Always enjoy Rmbr26's WCAL rundowns. Lots of work and a ton of info.
WCAL Football 2018 - San Jose Merc All Bay Area Team
- Thread starter Rmbr26
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Thank you
Always good to hear from a familiar poster rabbit5. If this post was directed to me then no mystery about my yearly blogs on WCAL. I follow the season's closely year to year along with the rest of the CCS teams and use all the resources available to compile information on each team & players. I also refer to my "cloud file" from previous season to look up articles on games, players, coaches as well. My yearly subscription to NFHSnetwork doesn;t hurt either as I often watch clips or games from the previous season [esp when football season is over with..]. More addiction than rocket science sorry to say..
Valley Christian's Charlie Bostic on 79-Yd TD run against St. Francis last season [now at SJSU - photo courtesy BANG]
WCAL Football Review of 2017 Season by Team
Serra 13-2
Serra experienced the best season in the school’s history in 2017 setting multiple records in the process. Losing 2 of 3 games to start the season the Padres then went on a record 12 game win streak to finish the season. The Padres offense was superlative in averaging a record 45.8 points in league play while allowing just 12 points per game. What makes this more impressive is a number of games were decided by half-time and starters pulled early in the 2nd half. Undefeated in league, capturing the CCS Open Division II, winning their NorCal sectional game big over Tulare Union & then shocking the state’s highest scoring team Cajon in winning a state bowl game [also winning the last 4 games without the WCAL’s MVP Antonio Mafi].
2017 was quite a year for the Serra Padres.
Worst Game
Serra started the season with high hopes & hoping for a bit of pay-back in playing St. Mary’s of Stockton for a 63-35 loss on Serra’s home field the previous season. Instead Serra got a rude wake-up call via 41-13 thumping at the hands of the Rams. Not much went right for Serra in this game, but perhaps it was the best thing for their worst game to happen at the start of the season.
Best Game
Easily the big win over SoCal power Cajon, a record setting scoring machine which stumbled badly against an aggressive Padre defense including turn-overs. This was a complete game by Serra on both sides of the ball and included many impressive individual efforts. Luke Bottari played another outstanding game, Isiah Kendricks proved to be the best RB on the field while David Coker/RB provided additional firepower on the ground. Ed Lahlouh was solid on both sides of the ball while Patrick Nunn played both ways & covered Cajon’s best WR on D. There was a possible come-back turning point in the 2nd ½ by Cajon which was quickly diminished with a remarkable kick-off return by Malakai Rango. An impressive effort by the entire team & coaches.
St. Francis 11-4
The lancer’s started the season as one of the favorites to capture the league crown. SF won big their 1rst 2 games before falling to DLS by 31-7 on the Spartan’s home field. Possibly looking ahead to Serra the Lancer’s then stumbled the following week losing to a solid Valley Christian team by 1 score. After that things fell into place for SF with remaining 2 losses to Serra. The 2nd loss for the CCS Open II Championship was by a single point 31-30. The game came down to a single play near end of the game & could have just as easily been the Lancer’s as the Open II Champs. Like they say “Good teams also seem to be “lucky” teams” when the breaks go their way.
Worst Game
St. Francis really did not have any “bad” games to speak of. If I had to choose one it would be the DLS game. The Lancer’s fell behind early and just never seemed to get into sync so to speak. I think towards the end of the season a game between these 2 teams would be more competitive.
Best Game
This was a toss-up for me as SF played great vs Serra in the Div II Championship & nearly defeated Serra. I can’t pick a loss though as their best game & that has to go to the state bowl win over Grace Brethren by 22-13. At the start of the game Grace Brethren’s star RB Seven McGee ran 43 yards for a TD. After that however the Lancer D stiffened and shut down the RB allowing him just 17 more yards the rest of the game [69 yards total]. The Lancer’s were the more physical team on defense and their offense along with help of a few turnovers by the defense was just enough to get SF the win over a very good Grace Brethren team. Evan Williams played a superb game going both ways with 2 TD catches to help secure the win.
Valley Christian 9-3
Valley Christian as in the last few years was a bit of a question mark coming into the season. Would the Warrior’s vie for at least a share of the league crown or regress from their 13-2 prior season which ended in a trip to a state bowl game [lost to Madison, San Diego 21-17]. VC lost the season opener by 22-20 to a good Manteca team [who would later lose to St. Francis in NorCal regional by 28-23]. IN the game VC could not quite get its offense untracked at times. VC then won big the next 2 games and in a minor upset took down SF by 28-21 winning the next 3 games to put together a 6 game win streak. That streak ended the following week against Serra in a blow-out 35-7 loss at Serra. VC would later lose to Serra in the D-II playoffs in a slightly closer game [31-14].
Best Game
The win of 28-21 over the favored SF lancer’s to set up the showdown with Serra.
Worst Game
35-7 loss to Serra at Serra. VC simply could not muster any offense against Serra as the Padres shut down the Warrior’s vaunted run game. VC lives by the run and without any consistent passing game Serra easily outscored VC blowing the game open. In the rematch between the 2 teams VC replaced their season starting QB with their more accurate passing back-up QB. The change made little difference as VC lost again to the Padres by 3 scores.
SHC 6-5
The Irish looked to have high hopes coming into the 2017 with their capable QB Will Irons returning for his senior season with a host of returning varsity players. The Irish won their first 3 pre-season games against somewhat weak competition, but then surprised most fans in a somewhat upset win over St. Ignatius by 21-14. The following week a dose of reality as a lopsided loss followed at the hands of SF followed by more of the same with VC, Serra & Bell’s in subsequent weeks. SHC won as expected vs Riordan & then another “mild” upset defeating Mitty by 35-25. The season ended somewhat prematurely as the Irish stumbled against Live Oak losing 28-21 in the first round of the Div III playoffs.
Worst Game
While the Irish suffered some lopsided losses in WCAL they were at the hands of 2 state champs, VC & the Bell’s. SHC’s worst loss had to be the unexpected defeat to Live Oak and an early exit from the playoffs. SHC was expected to possibly play HMB for the Div III title and was favored over Live Oak at the time. It was unfortunate that SHC played well below their capabilities in their playoff appearance losing to a team they should have been able to beat. Live Oak was crushed the following week by HMB 52-17.
Best Game
Easily the win of 35-25 over a decent Mitty team which had already beaten Menlo-Atherton in pre-season and also the Bell’s. The win over Mitty was the week prior to the loss to a much weaker Live Oak team, which was a disappointing way to end the season.
Next Up: Remaining 4 Teams Reviews
Regarding Serra's 2017 season, going 10-0 vs. WCAL teams (regular season and CCS Open Division playoffs) was unprecedented for the Padres. What's more, they were 4-0 vs. St. Francis over the last two campaigns. Again, unprecedented for Serra which, for decades, came up short against the Mountain View Muggers. The odds would lead one to believe that cannot continue much longer. But god works in strange ways and she can be very strict, especially in the WCAL.
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This article was in yesterday's paper on Darrell Page of St. Francis https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/08/10/is-st-francis-football-star-darrell-page-still-on-team/
colhenry, in the conventional sense yes the odds would seem to be stacked against Serra & 4 wins in a row against the mighty Lancer's would have been unthinkable a dozen years' ago. Then again the Warrior's have now won 3 championships in 4 years' after making the playoffs once in 18 yrs prior [so weirder things have happened, correct?].
I wonder how many years' people have been saying the odds are against DLS and that they were due for a losing season or even a single loss to another NorCal team? Serra has been to state 2 years in a row with remarkable season's. If Serra wins CCS and goes to regional we'll know coach Walsh is really onto something special.
Upcoming: Predicted order of League Finish
For moi, predicting an order of WCAL finish even before scrimmages are held and final rosters (including transfers) are announced seems like a stretch. Might be better to wait another week or so.
Makes sense in most years' colhenry however this season the data seems clear coming off last season. I usually make the predictions of finish in mid-late August, but I think there is enough information at this time to go ahead.
I'll run down each team separately instead of altogether to explain my picks.
Maybe the most intriguing team is Mitty. New coach, new approach, some very good returning players. Another rebuild is underway. Will it bear fruit this year in league play?
WCAL 2018 Projected Order of Team Finish:
Some years’ are more difficult to predict than others’ due to the 2-3 year cycles the WCAL has due to the talent pools of its players. Looking at the past season record for each team and its returning players & coaching staff gives us a somewhat good idea of what we can expect once the season starts. There are also the JV teams to take into consideration as to records and how much the varsity teams will be able to “reload” so to speak. To a lesser degree are the frosh teams’ records and if any outstanding soph’s will add to their varsity team’s pool. A couple of examples would be Valley Christian’s undefeated frosh team, of which a few players could emerge to contribute to varsity this season. As to soph’s contributing to any major degree we need only to look to Mitty’s Shamir Bey 6-3 200, the returning QB for the Monarch’s. Taking over the most important position on the team as just a soph [quite unusual for the WCAL at any position let alone QB], Bey returns as a junior with a full season of experience under his belt. Bey who is an athlete QB returns as the top rusher from players coming back from the 2017 season – a big plus for Mitty.
So team records, returning coaching staff, returning players in particular skill players’ [ie: QB], JV & Frosh players to contribute.
Starting at #8:
Riordan
While I would like to see the Crusader’s at a higher projected position there is not quite enough data to suggest they will elevate above last season’s results. The Crusader’s went 1-6 in league and 2-8 overall.
Riordan did have a good win over S.I. and lost by a single score to the Bell’s, however were not competitive against the upper tier teams of the WCAL. I do not see a multitude of veteran players returning including at the skill positions which indicates Riordan could struggle again in the very tough WCAL this season. The “X” factor for Riordan even more so than other teams will be their QB. If Riordan’s QB plays well he could elevate the other players as well and Riordan could slip by 1 or even 2 other teams into the 6th or 7th position [which in itself would be an improved season over 2017]. I do not think the gap between the 3 SF teams is all that large and Riordan could prove me wrong and surprise some fans. Good luck Crusader's!
Some years’ are more difficult to predict than others’ due to the 2-3 year cycles the WCAL has due to the talent pools of its players. Looking at the past season record for each team and its returning players & coaching staff gives us a somewhat good idea of what we can expect once the season starts. There are also the JV teams to take into consideration as to records and how much the varsity teams will be able to “reload” so to speak. To a lesser degree are the frosh teams’ records and if any outstanding soph’s will add to their varsity team’s pool. A couple of examples would be Valley Christian’s undefeated frosh team, of which a few players could emerge to contribute to varsity this season. As to soph’s contributing to any major degree we need only to look to Mitty’s Shamir Bey 6-3 200, the returning QB for the Monarch’s. Taking over the most important position on the team as just a soph [quite unusual for the WCAL at any position let alone QB], Bey returns as a junior with a full season of experience under his belt. Bey who is an athlete QB returns as the top rusher from players coming back from the 2017 season – a big plus for Mitty.
So team records, returning coaching staff, returning players in particular skill players’ [ie: QB], JV & Frosh players to contribute.
Starting at #8:
Riordan
While I would like to see the Crusader’s at a higher projected position there is not quite enough data to suggest they will elevate above last season’s results. The Crusader’s went 1-6 in league and 2-8 overall.
Riordan did have a good win over S.I. and lost by a single score to the Bell’s, however were not competitive against the upper tier teams of the WCAL. I do not see a multitude of veteran players returning including at the skill positions which indicates Riordan could struggle again in the very tough WCAL this season. The “X” factor for Riordan even more so than other teams will be their QB. If Riordan’s QB plays well he could elevate the other players as well and Riordan could slip by 1 or even 2 other teams into the 6th or 7th position [which in itself would be an improved season over 2017]. I do not think the gap between the 3 SF teams is all that large and Riordan could prove me wrong and surprise some fans. Good luck Crusader's!
I will hold my judgement until Riordan, SI & SH play a few games but I will say this: the crusaders have players on both sides of the ball as usual, the most revelant issue is depth. Too many good players are starting both ways. Will they hold up and play at a high level all season?
WCAL 2018 Projected Order of Team Finish:
#7 – Sacred Heart Cathedral
The Irish graduate one of last season’s better passing QB’s & lose several other important senior players as well. Like the other teams with smaller rosters the QB position becomes critical in making the best use of the players at the skill positions. SHC went 6-5 overall and 3-4 in WCAL last season with their 2 top wins over Mitty & S.I. [win over S.I. in O/T] before a disappointing loss to Live Oak in the first round of the playoffs . Looking forward I do not see SHC over Mitty this season and duplicating the win over S.I. will be a difficult task as well. Without a substantial influx of talent and/ or number of players to rotate and replace injured players during the season SHC will be facing an uphill battle. The fate of all 3 SF teams could be largely determined by the number of injuries of any of the smaller roster teams. With a number of players on each team playing both ways the odds of injuries increase as the season progresses. The first game against Fernley of NV should be an easy win based upon Fernley’s roster this season. Last season’s opener vs Fernley looked to be a similar contest and Fernely proved competitive losing to the Irish 35-26. If SHC resembles anything of last season’s team they should roll over this weaker Fernley team by 21+ [a close game will not bode well for the Irish].
Good luck Irish and I hope you surpass my prediction.
#7 – Sacred Heart Cathedral
The Irish graduate one of last season’s better passing QB’s & lose several other important senior players as well. Like the other teams with smaller rosters the QB position becomes critical in making the best use of the players at the skill positions. SHC went 6-5 overall and 3-4 in WCAL last season with their 2 top wins over Mitty & S.I. [win over S.I. in O/T] before a disappointing loss to Live Oak in the first round of the playoffs . Looking forward I do not see SHC over Mitty this season and duplicating the win over S.I. will be a difficult task as well. Without a substantial influx of talent and/ or number of players to rotate and replace injured players during the season SHC will be facing an uphill battle. The fate of all 3 SF teams could be largely determined by the number of injuries of any of the smaller roster teams. With a number of players on each team playing both ways the odds of injuries increase as the season progresses. The first game against Fernley of NV should be an easy win based upon Fernley’s roster this season. Last season’s opener vs Fernley looked to be a similar contest and Fernely proved competitive losing to the Irish 35-26. If SHC resembles anything of last season’s team they should roll over this weaker Fernley team by 21+ [a close game will not bode well for the Irish].
Good luck Irish and I hope you surpass my prediction.
Be assured that regardless whos taking the snap for SH and SI, it will be alot of Speedy and a lot of Biggins.
I'm not sure who the quarterback will be for the Irish, but they like what they see in practice from what I hear. Also, the SI game ended in regulation.
WCAL 2018 Projected Order of Team Finish:
#7 – Sacred Heart Cathedral
The Irish graduate one of last season’s better passing QB’s & lose several other important senior players as well. Like the other teams with smaller rosters the QB position becomes critical in making the best use of the players at the skill positions. SHC went 6-5 overall and 3-4 in WCAL last season with their 2 top wins over Mitty & S.I. [win over S.I. in O/T] before a disappointing loss to Live Oak in the first round of the playoffs . Looking forward I do not see SHC over Mitty this season and duplicating the win over S.I. will be a difficult task as well. Without a substantial influx of talent and/ or number of players to rotate and replace injured players during the season SHC will be facing an uphill battle. The fate of all 3 SF teams could be largely determined by the number of injuries of any of the smaller roster teams. With a number of players on each team playing both ways the odds of injuries increase as the season progresses. The first game against Fernley of NV should be an easy win based upon Fernley’s roster this season. Last season’s opener vs Fernley looked to be a similar contest and Fernely proved competitive losing to the Irish 35-26. If SHC resembles anything of last season’s team they should roll over this weaker Fernley team by 21+ [a close game will not bode well for the Irish].
Good luck Irish and I hope you surpass my prediction.
Maybe the most telling fact re the 2018 SHC football program is that the Irish reportedly have dropped their JV team, placing all sophs on the varsity. That will surely have ramifications down the line in terms of depth, experience, etc. vs. other, larger, comprehensive WCAL programs.
Palma had to fill their JV slot that opened with Oakland Military Institute - I've never heard of them but looked up and reason they are a new program that is freelance
They didn't want a repeat of last season. Irish definitely need bigger rosters. That should improve with the Field Turf installation on the way at nearby Lang Field. SHC already put up $1.3 million to Park & Rec for the field.
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Let us hope for the best. The WCAL is murder's row in football south of SF every year.
Yes that is a very bad sign that two years in a row that SHC could not field a JV team. The WCAL must not be happy about that. The rest of the schools will get to schedule an additional non-league opponent I presume?
I think they could as well. It's not unprecedented not to have a lower-level team. Last year, SHC softball only had varsity. Some years, Riordan and VC had no frosh soccer. So it happens.
There are a few Peninsula school transfers and one from a rival City school. Not sure if they will be significant, but should at least add capable depth to the roster.
Riordan's soph QB last season who was out for the year as a result of the cheap shot to the head from a Central Catholic player returns for his junior campaign. There are also 2 sophs battling for the #2 spot.
[B said:
Here is the player jordan24 is referring to. Adham looked promising early into the season before the cheap shot in the pre-season game by the Central Catholic player. I do not say this casually as it was an egregious targeted hit by the player who should have been suspended the rest of the season IMO. Such plays should not be tolerated by a simple penalty, which in this case I believe was a 1-game suspension.
Riordan - Adham Abdelghani 6'0" 165 Junior QB
Def a boost for the Crusader offense and brightens the teams hopes considerably. Wishing the Crusader QB much success this season and free of any injuries.
The CC player didn't even miss a game, because the game he was supposed to miss (vs Marin Catholic) was cancelled due to the record heat wave last year. His Section allowed him to be reinstated. Not a fan of the CC Head Coach's sportsmanship, and I will be rooting for DLS to handle the Raiders.
That is very encouraging news. Credit to the young man for giving the sport another shot.
Yes jordan I believe a lot of fans will be rooting for your junior QB including myself.. Go Spartans!!
The Central Catholic Coach appealed to his League Commissioner, not the Section. It was a appeal to the CC League.
According to internet sources, here is the schedule for Friday's WCAL scrimmages:
- Mitty at Milpitas, 4 p.m.
- Riordan at Palo Alto, 7 p.m.
- Serra at Menlo Atherton, 5 p.m.
- St. Francis at Wilcox, 6 p.m.
- Bellarmine at Half Moon Bay, 7:30 p.m.
- Sacred Heart Cathedral at Jefferson (TBA)
- TBA at Valley Christian, 7 p.m.
- Palma at St. Ignatius, 1 p.m. (Saturday)
Thanks again for keeping me honest Stats! Either way, a total sham and lack of sportsmanship and integrity from the CC coach. Yeah, I am still pissed - the promising kid lost his season.
PA scrimmage is listed as 4 teams. Anyone know the other two besides PA and ARHS?
WCAL 2018 Projected Order of Team Finish:
#6 – Bellarmine “Bells”
The once mighty Bells did not fare well in 2016 suffering some uncharacteristically bad losses.
2017 was not any kinder to the once dominating San Jose football power which boasts the largest all boy student body in NorCal. While most schools teams will have down years’ in any sport this drop in being competitive with the better teams in league has been eye-opening. Historically a sound football program it has seemed the last 2 season’s there has been some missing element. Perhaps just a very weak cycle in the talent pool for football at Bellarmine? Or could it be that a change in the coaching staff should be considered? While Coach Janda and his staff have in past been among the best in WCAL, that can quickly be forgotten among fans, alumni and students when the Bell’s are losing to Serra 48-0, 31-6 to their rival St. Francis and 35-7 in the first round of the playoffs to Milpitas in 2017 [basically a re-run of 2016 only slightly worse].
For 2018 based upon the previous 2 season’s the Bell’s will enter the season rated lower than any time in my recent memory. Based upon the Bell’s loss last season to St. Ignatius by 28-21 I am giving the edge to S.I. in my rankings prediction. The Bell’s had good JV & Frosh teams last season with winning records and will need a host of players to reload at skill positions & replace a number of OL/DL starters who graduated. Possibly Coach Janda can come up with yet another quality athlete QB as he’s done many times in the past. Regardless of who the QB is for the Bell’s they will need a passing game to keep up with the higher scoring teams. The grind it out run game the Bell’s coaching staff has remained faithful to simply will not be able to match scoring with the 3 top teams in the WCAL this season. Last season the Bell’s averaged 2 TD’s per game over their 11-game season. That was 7th in league and only about 5-points more than Riordan averaged. Will the Bell’s bounce back & prove me wrong? We’ll get a good idea when they host Menlo-Atherton August 24th at 7 PM. M-A usually fields a very physical team and is rated about even with Bellarmine coming into the season. The Bell’s won last season’s opener against M-A by 21-16.
#6 – Bellarmine “Bells”
The once mighty Bells did not fare well in 2016 suffering some uncharacteristically bad losses.
2017 was not any kinder to the once dominating San Jose football power which boasts the largest all boy student body in NorCal. While most schools teams will have down years’ in any sport this drop in being competitive with the better teams in league has been eye-opening. Historically a sound football program it has seemed the last 2 season’s there has been some missing element. Perhaps just a very weak cycle in the talent pool for football at Bellarmine? Or could it be that a change in the coaching staff should be considered? While Coach Janda and his staff have in past been among the best in WCAL, that can quickly be forgotten among fans, alumni and students when the Bell’s are losing to Serra 48-0, 31-6 to their rival St. Francis and 35-7 in the first round of the playoffs to Milpitas in 2017 [basically a re-run of 2016 only slightly worse].
For 2018 based upon the previous 2 season’s the Bell’s will enter the season rated lower than any time in my recent memory. Based upon the Bell’s loss last season to St. Ignatius by 28-21 I am giving the edge to S.I. in my rankings prediction. The Bell’s had good JV & Frosh teams last season with winning records and will need a host of players to reload at skill positions & replace a number of OL/DL starters who graduated. Possibly Coach Janda can come up with yet another quality athlete QB as he’s done many times in the past. Regardless of who the QB is for the Bell’s they will need a passing game to keep up with the higher scoring teams. The grind it out run game the Bell’s coaching staff has remained faithful to simply will not be able to match scoring with the 3 top teams in the WCAL this season. Last season the Bell’s averaged 2 TD’s per game over their 11-game season. That was 7th in league and only about 5-points more than Riordan averaged. Will the Bell’s bounce back & prove me wrong? We’ll get a good idea when they host Menlo-Atherton August 24th at 7 PM. M-A usually fields a very physical team and is rated about even with Bellarmine coming into the season. The Bell’s won last season’s opener against M-A by 21-16.
Based on early prep polls, returning key players and the presence of several big-time college recruits, M-A has to be a clear favorite to defeat Bellarmine later this month. Of course, the Bears were favored to beat the Bells in 2017 as well. But that M-A loss turned out to be an early indication of its stunning display of under-achievement last year.
I will always take the Bells' disciplined approach and sound defense over M-A being the first game of the season
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