Eliseo Villarreal †
Inducted: 1994
Hometown: Brownsville
High School: Brownsville High School
College: Sam Houston State University
Best Known for: Athlete and Coach-Football
There are a handful of assistant coaches who seem to have as big an impact as the head men, and Villarreal was one of them. As a long-time defensive coordinator at Port Isabel High School starting in the early 1970s, he was a fixture as the program built the fine winning tradition it is now known for.
Villarreal was an honorable mention All-State halfback with Brownsville High School in 1959 and a three-year starter at third base on the baseball squad.
He went on to earn All-Lone Star Conference mention twice while at Sam Houston State in Huntsville, joining the Eagle staff at his high school alma mater under Coach Joe Rodriguez in the mid-1960s.
Coming to Port Isabel, Villarreal became known as the man who ran the defense, offseason program, and strength and conditioning efforts. All his bosses recall him as a steady hand that poured the foundation of Tarpon football.