tipping THE SCALES

BY ZACH CAVANAGH

The San Clemente football team is stacked up for the final running of the South Coast League.

Granted, the South Coast League, Sea View League and all other traditionally named Orange County athletics leagues will still exist across the rest of the high school sports landscape, but this is likely to be the final go-round for football teams against their longtime rivals in their usual alignments.

A proposal to organize Orange County football leagues into computer rankings-based groupings next season instead of geographic ones was approved by the county’s athletic directors and principals earlier this year and is expected to receive the final CIF-SS stamp of approval in October. It’s yet another stab at mathematically calculated “competitive equity,” similar to the change to the CIF-SS playoff division format in recent years in which divisions are created off the season-end CalPreps ranking formula. While winning a league championship is (Continued) always the first goal for the Tritons football team, San Clemente hasn’t put any extra emphasis on winning the last South Coast League football championship, at least not yet.

“Honestly, the beauty of San Clemente High School and our kids, they don’t pay too much attention to that,” San Clemente coach Jaime Ortiz said. “They go out and compete every single week. We haven’t even really talked about it.”

If anything, the path to a league championship next season may not be any different than this season, as most projections have the Tritons slotted for the top-ranked league alongside usual league title foe Mission Viejo. It’s also just a natural evolution for a San Clemente program that has long maintained a high standard among its contemporaries.

“We’re considered one of the top public schools in Orange County, and our goal is to continue that tradition of being one of those top schools,” Ortiz said. “It’s why we play schools like Corona del Mar and Edison that are like-minded.”

Amidst all the changes to the high school football landscape, San Clemente contin - ues to strive for excellence, and the Tritons know they can achieve that.

Even last season, when the CIF-SS algorithm bumped San Clemente up a playoff division higher than many projected, the Tritons held their own, as they pushed Chaminade of West Hills, No. 2 seed in Division 2, to overtime. On the road, San Clemente fell by a point in double-overtime on a two-point conversion that barely crossed the plane of the goal line.

It’s an experience the returning Tritons keep with them as a vote of confidence and motivation to aim high.

“I hate saying we’ve got a chip on our shoulder, but it definitely adds a bit of that, because to lose in double-overtime by a half an inch, that’s frustrating,” senior quarterback Dylan Mills said. “We know that we are that caliber of team, and we know when the moment comes again, we’re going to get that half an inch.”

A strength to give San Clemente that extra edge will be a renewed ability to attack in multiple ways on the offensive side of the ball.

The Tritons are the definition of balanced with the ability to throw or pass with equal efficiency. Balance is often achieved through a bit of sacrifice, and for San Clemente that sacrifice was made by senior Broderick Redden.

As a junior, Redden began the season as San Clemente’s starting quarterback, and after the midway point, when Mills became eligible after his transfer sit-out period, the two had a nearequal split of the signal-calling duties. However, over the spring and summer, Redden has moved to the tight end position, which unlocks a variety of options with his 6-foot-5, 225-pound frame as a target over the middle. Redden called it a “natural transition” because of his size and basketball instincts along with a family legacy, including former Triton Bentley Redden, who is now a tight end at BYU.

Redden also saw it as a better path for himself to playing football at the college level, and Ortiz indicated that he’s already received some interest just based on his summer performance in camps and passing league.

It also means San Clemente isn’t going back and forth between two quarterbacks with different skill sets and rhythms, which Ortiz said hurt their consistency last season. The Tritons can now push forward with Mills, a Villanova commit, at the helm.

“He’s done a great job working on his pocket presence,” Ortiz said. “We did a lot of passing league this summer and spring. We all know that Dylan can tuck it and run it any time. I think he’s really worked on the finer points of the passing game, being able to stay in the pocket, be patient and make some throws. Working with (quarterback coach John) Beck and (offensive coordinator Troy) Kopp, I think he’s really improved.”

Even in spots where San Clemente lost impact seniors, there are more than capable players that have stepped up to fill those roles.

At wide receiver, Drew Shanley and Holden Stakston both provide potential deep threats for a big score or to open up underneath routes in the middle for Redden.

Aiden Rubin steps into the running back role as the full-time starter. Last season, Rubin came in and posted a 100-yard rushing performance in the first half against Steele Canyon when then-starter Blake Allen went down. Rubin is also one of many rugby players on the San Clemente roster and brings that same physical-yet-elusive running style.

The Tritons will also be particularly stout on the offensive line with three returning starters in Connor Bachhuber, Ben Baker and Will Sanders. Bachhuber is 6-foot-5, 245 pounds and committed to Stanford. Baker is 6-foot-2, 270 pounds and committed to getting even stronger in the offseason. Sanders is 6-foot-0, 240 pounds.

However, despite that strength, Ortiz said the line is one place where other contributors will need to step up, as Bachhuber and Baker are instrumental on the defensive line, as well. They’ll need solid back-up options to emerge to confidently give those two occasional rest.

San Clemente was hit hardest by graduation on the defensive side of the ball. The Tritons will be looking for the contributions of players that got limited reps as juniors to make big leaps into their senior seasons.

One player in particular on that path is defensive end Owen Bollinger. With Bachhuber on one end and Baker in the middle, San Clemente will still put out an intimidating front line, but if Bollinger raises his level, the Tritons could truly be monstrous in the trenches.

“You see the transition of guys that were part-time guys as juniors that make that push into their senior year,” Ortiz said. “He (Bollinger) is going to have to step up and have a presence by himself.”

The physicality of the defensive line is something overall that San Clemente looks to restock at other positions after the graduation of leaders including Cole Robertson and Nolan Reid.

At the linebacker level, Zeke Rubinstein and Puka Lee Fuimaono should be able to fill those roles of physicality to step up and stop the run and hold down the middle of the field.

There is a lack of starting experience in the secondary, where the Tritons will be pushed to the “max” with Max Gonzales, Max Bollard and Max Kotiranta.

However, San Clemente could get an unexpected infusion there with the recent transfer of Matai Tagoa’i, a four-star junior safety from Faith Lutheran of Las Vegas. Tagoa’i is the cousin of Fuimaono and is expected to be immediately eligible when his transfer paperwork processes. The 6-foot-4, 190-pound junior currently has 18 Division 1 college offers, including Alabama, Oklahoma and USC.

With an offense that has the opportunity to be explosive, Ortiz is looking for consistency from his defense.

“Defense wins championships, and I’ve felt that way since Day 1,” Ortiz said. “I think with the new guys on the defensive side of the ball, we have to be able to tackle and swarm. How we play defensively the first couple games will be a good indication of where we’re at.”

In this last run through the South Coast League, it might be San Clemente’s best clean shot at a league championship in a while.

Mission Viejo graduated every offensive stats leaders and nearly all of its top defenders, although that may be the stronger side of the ball for the Diablos in terms of returners. Mission Viejo always reloads, but is it high time for San Clemente’s first road win against the Diablos this century?

Capistrano Valley also graduated its dynamic offensive players, and after a winless run in the South Coast League last season, it’s hard to see that getting better for the Cougars.

Tesoro could be the potential trip-up in the South Coast League, as the Titans look to improve with a solidified quarterback position. San Clemente won on the road last season, but just because the Tritons get the homefield advantage this time doesn’t mean they should overlook the Titans.

With the offensive potential, the strong defensive front and brimming confidence, San Clemente could be in position to turn the South Coast League over one last time.