James Earl Rudder High School was established in 2008.
Since then, they’ve shown to be a dominant force when it comes to gymnastics. The boy’s gymnastics team quickly rose to prominence by winning two state titles in three years last winning one in 2016.
The football program looks to make that same jump under star quarterback, EJ Ezar.
Ezar is one of the most underappreciated dual-threat quarterbacks in the state of Texas. As a sophomore starter for the Rudder Rangers, Ezar threw for 1,540 yards and 13 touchdowns. He also ran for nearly 400 more with 11 more touchdowns.
“The hard work I put in, along with my teammates, both on and off the field. It consists of throwing, running, and film study,” Ezar said on his success.
Ezar’s impressive stat line led him to winning the District 10-5A-II offensive newcomer of the year.
“It was a very special recognition, especially coming from a district that is loaded with talent. It also gave me the motivation to keep going into this next season and to win offensive MVP next year,” the dual-threat quarterback said.
Ezar led Rudder to a 5-5 record last year as a sophomore. They went 3-4 in district play, good enough for fifth place, and just barely missing out on the playoffs. After the UIL realignment Rudder is still stuck with some talented teams like A&M Consolidated, Huntsville, and Lamar Consolidated. Still, Ezar has all the confidence in the world in himself and his team.
“Definitely, we want to make a deep playoff run. We were one game short last year, with so many young players. This year everyone is ready, experienced, and hungry,” Ezar said.
EJ Ezar has already done so much as just a sophomore. He has two more years to really put his name on the map for all of Texas to see. Keep an eye out for and remember the name EJ Ezar.
“I’m a competitor and I love to win. I will do anything for a win. I’m a team-first kind of guy and I won’t let my team down,” Ezar said.
