14 victory over Fort Bend Hightower in the Class 5A Division I state championship game Saturday night.

It was Allen's first state championship. The Eagles finished 15-1 while Hightower, also playing in its first state title game, finished 13-1.

The Eagles went on a nine-play, 71-yard drive with Jeremiah Williams catching a 3-yard touchdown to tie it at 7-7 with 2:59 left in the third quarter.

The 2008 Class 5A All-State high school football team, released Thursday, as voted on by The Associated Press Sports Editors based on regular-season performance. Players are listed in alphabetical order at each position.

First-Team
OFFENSE
Offensive line (tie):
THOMAS ASHCRAFT, Cedar Hill, Sr., graded over 90 percent; averaged 8 pancakes per game

ALEC EGAN, Abilene, Sr., graded 94 percent, 22 pancakes, 1 sack allowed

JOSH KASTEN, Copperas Cove, Sr., graded 93 percent grade, 40 pancakes

District 32-4A champion Edcouch-Elsa garnered another honor on Wednesday.

Defensive back Joseph Garcia, the son of E-E defensive coordinator Joe Garcia, was named to the Associated Press' Class 4A All-State first team. Garcia, also a 32-4A first-team selection, had 85 tackles, 70 solo and intercepted 12 passes.

"It means a lot," Joseph Garcia said. "It means I reached a goal in football."