This week's NCP Pick'em Game of the Week is @ St. Mary's High School in Stockton, CA, on Saturday, 8/23, @ 7PM.
Both teams lose some key players to graduation. Both teams still return some key players from last year. Last year's game was a shootout in the first half until the Rams took over in the second half. A few big factors that changed the game (which was the biggest?):
1) Leki Nunn (Serra) exits the game in the 2nd half after injury sustained in long TD kickoff return.
2) Tipped interception just when the Padres were about to score, along with 2 more Ram INT's and 1 recovered fumble by the Rams.
3) Dusty Frampton (St. Mary's) - 265 yards rushing on 21 carries, along with 6 TD's.
Click here for highlights from 2016 meeting.
QB. St. Mary's will be without last year's QB, Jake Dunniway. While Serra will be without their starting QB from last year, Leki Nunn. For 2017, Serra has depth at the QB position, with Luke Bottari, who played much last year in Leki's absence, anticipated to start. I wouldn't be surprised if the other two QB's from Serra saw some playing time, as well. They are ALL very good. For St. Mary's, Jake Dunniway was just as key to St. Mary's wins, as was their RB, Dusty Frampton. Jake provided the balance needed to keep the opposing defense on their toes with his accuracy/consistency. In last year's game, Jake complete 12 of 16 passes for 231 yards and 2 TD's vs Serra. He was fortunate to gain much experience at the helm as a junior before finishing strong as a senior last year. This year, the Rams will be turning to a sophomore, Noah May, who's very first Varsity game will be against the WCAL powerhouse Serra Padres. Although Noah is just a sophomore and this will be his very first Varsity game, he has shined at practice, at 7-on-7's during the spring/summer, and did not look to bad in the scrimmage vs Granite Bay. However, experience at this position to start the season is just too big of a factor. Edge Padres.
RB. Fortunately for Noah, he will still have Dusty Frampton in the backfield. Serra returns their stud First Team WCAL RB, Isiah Kendrick. Kendrick was able to run for 82 yards on 9 carries vs the Rams defense last year, including one run for 42 yards and 1 TD. Considering the impact Frampton had last year vs Serra's defense, with 6 TD's ... Edge Rams.
WR. Rookie QB Noah May will have some very good weapons to throw to that will much alleviate the pressure, especially in Marcus Aponte and Tre Jenkins. Marcus had 4 receptions for 55 yards in last year's game vs Serra, with seniors Dewey Cotton and Keaton Hampton also contributing with 7 total receptions for 166 yards together. Tre Jenkins was not a factor on offense vs Serra last year, but was so on defense. He later proved to be effective on offense, too, later in the 2016 season, especially vs Cathedral Catholic in the state championship game when he hauled in a very long pass from Dunniway to take the game into OT. In addition to Aponte and Jenkins, there is Tre's twin brother Andrew Jenkins along with a huge cast of junior WR's who will get an opportunity to show their stuff. The Padres should take note of Rams junior WR, Maurice "MS2" Saulsbury, who returned a kickoff return for TD in the JV game. MS2 is 6'1" and runs a 4.5 40. Other potential junior WR's who could contribute in Saturday's game could be Dumaurier "Yay Yay" Cotton, who is Dewey's younger brother, along with the fastest sophomore in the state last year, Joseph Fontes. Fontes can fly! Serra should remember him from last year's JV game, as well. St. Mary's definitely has a huge depth in this position and for a new QB, it doesn't hurt. Serra returns First Team All WCAL and Serra’s Go-To WR from last season, Shane Villoroman, along with Leki's younger brother, 6'3" WR Patrick Nunn, who is garnering some national attention. St. Mary's might have the depth at this position and a very good 1-2 punch in Aponte and Tre Jenkins. But, Villoroman and Nunn will have a more experienced QB throwing to them. Edge Padres.
TE. Do either team utilize this position to receive the ball? Not much. Hence, ... Even
OL/DL. Both teams lost a bunch of players on their lines due to graduation. St. Mary's may have been hit the most with the departure of Popo Aumavae. Serra does return First Team WCAL, 6'3" 360lbs senior, Antonio Mafi, and 5'8" 200lbs junior, Caleb Tuimavave (who is listed at MLB but appears to be playing on the line in the latest scrimmage videos). St. Mary's counters with 6'6" 280lbs senior, Max Barth, and 6'3" 250lbs junior, Hunter Jones, and 5'7" 245lbs senior, Desean Brown. Although Serra's Mafi is going to be a force, the Rams have appear to have much more size/depth overall at this position. Edge Rams.
LB. Serra, based on scrimmage video, appear to be using #9, 6'3" 210lbs senior, Patrick Nunn, at the MLB position along with unlisted #41. The Rams return starter, 6'1" 205lbs senior, Harrison Heath, along with 6'0 200lbs senior, Chad Keamohuli-hearon, and may even play Dusty Frampton at LB. Rams Harrison Heath is pretty good. Edge Rams.
Secondary. With the Jenkins brothers anchoring the secondary for the Rams, the Rams secondary is being touted as one of the best in the area. However, the Rams have a history of getting beat deep, and if there was an Achilles Heel for the Rams defense, I still believe it is their secondary, which has tendency to play the ball more and judge incorrectly the trajectory vs playing the player. I believe Serra's opportunity to steal this game away from the Rams will come in this area, even though last year, St. Mary's strength in this area led to 3 INT's, especially a key one when the Padres were close to scoring. The Padres WR's and seasoned QB may have more of advantage in this area vs the Rams secondary than the Rams newbie QB vs the Padres secondary. Edge Padres.
Special Teams. St. Mary's kicker graduated. So, the Rams will be breaking in a new kicker. Serra returns their kicker, in back-up QB, Jack Damelio. Serra's special teams last year looked great vs the Rams with Leki Nunn's return for TD, along with a recovered onsides kick. Even though Leki is gone, the Padres should still have a similar advantage they had last year. Edge Padres.
In summary, this game is going to be a shoot-out "again". Much will depend on which team's defense is able to make the stops and take advantage of any turnovers. But, as long as Dusty Frampton stays healthy, the Rams should be able to control the ground game and the clock. As much as St. Mary's lost players on the line to graduation, so did Serra. If newbie Ram QB can keep his composure and not turn the ball over and still make the necessary plays to his many WR's, along with anticipated Frampton dominating again, this game should result in a Rams victory. The Rams secondary will need to step up, as well. However, the Padres bring much talent/athleticism to the field to be competitive and could possibly walk away with the upset.
Both teams lose some key players to graduation. Both teams still return some key players from last year. Last year's game was a shootout in the first half until the Rams took over in the second half. A few big factors that changed the game (which was the biggest?):
1) Leki Nunn (Serra) exits the game in the 2nd half after injury sustained in long TD kickoff return.
2) Tipped interception just when the Padres were about to score, along with 2 more Ram INT's and 1 recovered fumble by the Rams.
3) Dusty Frampton (St. Mary's) - 265 yards rushing on 21 carries, along with 6 TD's.
Click here for highlights from 2016 meeting.
QB. St. Mary's will be without last year's QB, Jake Dunniway. While Serra will be without their starting QB from last year, Leki Nunn. For 2017, Serra has depth at the QB position, with Luke Bottari, who played much last year in Leki's absence, anticipated to start. I wouldn't be surprised if the other two QB's from Serra saw some playing time, as well. They are ALL very good. For St. Mary's, Jake Dunniway was just as key to St. Mary's wins, as was their RB, Dusty Frampton. Jake provided the balance needed to keep the opposing defense on their toes with his accuracy/consistency. In last year's game, Jake complete 12 of 16 passes for 231 yards and 2 TD's vs Serra. He was fortunate to gain much experience at the helm as a junior before finishing strong as a senior last year. This year, the Rams will be turning to a sophomore, Noah May, who's very first Varsity game will be against the WCAL powerhouse Serra Padres. Although Noah is just a sophomore and this will be his very first Varsity game, he has shined at practice, at 7-on-7's during the spring/summer, and did not look to bad in the scrimmage vs Granite Bay. However, experience at this position to start the season is just too big of a factor. Edge Padres.
RB. Fortunately for Noah, he will still have Dusty Frampton in the backfield. Serra returns their stud First Team WCAL RB, Isiah Kendrick. Kendrick was able to run for 82 yards on 9 carries vs the Rams defense last year, including one run for 42 yards and 1 TD. Considering the impact Frampton had last year vs Serra's defense, with 6 TD's ... Edge Rams.
WR. Rookie QB Noah May will have some very good weapons to throw to that will much alleviate the pressure, especially in Marcus Aponte and Tre Jenkins. Marcus had 4 receptions for 55 yards in last year's game vs Serra, with seniors Dewey Cotton and Keaton Hampton also contributing with 7 total receptions for 166 yards together. Tre Jenkins was not a factor on offense vs Serra last year, but was so on defense. He later proved to be effective on offense, too, later in the 2016 season, especially vs Cathedral Catholic in the state championship game when he hauled in a very long pass from Dunniway to take the game into OT. In addition to Aponte and Jenkins, there is Tre's twin brother Andrew Jenkins along with a huge cast of junior WR's who will get an opportunity to show their stuff. The Padres should take note of Rams junior WR, Maurice "MS2" Saulsbury, who returned a kickoff return for TD in the JV game. MS2 is 6'1" and runs a 4.5 40. Other potential junior WR's who could contribute in Saturday's game could be Dumaurier "Yay Yay" Cotton, who is Dewey's younger brother, along with the fastest sophomore in the state last year, Joseph Fontes. Fontes can fly! Serra should remember him from last year's JV game, as well. St. Mary's definitely has a huge depth in this position and for a new QB, it doesn't hurt. Serra returns First Team All WCAL and Serra’s Go-To WR from last season, Shane Villoroman, along with Leki's younger brother, 6'3" WR Patrick Nunn, who is garnering some national attention. St. Mary's might have the depth at this position and a very good 1-2 punch in Aponte and Tre Jenkins. But, Villoroman and Nunn will have a more experienced QB throwing to them. Edge Padres.
TE. Do either team utilize this position to receive the ball? Not much. Hence, ... Even
OL/DL. Both teams lost a bunch of players on their lines due to graduation. St. Mary's may have been hit the most with the departure of Popo Aumavae. Serra does return First Team WCAL, 6'3" 360lbs senior, Antonio Mafi, and 5'8" 200lbs junior, Caleb Tuimavave (who is listed at MLB but appears to be playing on the line in the latest scrimmage videos). St. Mary's counters with 6'6" 280lbs senior, Max Barth, and 6'3" 250lbs junior, Hunter Jones, and 5'7" 245lbs senior, Desean Brown. Although Serra's Mafi is going to be a force, the Rams have appear to have much more size/depth overall at this position. Edge Rams.
LB. Serra, based on scrimmage video, appear to be using #9, 6'3" 210lbs senior, Patrick Nunn, at the MLB position along with unlisted #41. The Rams return starter, 6'1" 205lbs senior, Harrison Heath, along with 6'0 200lbs senior, Chad Keamohuli-hearon, and may even play Dusty Frampton at LB. Rams Harrison Heath is pretty good. Edge Rams.
Secondary. With the Jenkins brothers anchoring the secondary for the Rams, the Rams secondary is being touted as one of the best in the area. However, the Rams have a history of getting beat deep, and if there was an Achilles Heel for the Rams defense, I still believe it is their secondary, which has tendency to play the ball more and judge incorrectly the trajectory vs playing the player. I believe Serra's opportunity to steal this game away from the Rams will come in this area, even though last year, St. Mary's strength in this area led to 3 INT's, especially a key one when the Padres were close to scoring. The Padres WR's and seasoned QB may have more of advantage in this area vs the Rams secondary than the Rams newbie QB vs the Padres secondary. Edge Padres.
Special Teams. St. Mary's kicker graduated. So, the Rams will be breaking in a new kicker. Serra returns their kicker, in back-up QB, Jack Damelio. Serra's special teams last year looked great vs the Rams with Leki Nunn's return for TD, along with a recovered onsides kick. Even though Leki is gone, the Padres should still have a similar advantage they had last year. Edge Padres.
In summary, this game is going to be a shoot-out "again". Much will depend on which team's defense is able to make the stops and take advantage of any turnovers. But, as long as Dusty Frampton stays healthy, the Rams should be able to control the ground game and the clock. As much as St. Mary's lost players on the line to graduation, so did Serra. If newbie Ram QB can keep his composure and not turn the ball over and still make the necessary plays to his many WR's, along with anticipated Frampton dominating again, this game should result in a Rams victory. The Rams secondary will need to step up, as well. However, the Padres bring much talent/athleticism to the field to be competitive and could possibly walk away with the upset.