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San Juan Capistrano 2017 Football Preview Area teams ready for new season, challenges BY STEVE BREAZEALE AND DANNY RITZ
It’s that time of year again, when the Friday night lights flicker on and hundreds of local football players take the field for the start of the new season. As usual, storylines abound in San Juan Capistrano. San Juan Hills lost a large senior class, but begin the year highly ranked in preseason polls. Over at JSerra, there is a new coach and a new vibe. St. Margaret’s already has a win under its belt, but it came at the cost of several key injuries. Saddleback Valley Christian lost its record-setting quarterback to graduation, and reloads, while Capistrano Valley Christian looks to find its footing in the second year of coach Rick Curtis’ tenure. It’s going to be another action-packed season. Follow us on Twitter @SouthOCsports for in-game updates and scores all season long.
Newcomers and Veterans Poised to Lead San Juan Hills When looking around the field during a recent fall practice, San Juan Hills coach Aaron Flowers realized his roster is going to have some major production void to fill. The Stallions graduated a large, and impactful, senior class that scored a fair amount of points. Just one of the skill position starters on this year’s team has scored a varsity touchdown. “That’s totally rare,” Flowers said of the situation. “You usually have one or two (skill players returning) but that’s not the case. We feel like we have younger guys that can fill those spots, they just haven’t shown it in a varsity game yet.” The situation has led for a very competitive camp, Flowers said, and the Stallions return enough players at other positions that they are poised for another solid campaign. San Juan Hills debuted as the No. 2-ranked team in the CIF-SS Division 4 preseason polls. The lone returning starter that has scored in a varsity game is senior quarterback Doug Jackson. Jackson split time at the position last season with senior Matt Rodriguez, who returns. Jackson has won the starting job and possesses good agility and above-average arm strength, according to Flowers. Play on both the offensive and defensive lines should be a major strength this season. Lineman Sean Rhyan returns to lead an experienced group. Rhyan, who is 6-foot5-inches and weighs 300 pounds, was one of the hottest college recruits in Orange County this offseason. He picked up offers from nearly every Pac-12 school, including USC, UCLA, Washington and Stanford. He will also play on the defensive line. Isaiah Grover and Gabriel Martinez return to the line as well. “We have a lot of (lineman) that can play multiple spots,” Flowers said. “I’m hoping they’ll play well because that usually leads to a lot of good things.” San Juan Hills will have a new defensive
After reaching the first round of the CIF-SS Division 3 playoffs one year ago, the San Juan Hills football will field a mix of veterans and newcomers in 2017. Photo: Steve Breazeale
coordinator in Pete Silvey. Silvey inherits a group that returns several impact starters from last year. Senior linebacker Austin Gifford recorded 74 tackles and an interception as a junior and will return to lead a unit that includes Morgan Derifield. The secondary is full of experience and includes seniors Jackson Swift (cornerback) and Travis Lau (corner/safety). Swift had 40 tackles and two interceptions last season. The Stallions nonleague schedule is dotted with high-profile matchups, including a rivalry game against Capistrano Valley, which appeared in a CIF-SS Championship game last year, and Edison, which won the CIF-SS Division 3 title in 2016. San Juan Hills has always been competitive in the South Coast League, but will need to get past either Mission Viejo or San Clemente to enter the league’s upper echelon. —Steve Breazeale
SAN JUAN HILLS SCHEDULE DATE
OPPONENT
LOCATION, TIME
8/25 9/1 9/8 9/15 9/22 9/29 10/6* 10/13* 10/20* 10/27*
Dos Pueblos Canyon Capistrano Valley Edison Huntington Beach Great Oak Trabuco Hills Mission Viejo San Clemente Tesoro
DPHS, 7 p.m. SJHHS, 7 p.m. SJHHS, 7 p.m. EHS, 7 p.m. HBHS, 7 p.m. SJHHS, 7 p.m. THHS, 7 p.m. SJHHS, 7 p.m. SJHHS, 7 p.m. THS, 7 p.m.
*League game
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New Coach, New Venue, New Season for JSerra Football It will be a season of “new” for the JSerra football team. The Lions have a new head coach, a new identity and a new stadium they can finally call home. Replacing longtime head coach Jim Hartigan, who was let go in the offseason, is Pat Harlow, who has been on the Lions’ staff as an assistant the last few years. Harlow, who played collegiately at USC and had a lengthy career in the NFL, inherits a talented and experienced team that will feature 13 returning starters. The Lions also got a boost from several key transfers. JSerra will finally get the chance to play in front of a home crowd on campus in 2017. The Lions got a new turf field and were granted permission to hold games there at night for the first time in school history. In previous years JSerra played at nearby Saddleback College. The team’s Sept. 1 matchup against Alemany will be the first official home game. Three-year starter Matt Robinson, a University of Montana commit, will be the key to the Lions’ offense. He threw for 2,053 yards and 20 touchdowns as a junior, and flashed his dual-threat running ability to the tune of 459 yards and five rushing touchdowns. While he will again utilize his legs to extend plays, the senior signal caller spent the offseason working on maintaining more presence in the pocket, which his coach believe will help the Lions out tremendously moving forward. “It’s almost like he is a completely different player,” Harlow said of Robinson. “He’s always been a great athlete, but he’s become just a really good quarterback. He is understanding where receivers are going to be, throwing the ball on time, not bailing out when he doesn’t need to.” The Lions have four running backs they will call upon, a group that includes senior Al Fisher, Eli Jefferson, Jamiel Henning and Anthony Ward.
Top horizontal: Eli Jefferson returns a kickoff during a JSerra fall training camp practice. Photo: Steve Breazeale
JSerra quarterback Matt Robinson is committed to the University of Montana. Photo: Steve Breazeale
Receiver Munir McClain, a transfer from Santa Margarita, will be a dynamic presence alongside fellow wideout Tarik Luckett. The Lions offensive line returns senior standouts Jake Parks and Jack Bolduc. Fisher (cornerback), junior Calvin Mouisset (safety) and TJ Medina (linebacker) return on defense. Santa Margarita transfer and UCLA commit Malik McClain has had a huge offseason and will lead the Lions’ pursuit at defensive end. To prepare them for the final slate of games in the Trinity League, the Lions will play a tough nonleague schedule, which
includes matchups against three teams ranked in their respective division’s top-10 preseason polls. JSerra, which enters 2017 ranked No. 7 in Division 1, tied for fourth-place in the ubercompetitive Trinity League last season. The league features the No. 1-ranked team in the nation in Mater Dei, perennial powerhouse St. John Bosco and regional rivals like Santa Margarita and Orange Lutheran. “I think we’ll compete well in league,” Robinson said. “This team is definitely the best team I’ve been on and I think we’re going to do some big things.”—SB
JSERRA’S SCHEDULE DATE
8/25 9/1 9/8 9/15 9/22 10/6* 10/13* 10/20* 10/27* 11/3* Pat Harlow enters his first year as the head coach of the JSerra football program. Photo: Steve Breazeale
OPPONENT
LOCATION, TIME
Corona del Mar Alemany Bishop Amat Vista Murrieta Los Alamitos Servite Orange Lutheran Mater Dei Santa Margarita St. John Bosco
Newport Harbor HS, 7 p.m. JSerra, 7 p.m. JSerra, 7 p.m. VMHS, 7 p.m. JSerra, 7 p.m. Cerritos College, 7 p.m. Orange Coast College, 7 p.m. Santa Ana Stadium, 7 p.m. JSerra, 7 p.m. JSerra, 7 p.m. *League game
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Senior running back Marcus Knight ran for three touchdowns in St. Margaret’s season-opening win in Hawaii on Aug. 18. Photo: John Cole/Pro Action Photo
Early Challenges Haven’t Slowed St. Margaret’s Down For the second season in a row, the St. Margaret’s football team traveled to Hawaii to play its season-opener. The Tartans performed well on the Big Island and beat Kealakehe 34-14 on Aug. 18, picking up the all-important first win of the season. While it was a memorable and successful trip for many of the players, it came at a cost. Several Tartans suffered multiple injuries during the game, the most significant being to returning junior running back Koa Todd, who hurt his knee and will be out for the remainder of the season. Todd, who had a respectable sophomore campaign, was slated to be a key contributor at running back and linebacker this season. Returning junior receiver/linebacker Nick Falshaw broke his ankle during the game, and will be out for several weeks. The Tartans will also head into the second week of the season without head coach Stephen Barbee, who is away from the team dealing with an undisclosed medical issue. Rob Healy, the team’s offensive coordinator, is serving as interim head coach until Barbee returns. Every year a football team deals with injuries and issues, Healy acknowledged. This
year the Tartans are having to deal with both right out of the gate. “You can’t believe the team bond and togetherness that goes on here. It’s that bond that pulls us through challenging times and will with this adversity,” Healy said. “When you lose a couple players you look to the guys next to you and that’s what they’ve done. The team has rallied and performed well.” While a few pieces are missing, the larger whole of the team is intact and it is filled with impact players that could carry St. Margaret’s to yet another playoff berth. Healy hailed returning senior receiver and Penn commit Ryan Cragun as “one of the best players in the history of the school”. Cragun recorded over 1,000 yards receiving and 22 touchdowns as a junior. He is also one of the team’s lockdown cornerbacks. The quarterback position has always been a prominent one at St. Margaret’s and this year James Mott will step into the role. Mott burst onto the scene last year when he started the final regular season game against Crean Lutheran, passing for three touchdowns and running for two more in a 49-7 win. Mott’s play powered the Tartans to a passing league win at the Battle of the Hills 7-on-7 event this offseason. Senior running back and receiver Marcus Knight had a breakout game in Hawaii and
ST. MARGARET’S SCHEDULE DATE
OPPONENT
LOCATION, TIME
8/18 8/31
Kealakehe Calvary Chapel
9/8 9/15 9/22 9/29* 10/6 10/14 10/27* 11/3*
Valley Christian Bishop’s Laguna Beach St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy Grace Brethren Nordhoff Crean Lutheran Orange Vista
Win, 34-14 Orange Coast College, 7:30 p.m. SMES, 7 p.m. SMES, 7 p.m. LBHS, 7 p.m. St. Pius, 7 p.m. SMES, 7 p.m. SMES, 3:30 p.m. CLHS, 7 p.m. OVHS, 7 p.m.
*League game
rushed for three touchdowns. Seniors Max Martinez and Ryan Gottlieb return to both the offensive and defensive lines. Senior Brandon Wu will bring experience at cornerback. The Tartans will have two new linebackers in junior Jack Young and sophomore Caden Smith, who Healy says can be an impact player right away. The Tartans spent 2016 as a freelance team, with no league affiliation. This year, the Academy League is back, and will feature the Tartans, Crean Lutheran, Orange
Vista of Perris and St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy of Downey. Now that they have a league to play in, the Tartans do not have to worry about earning an at-large berth to get into the playoffs. If they finish top-2 in league, they will be in. “We’re not subject to getting some unlucky situation now. We’re in control of our own playoff destiny,” Healy said. “But our goal is to win league. We’ve got some tough teams in it, and we’re excited about the Academy League being back again.”—SB
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Warriors Look to Continue Winning Ways Saddleback Valley Christian football coach Brendan Chambers beamed with confidence when asked about his team’s desire to defend its San Joaquin League title in 2017. The Warriors have won 11 straight league titles, and went undefeated in league play one year ago.
Strong Crop of Juniors Return to Lead the Eagles Following a tough 2016 season that saw his team go 2-8, including a winless record in league play, Capistrano Valley Christian football coach Rick Curtis is optimistic about his sophomore campaign. “We lost some great players, but this year we are actually more experienced than last year,” Curtis said. “We have a good number of highly skilled returning players that are now more familiar with the game and our program.” What the Eagles lack in numbers, and in terms of senior experience, Curtis says they make up for in quality. CVCS returns a strong crop of linemen that will be playing both ways, including senior center and defensive end Keston
Kajitani and senior guard and nose tackle Colin Thornton. “We hope our interior lineman will lead from the inside out,” Curtis said. A large junior class makes up a majority of CVCS’s roster. These juniors return for a second full year under Curtis, who took over the program in 2016. They have adopted a more expansive weight training and offseason training regimen since Curtis took the reins. Seth Yu, a transfer, will be among the Eagles’ key skill position players, playing running back and defensive back. Joining him on the players to watch list will be Trey Henry (running back/linebacker) and Kegan Babick (running back/linebacker). CVCS kicks off its season against Tri-City Christian on Aug. 25 at San Clemente High School. —Danny Ritz
“No one wants to be a part of disappointing a dynasty,” Chambers said of his team’s mindset. “They show up and they work for that every day.’ After losing their All-League leader and on-field powerhouse quarterback Cade Henjum to graduation, Chambers and his squad are adopting a new philosophy in 2017. “We’re a young but very talented team. We’re going to keep it simple, and I think we can do that really well,” Chambers said. Stepping up and filling the quarterback role will be junior Mason Allen. Chambers said Allen has big arm strength and pos-
sesses a classic drop-back, game-management style. “I’ve never seen anything like (his style) at this level,” said Chambers, who was a school record-setting quarterback while at SVC. Allen’s precision passing complements a dynamic contingent of returning offensive threats, including Jack Deavila and Jackson Greene, who combined for 1,892 receiving yards and 18 touchdowns last season. “We’re exciting on the outside. Our speed is our strength,” Chambers said of his receivers. Anchoring the defensive side of the ball will be junior Donte Seltzer. At 6-foot-tall, 230 pounds, Seltzer looks the part of the prototypical middle linebacker. He returns to play the position after recording 153 tackles last season and will be a force against opposing offenses. Tanner Jackson, Jackson Combs and Cade Carter make up a trio of transfers that have little experience but promising upside.—DR
L to R: Micah Mink, Jackson Greene, Jack de Avila, Jonah Tolmaire and Daniel House will lead the SVC football team in 2017. Photo: Danny Ritz
CAPISTRANO VALLEY CHRISTIAN SCHEDULE
SADDLEBACK VALLEY CHRISTIAN SCHEDULE
DATE
OPPONENT
LOCATION, TIME
DATE
OPPONENT
LOCATION, TIME
8/25 9/1 9/8 9/14 9/29 10/5* 10/13* 10/20* 10/28* 11/3*
Tri-City Christian Riverside Prep St. Bernard Calvary Murrieta Mark Keppel The Webb Schools Fairmont Prep Santa Clarita Christian Southlands Christian Nogales Saddleback Valley Christian
San Clemente HS, 7 p.m. RPHS, 7 p.m. Capistrano Valley HS, 7 p.m. Capistrano Valley HS, 7 p.m. Capistrano Valley HS, 7 p.m. Damien, 7:30 p.m. Capistrano Valley HS, 7 p.m. SCCHS, 7 p.m. Nogales HS, 5 p.m. San Clemente HS, 7 p.m.
8/26 9/8 9/15 9/22 9/29 10/5* 10/13* 10/19* 10/27* 11/3*
Northwood Baldwin Park Escondido Charter El Toro Boron Santa Clarita Christian Southlands Christian Fairmont Prep The Webb Schools Capistrano Valley Christian
Northwood, 7 p.m. Trabuco Hills HS, 7 p.m. Trabuco Hills HS, 7 p.m. ETHS, 7 p.m. BHS, 7 p.m. Trabuco Hills HS, 7 p.m. Rowland Heights HS, 7 p.m. Yorba Linda HS, 7 p.m. Trabuco Hills HS, 7 p.m. San Clemente HS, 7 p.m.
*League game
*League game