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Serra vs. Tulare Union

colhenrylives

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Sep 25, 2009
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Padres travel into the Central Valley to meet TU Friday at 7:30 p.m. in CIF Division 2AA NorCal finale.
 
I work in Tulare and will be going to this game to watch Kazmeir Allen. He leads the nation with 60 rushing touchdowns. He has 70 overall.
 
Regarding the TU schedule, Serra might be a different animal, something they haven't seen. The Padres have at least eight different big play guys. Their kicking game and kick return kids are outstanding. Their passing game is sophisticated and wide open. Their defense is pressure, pressure, pressure. Team speed is terrific. They are a handful. They were 10-0 vs. their WCAL foes overall, including playoffs. That has not happened since Serra became one of the founding members of that league 50 years ago. They will be entertaining Friday night. Fasten your seatbelt.
 
Padres are banged up. A number of key guys are hurting. They will have played 29 games in 15 months by the end of the weekend. That's a lot of wear and tear. Kendrick isn't the only kid spending time in the tub. Tulare will definitely not see Serra's best lineup on Friday night. Mafi (out for the rest of the year) is a man among boys at 6-3 and 360 and headed to Cal. And he's just one kid who's done.
 
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Padres are banged up. A number of key guys are hurting. They will have played 29 games in 15 months by the end of the weekend. That's a lot of wear and tear. Kendrick isn't the only kid spending time in the tub. Tulare will definitely not see Serra's best lineup on Friday night. Mafi (out for the rest of the year) is a man among boys at 6-3 and 360 and headed to Cal. And he's just one kid who's done.
Serra is going to bottle up Allen like a dolphin in a Tuna Net. The bigger issue the questionable defense of TU facing a relentless Padres offense called by the Magician Coach Lo. This game won't be close, I will be riding the HMB bandwagon with Sutter coming to town.
 
Padres are banged up. A number of key guys are hurting. They will have played 29 games in 15 months by the end of the weekend. That's a lot of wear and tear. Kendrick isn't the only kid spending time in the tub. Tulare will definitely not see Serra's best lineup on Friday night. Mafi (out for the rest of the year) is a man among boys at 6-3 and 360 and headed to Cal. And he's just one kid who's done.
Well damn, if the Padres players are hurt or beat up as you say than that might make the difference for a big upset. I knew Mafi was out but I didn't know about Kendrick and the rest of the Padre's that may not play due to injury. This could change the outcome of the score. We shall see.
 
Serra is going to bottle up Allen like a dolphin in a Tuna Net. The bigger issue the questionable defense of TU facing a relentless Padres offense called by the Magician Coach Lo. This game won't be close, I will be riding the HMB bandwagon with Sutter coming to town.

Optimism is a wonderful thing. But reality really does suck.
 
Well damn, if the Padres players are hurt or beat up as you say than that might make the difference for a big upset. I knew Mafi was out but I didn't know about Kendrick and the rest of the Padre's that may not play due to injury. This could change the outcome of the score. We shall see.

Stopping, or at least limiting, the TU running game is going to be a huge issue. Just check the last St. Francis tape.
 
If you examine Serra's schedules over two seasons, you might well conclude that few NorCal schools have faced a more difficult set of opponents over the last 15 months. A total of 29 games as of this weekend's affair in Tulare. Of those contests, 19 have been vs. WCAL teams. Additionally, the Padres played St. Mary's of Stockton and Pittsburgh twice each. There have been few breathers. They now may be paying a price for all of those physical ballgames. But they do have depth. Their JV team won a WCAL title in 2017. A couple of those kids now contribute on the varsity. But somehow handling the TU running attack will be a daunting challenge Friday night. Look for a high-scoring contest. Would not be a shock if 30 points won't be enough for a W. One important wild card: Serra's kicking game (FG's, kickoffs, returns, etc.).
 
Maybe at some point some enterprising reporter will ask a few questions and try to find out the health of various players.
 
Rob Ryan and Norm Chow are going to show the Central Section what CCS football is all about. No team in the CCS has the minds of these two proven champions. Humble, creative and dedicated to their trade. They are like a bottle of fine wine, getting better with age. #PadresStrong
 
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Line outside the stadium for buying tickets at 12pm. Got mine! :D
 
Maybe at some point some enterprising reporter will ask a few questions and try to find out the health of various players.

Walsh will not announce who's out for TU prior to kickoff Friday. Snooping around the Serra locker room would be unwise.
 
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If anyone is interested in eating in Tulare, Bravo Farms is located at the Tulare outlets on the north side of Tulare. They have sandwiches, burgers and wraps. Good shopping to be had at the Outlets as well if you're making the drive down.
 
Serra is going to bottle up Allen like a dolphin in a Tuna Net. The bigger issue the questionable defense of TU facing a relentless Padres offense called by the Magician Coach Lo. This game won't be close, I will be riding the HMB bandwagon with Sutter coming to town.
TU QB has over 3,000 yards passing and receivers and decent size line. Their offense is formidable. It could be a basketball game. Serra's defense has been less than stellar. I agree that Serra will be the best team TU has faced, and TU schedule isn't as strong, but they can play. Calpreps has it as relatively close. Allen is tough to tackle. He has great balance in the video I have seen and knows how to score. This could be a better game than you think.
 
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Sorry for the shaky camera. Was recording freehand with an old miniDV camcorder I had sitting around.
 
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TU has played a B league schedule with a few A teams thrown in the mix. No top 100 teams. Allen is good but Serra has too many athletes to stop him. Serra may score on every possession.
 
I've heard a few that have seen Tulare play predict this as a mismatch in favor of the Padres. I know Serra is good, but know very little about Tulare.
 
TU QB has over 3,000 yards passing and receivers and decent size line. Their offense is formidable. It could be a basketball game. Serra's defense has been less than stellar. I agree that Serra will be the best team TU has faced, and TU schedule isn't as strong, but they can play. Calpreps has it as relatively close. Allen is tough to tackle. He has great balance in the video I have seen and knows how to score. This could be a better game than you think.

NorCal - when you say Serra's D has been less than "stellar" who are you comparing them to?
Serra's defense was the #1 D in the WCAL allowing 12 points per game during league play with #2 VC at 15 PPG and SF #3 at 16 PPG. In terms of Serra teams over the decades this teams' defense is rated among the top 5 teams.
 
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NorCal - when you say Serra's D has been less than "stellar" who are you comparing them to?
Serra's defense was the #1 D in the WCAL allowing 12 points per game during league play with #2 VC at 15 PPG and SF #3 at 16 PPG. In terms of Serra teams over the decades this teams' defense is rated among the top 5 teams.
I agree with you, Serra's defense reminds me of the steel curtain. If they played TU's schedule they would of given up 7 points a game.
 
Didn't know what to expect. Lol

noone24 - are you at the game? And if so how is the atmosphere? From what I've been reading they were expecting a record turn-out there.

Could be similar to Serra-Sanger last season. The whole town turned out and Serra was before a large & very hostile crowd. That was a heck of a game though and with the help of one Leki Nunn Serra was able to silence the crowd late in the game.

No Leki Nunn tonite, but his brother Patrick and the other skill players from last years' team along with a very efficient Luke Bottari. Then again there's the RB from T.U. who averages 5-6 TD's per game - this will be interesting...
 
NorCal - when you say Serra's D has been less than "stellar" who are you comparing them to?
Serra's defense was the #1 D in the WCAL allowing 12 points per game during league play with #2 VC at 15 PPG and SF #3 at 16 PPG. In terms of Serra teams over the decades this teams' defense is rated among the top 5 teams.
Dinuba and Tulare Western are decent. As I mentioned Serra will be the best team they faced but Tulare Union also has some play makers and anything can happen. I think Serra will win if they play like they can.
 
noone24 - are you at the game? And if so how is the atmosphere? From what I've been reading they were expecting a record turn-out there.

Could be similar to Serra-Sanger last season. The whole town turned out and Serra was before a large & very hostile crowd. That was a heck of a game though and with the help of one Leki Nunn Serra was able to silence the crowd late in the game.

No Leki Nunn tonite, but his brother Patrick and the other skill players from last years' team along with a very efficient Luke Bottari. Then again there's the RB from T.U. who averages 5-6 TD's per game - this will be interesting...

Yup I'm here. I came to the semi final and section championship game. It's a full house on the Tulare side. Temp in the upper 40s
 
[QUOTE="noone24, post: 183600, member: 7676"]Yup I'm here. I came to the semi final and section championship game. It's a full house on the Tulare side. Temp in the upper 40s[/QUOTE]

Thank you noone24 and a lot of Serra fans who could not make that drive and some lucky ones such as myself who will be viewing via live-stream. We all appreciate your comments & insight since you are actually at the big game. Should be quite a contest and we all welcome your comments. Good luck to both the teams!
 
[QUOTE="noone24, post: 183600, member: 7676"]Yup I'm here. I came to the semi final and section championship game. It's a full house on the Tulare side. Temp in the upper 40s

Thank you noone24 and a lot of Serra fans who could not make that drive and some lucky ones such as myself who will be viewing via live-stream. We all appreciate your comments & insight since you are actually at the big game. Should be quite a contest and we all welcome your comments. Good luck to both the teams![/QUOTE]

No prob. :-D
 
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