Game Photo by Tedra Zmeskal  

A football team is typically as good as the foundation it’s built on.

That foundation for the De Leon Bearcats can be found in the trenches as senior stalwarts Eli Garza and Gage Heinz have provided productivity and dependability for multiple seasons.

Heinz excels on the defensive side as a tackle. After making 76 tackles and two sacks as a junior, he was voted 5-2A Division I’s Defensive Lineman of the Year.

Meanwhile Garza, who started at right tackle as a freshman, has spent the past two seasons as De Leon’s left tackle, earning first-team all-district honors both ways as a sophomore and junior.