Serra announced it will play Folsom, De La Salle, and Central Catholic in 2022.
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Serra Non-League
- Thread starter dcpanda
- Start date
......or who's serious about challenging for the Open Spot.
As it should be...........
Now let's hope for a serious challenge from the SJS along with DLS .... could be a marquee playoff series to end the season.
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This is good for the whole state.Actually having the best play each other.I hope it’s a trend that’s here to stay
Not sure if anyone’s ever suggested it, but they should have a open play in game.
Great schedule, and I realize you can only play 3 games, but I was looking forward to Serra playing Pitt.
Love when teams schedule like this. They want alllll the smoke! Wish more teams did this that way there’s no need for computer rankings
Me too. I was disappointed that game never materialized this year.
Great non league lineup for Serra. While I have mad respect for CC I think Serra would have been better served booking another solid D1 program but hey it’s steps in right direction. Maybe playing in that open game served them well and realized they need to book like they expect to be there.
CC ended up No. 34 in the state, per Maxpreps. There aren’t many other NorCal schools Serra could have scheduled that are better than that, given they already scheduled two top 20 programs in DLS and Folsom.
Who says it had to be a Norcal school? They could have tried to schedule Pitt again, or a SoCal program. Look I like CC a lot and think they are a fantastic program but Serra’s goal is open or D1. These small school powers don’t have the depth to hang with a quality D1 program. They simply will play way to many kids both ways etc…….
I hear you on CC, but with DLS and Folsom scheduled, CC is somewhat of a break. They still have St Francis and the WCAL schedule to play
Serra, after sharing a WCAL title with Riordan in 1972, was mediocre for most of the 70s, 80s and 1990s. And by the mid-to-late 90s the Padres played some pretty weak non-league competition. It's a testament to what has happened since that anyone questions "only" playing the 34th ranked team in the state. Not many Pad alums fretting about that.
It is rather stunning to realize how quickly Coach Walsh, who referred to the Serra program as "a sleeping giant," turned around the slumbering Padres. He took over the reins in 2001 and, by the following year, had his team sharing the WCAL title with Valley Christian (in its first season in the league, now the "Mostly Catholic Athletic League" by the way).
One more thing: San Mateo County's papal football situation changed even before Coach Walsh segued over to West 20th Avenue in 2001. Sacred Heart Prep, nestled among the ancient oak trees in Atherton, made the move to add the manly sport just prior to Walsh's arrival at Serra. SHP has become at least as strong as the lower half of the WCAL (sometimes even better) on a yearly basis. That gives the county two stellar prep football programs of the Catholic variety. These two have never played each other. But, who knows, that could change at some juncture.
I wasn't sure Serra would get out of its own way to become a top tier NorCal team. Walsh brought excitement and intensity but his own learning curve and undisciplined approach took a long time to mature. He was good, better than good to start, but not great. However, he has shown in the last few years that he can be a great coach, leader and mentor. I believe Walsh and Serra will continue to accelerate towards the exceptional.
Other teams have had their moments. As Colhenry pointed out, Valley Christian started their WCAL membership with strength. Machado built the team from 1997 to the level to be worthy of WCAL. However, 2005 seemed to the be top ceiling for Machado and VC. Since then, they have bounced around the top 1/3 of WCAl but they have not continued their trajectory as seen 1997-2005. They are good but not great.
St. Francis was exceptionally good through the late 1980s and 1990s but then settled, like VC, in the top 1/3 of WCAL. This year was a bright light that might suggest a rise back to building a strong program. Time will tell. A new coach with new energy and vison is clearly helping SF right now.
Bellarmine was exceptional in the early years but failed to impress for a long stretch. Then the team suddenly became strong overnight for a span 5 or so years. They seemed like a team destined for greatness. Size, tradition and coaching seemed to be on their side. Suddenly, as quickly as their rise, they diminished to the middle of the WCAL pack. Only this year did they turn the corner toward improvement. Coaching seems to be at the lead of this turn around.
Others such as SI, SHC, AM, AR have had their moments but typically hang in the mid to lower half of WCAL.
Part of what I am seeing as I examine these teams is that coaching has much more to do with success than most coaches would like to admit or take responsibility for. Player talent is always an important factor for success but coaching is the king no matter the level of talent a team demonstrates.
That being said, Walsh is moving from a good coach to a great one - and definitely he is on the road towards exceptional.
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You know, it certainly isn't their way, but I sometimes wonder if DLS would ever make a run at Walsh given how this past season went for them. Disappointing by Spartan standards to be sure, and a few more seasons like this past one, who knows?Dont think it would happen right away, just a thought
I hope Bellarmine is on its way back. NorCal will be better as a whole if Bellarmine can reach the potential that it is capable of. The sad reality (and I hope I am wrong about this) is that there might not be enough available talent to get there.
Bells will not be anywhere the team they had this year. Serra remains the top dog with clear separation from the rest of the pack.
The Bells class of 2023 is their most talented in years. The program has been waiting for these guys since their undefeated Freshman season. To the coaching staffs credit they were one year ahead of schedule this year.
