Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells
Johnson is playmaker.
If he was at Gardena-Serra, we would be reading about him every week.
Johnson is playmaker.
If he was at Gardena-Serra, we would be reading about him every week.
WCAL 2014 - Returning Impact Players for 2015
- Thread starter Rmbr26
- Start date
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells
i thought last year that san leandro D could not handle the bells QB
this year the tables will be turned and the bells will be trying to contain johnson...
saying that - i do think overall and coaching wise the bells are a superior team but san leandro might have one too many athletes for the bells to contend with.
also
i thought last year that san leandro D could not handle the bells QB
this year the tables will be turned and the bells will be trying to contain johnson...
saying that - i do think overall and coaching wise the bells are a superior team but san leandro might have one too many athletes for the bells to contend with.
also
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells
Bells actually will have above average speed next season. Undersized line, but skill players will have decent speed not to mention LBs. Not 4.4 but pretty quick and above average. They won't be one of the fastest Bells team or team in WCAL, but they will be above average and they will have enough players than can break one with the offense. I don't see this upcoming Bells team as having issues with their team speed. Yes a 4.4 guy can break one at any time, but a team with decent speed and disciplined on defense can neutralize some of that. If San lenadro is strong upfron, I can see that as creating problems for the Bells, but more on the defensive side of the ball.
Bells actually will have above average speed next season. Undersized line, but skill players will have decent speed not to mention LBs. Not 4.4 but pretty quick and above average. They won't be one of the fastest Bells team or team in WCAL, but they will be above average and they will have enough players than can break one with the offense. I don't see this upcoming Bells team as having issues with their team speed. Yes a 4.4 guy can break one at any time, but a team with decent speed and disciplined on defense can neutralize some of that. If San lenadro is strong upfron, I can see that as creating problems for the Bells, but more on the defensive side of the ball.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells
ST IGNATIUS WILDCATS 2014 PRE-SEASON TEAM PREVIEW:
St. Ignatius Varsity 2013 Team record = 4-9 Overall and 2-5 in WCAL league, 5th place
Junior Varsity 2013 Team Record = 5-5 Overall and 2-5 in WCAL League, 6th place
Freshman 2013 Record = 5-4 Overall and 3-4 in WCAL League, 5th place.
Biggest Win: CCS Div. III playoffs SI takes down previously undefeated Burlingame in a solid 41-21 win. SI dominated throughout the game & afterwards the Burlingame coach said St. Ignatius was by far the most talented team Burlingame had faced the entire season.
Toughest Loss: While SI endured a number of gut wrenching losses during 2013 the hardest had to be the last game of the season for the Div. III championship vs an under-rated Aptos team, losing 41-35. St. Ignatius was heavily favored coming into the game, but Aptos played well and led throughout the game & by several scores into the 2nd half. SI's Joe Lang led a furious comeback that fell short in the closing minutes of the game. Winning the Div. III Championship would have helped erase the memory of SI's close losses in 2013, however inconsistent play at the wrong times does not always win games.
What IF Game: SI came within 2 plays of knocking off Serra in the fog on SI's home turf. Getting blown out by Serra in the first half, SI came out a different team in the 2nd half with a tremendous comeback. As the game wound down the outcome was still much in doubt with SI driving and Serra like most of the 2nd half unable to stop the wildcats. With the clock winding down and SI close to Serra's end zone, a pass into the end zone that would have tied the game OR given SI the chance to perhaps win the game fell incomplete.
For 2014 St. Ignatius comes into the season with higher expectations than the previous season. SI had a number of close losses and their 4-9 season record could have easily been 7-6. All indications are that SI like several other WCAL teams will be marginally better in 2014. SI has the biggest jump in pre-season ratings of the WCAL teams, due in part to one of the best passing QB's in the WCAL returning in Ryan Hagfeldt. As a junior Hagfeldt was 2nd in passing in the WCAL behind Serra's Matt Fa'aita who had the 5th best passing season in Serra history. Completing over 50% of his passes Hagfeldt & SI's offense was inconsistent in finishing drives, especially at crucial times. While passing for nearly 160 yards per game Hagfeldt's ratio of TD's vs INT's was simply too low on TD's and too high on INT's - nearly 1 to 1. As a senior with a full varsity year under his belt, if Hagfeldt has several competent WR's and a consistent run game his experience could yield several surprise wins for SI to improve them to 5th or even 4th in WCAL this season.
SI has an interesting pre-season schedule with what looks to be 3 very entertaining games of significance. The Wildcats start with SSF and then move on to real competition against Marin Catholic, Terra Nova and a 2 week bye before St. Mary's of Stockton. SSF should provide SI with a good scrimmage to test both Offensive and Defensive schemes and give all players some playing time under game conditions [and avoiding injuries to any key players]. Next up will be a tough Marin Catholic team of WCAL quality which will be an excellent test for SI. MC will be good although not likely as good as in 2013 after losing their star QB to graduation - Morgan Mahalik to Oregon. While MC reloads nicely this contest likely will be an even match-up. The 2nd game is the big test for SI as Terra Nova is ranked pre-season only behind Mitty & Serra in CCS ratings. TN also shows a good team returning from last season featuring the CCS leader in passing for 2013 - QB Anthony Gordon who averaged 309 YPG, 32 TD's and only 6 INT's for over 3400 yards. Gordon last season lit up SI's D for 50 points in an early season statement that TN was for real. The 50-33 lost to TN was one of the worst of the year for SI. TN's only loss in 2013 was to Valley Christian in the first round of the Open playoffs. Si's last pre-season game is vs St. Mary's of Stockton coming off a 7-4 season and ranked marginally lower than in 2013. St. Mary's has a good program and always has some very talented athletes and generally features speed as one of their main strengths. St. Mary's will be the lowest pre-season rated foe of the 3 tough games SI will play prior to WCAL league play.
So looking forward to this season's roster for 2014 SI has a potential 31 varsity players returning. SI lost to graduation one of the most exciting players in the WCAL last season in Joe Lang - WR, DB, punt & KO returner who provided many huge plays over the season - the WCAL's Utility POY. Also absent will be RB Elijah Dale , SI's All-Time leading rusher who helped SI in 2012 to an upset win in the CCS Open Championship vs Bellarmine. Other players not returning: Nik Bell - TE/DL, Conner Hagen - Oline, Stephen Ostroski - RB,
Brent Arimoto - Dline, Wyatt Ernst - Dline. While SI lost quite a bit they have a number of capable players returning: Ryan Hagfeldt - QB, 6'2"-180, Rob Meagher - LB, 5'9"- 195, Dominic Burke - DB, 6'1"- 190, Peter Aliman - RB,LB - 5'10"- 180.
Of the returning players SI lists 9 players 200 lbs. or larger with 2 over 250. Unless SI had a large JV squad last season the Wildcats look to be on the smaller side of WCAL teams physically. The plus factor of course is Hagfeldt. The biggest question remaining is how do you replace Joe Lang & Elijah Dale? SI's success will definitely depend how well they can reload at the skill positons and how much speed comes up from the JV squad.
The first 3 games of the season prior to WCAL league play should tell us everything we need to know about the 2014 SI Wildcats. SI played well in most games in 2013 yet inconsistent play cost them in losing 3 or perhaps 4 close games they could have won - losing by a TD or less including a 10-9 loss to VC. SI & MC should come into their game rated evenly and perhaps early into the season the better executing team with fewer penalties will win. A win by SI over MC would set the tone nicely for upcoming Terra Nova. Splitting the MC & TN games would still be acceptable since both are quality teams along with a win over St. Mary's, however losing both to MC & TN will not favor SI heading into league play. SI will need to contain MC's "O" and finish off drives period and if they cannot accomplish either then MC should win. Likewise SI needs to contain TN's offense as TN wins its games on offense and not defense - therefore SI should be able to score against TN. A shoot-out against TN in event SI's D cannot contain Anthony Gordon's passing will likely spell doom for SI in this contest. After a 2 week bye rest SI should be favored over St. Mary's depending of course on the final outcome of the 2 previous games. It is a tough pre-season schedule, but one that should help SI in league play. The simple solution is SI needs solid defensive play this season while Hagfeldt should show some degree of improvement in his passing - as in finishing more drive which results in more TD's and less INT's which kill drives. It is too much however to put all the pressure on SI's QB though as SI needs a solid D and a consistent run game to compliment the pass game.
Next Up: St. Francis Lancers
This post was edited on 7/23 7:34 PM by Rmbr26
ST IGNATIUS WILDCATS 2014 PRE-SEASON TEAM PREVIEW:
St. Ignatius Varsity 2013 Team record = 4-9 Overall and 2-5 in WCAL league, 5th place
Junior Varsity 2013 Team Record = 5-5 Overall and 2-5 in WCAL League, 6th place
Freshman 2013 Record = 5-4 Overall and 3-4 in WCAL League, 5th place.
Biggest Win: CCS Div. III playoffs SI takes down previously undefeated Burlingame in a solid 41-21 win. SI dominated throughout the game & afterwards the Burlingame coach said St. Ignatius was by far the most talented team Burlingame had faced the entire season.
Toughest Loss: While SI endured a number of gut wrenching losses during 2013 the hardest had to be the last game of the season for the Div. III championship vs an under-rated Aptos team, losing 41-35. St. Ignatius was heavily favored coming into the game, but Aptos played well and led throughout the game & by several scores into the 2nd half. SI's Joe Lang led a furious comeback that fell short in the closing minutes of the game. Winning the Div. III Championship would have helped erase the memory of SI's close losses in 2013, however inconsistent play at the wrong times does not always win games.
What IF Game: SI came within 2 plays of knocking off Serra in the fog on SI's home turf. Getting blown out by Serra in the first half, SI came out a different team in the 2nd half with a tremendous comeback. As the game wound down the outcome was still much in doubt with SI driving and Serra like most of the 2nd half unable to stop the wildcats. With the clock winding down and SI close to Serra's end zone, a pass into the end zone that would have tied the game OR given SI the chance to perhaps win the game fell incomplete.
For 2014 St. Ignatius comes into the season with higher expectations than the previous season. SI had a number of close losses and their 4-9 season record could have easily been 7-6. All indications are that SI like several other WCAL teams will be marginally better in 2014. SI has the biggest jump in pre-season ratings of the WCAL teams, due in part to one of the best passing QB's in the WCAL returning in Ryan Hagfeldt. As a junior Hagfeldt was 2nd in passing in the WCAL behind Serra's Matt Fa'aita who had the 5th best passing season in Serra history. Completing over 50% of his passes Hagfeldt & SI's offense was inconsistent in finishing drives, especially at crucial times. While passing for nearly 160 yards per game Hagfeldt's ratio of TD's vs INT's was simply too low on TD's and too high on INT's - nearly 1 to 1. As a senior with a full varsity year under his belt, if Hagfeldt has several competent WR's and a consistent run game his experience could yield several surprise wins for SI to improve them to 5th or even 4th in WCAL this season.
SI has an interesting pre-season schedule with what looks to be 3 very entertaining games of significance. The Wildcats start with SSF and then move on to real competition against Marin Catholic, Terra Nova and a 2 week bye before St. Mary's of Stockton. SSF should provide SI with a good scrimmage to test both Offensive and Defensive schemes and give all players some playing time under game conditions [and avoiding injuries to any key players]. Next up will be a tough Marin Catholic team of WCAL quality which will be an excellent test for SI. MC will be good although not likely as good as in 2013 after losing their star QB to graduation - Morgan Mahalik to Oregon. While MC reloads nicely this contest likely will be an even match-up. The 2nd game is the big test for SI as Terra Nova is ranked pre-season only behind Mitty & Serra in CCS ratings. TN also shows a good team returning from last season featuring the CCS leader in passing for 2013 - QB Anthony Gordon who averaged 309 YPG, 32 TD's and only 6 INT's for over 3400 yards. Gordon last season lit up SI's D for 50 points in an early season statement that TN was for real. The 50-33 lost to TN was one of the worst of the year for SI. TN's only loss in 2013 was to Valley Christian in the first round of the Open playoffs. Si's last pre-season game is vs St. Mary's of Stockton coming off a 7-4 season and ranked marginally lower than in 2013. St. Mary's has a good program and always has some very talented athletes and generally features speed as one of their main strengths. St. Mary's will be the lowest pre-season rated foe of the 3 tough games SI will play prior to WCAL league play.
So looking forward to this season's roster for 2014 SI has a potential 31 varsity players returning. SI lost to graduation one of the most exciting players in the WCAL last season in Joe Lang - WR, DB, punt & KO returner who provided many huge plays over the season - the WCAL's Utility POY. Also absent will be RB Elijah Dale , SI's All-Time leading rusher who helped SI in 2012 to an upset win in the CCS Open Championship vs Bellarmine. Other players not returning: Nik Bell - TE/DL, Conner Hagen - Oline, Stephen Ostroski - RB,
Brent Arimoto - Dline, Wyatt Ernst - Dline. While SI lost quite a bit they have a number of capable players returning: Ryan Hagfeldt - QB, 6'2"-180, Rob Meagher - LB, 5'9"- 195, Dominic Burke - DB, 6'1"- 190, Peter Aliman - RB,LB - 5'10"- 180.
Of the returning players SI lists 9 players 200 lbs. or larger with 2 over 250. Unless SI had a large JV squad last season the Wildcats look to be on the smaller side of WCAL teams physically. The plus factor of course is Hagfeldt. The biggest question remaining is how do you replace Joe Lang & Elijah Dale? SI's success will definitely depend how well they can reload at the skill positons and how much speed comes up from the JV squad.
The first 3 games of the season prior to WCAL league play should tell us everything we need to know about the 2014 SI Wildcats. SI played well in most games in 2013 yet inconsistent play cost them in losing 3 or perhaps 4 close games they could have won - losing by a TD or less including a 10-9 loss to VC. SI & MC should come into their game rated evenly and perhaps early into the season the better executing team with fewer penalties will win. A win by SI over MC would set the tone nicely for upcoming Terra Nova. Splitting the MC & TN games would still be acceptable since both are quality teams along with a win over St. Mary's, however losing both to MC & TN will not favor SI heading into league play. SI will need to contain MC's "O" and finish off drives period and if they cannot accomplish either then MC should win. Likewise SI needs to contain TN's offense as TN wins its games on offense and not defense - therefore SI should be able to score against TN. A shoot-out against TN in event SI's D cannot contain Anthony Gordon's passing will likely spell doom for SI in this contest. After a 2 week bye rest SI should be favored over St. Mary's depending of course on the final outcome of the 2 previous games. It is a tough pre-season schedule, but one that should help SI in league play. The simple solution is SI needs solid defensive play this season while Hagfeldt should show some degree of improvement in his passing - as in finishing more drive which results in more TD's and less INT's which kill drives. It is too much however to put all the pressure on SI's QB though as SI needs a solid D and a consistent run game to compliment the pass game.
Next Up: St. Francis Lancers
This post was edited on 7/23 7:34 PM by Rmbr26
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells
Great job, as always, Rmbr26! Is SI's matchup with SSF a scrimmage or non-league game? MaxPreps shows SI has non-league games @ Marin Catholic, @Terra Nova and hosting St. Mary's - Stockton. I would say that is the toughest non-league schedule in the WCAL. TN's QB, Gordon, is a stud!
Great job, as always, Rmbr26! Is SI's matchup with SSF a scrimmage or non-league game? MaxPreps shows SI has non-league games @ Marin Catholic, @Terra Nova and hosting St. Mary's - Stockton. I would say that is the toughest non-league schedule in the WCAL. TN's QB, Gordon, is a stud!
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells
Thanks Jordan for the heads up on St. Mary's as completely missed it due to the 2 bye weeks after Terra Nova on the schedule which is a bit unusual. I'll make the adjustment to the post accordingly.
Thanks Jordan for the heads up on St. Mary's as completely missed it due to the 2 bye weeks after Terra Nova on the schedule which is a bit unusual. I'll make the adjustment to the post accordingly.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
SI's site shows the SSF contest as a scrimmage on Aug. 30th at 1pm at S.I.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Yes, SSF is a scrimmage. I don't see a bye week between Terra Nova and St. Mary's. There is a bye week after St. Mary's and before WCAL play starts with Bellarmine. Historically SI sets up their schedule to have a bye the week before WCAl games.
Yes, SSF is a scrimmage. I don't see a bye week between Terra Nova and St. Mary's. There is a bye week after St. Mary's and before WCAL play starts with Bellarmine. Historically SI sets up their schedule to have a bye the week before WCAl games.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
SI vs Marin Catholic at MC Sept. 6th, Sat. at 1:00 p.m.
SI vs Terra Nova at TN Sept. 12th Friday nite at 7:00 p.m.
SI vs St. Mary's at SI Sept. 20th Sat. 1:00 p.m.
If SI comes out of preseason undefeated or with two wins then they'll be right in the mix to contend in WCAL. But losing Dale to graduation is tough to replace. Their Senior class is a good group players.
SI vs Marin Catholic at MC Sept. 6th, Sat. at 1:00 p.m.
SI vs Terra Nova at TN Sept. 12th Friday nite at 7:00 p.m.
SI vs St. Mary's at SI Sept. 20th Sat. 1:00 p.m.
If SI comes out of preseason undefeated or with two wins then they'll be right in the mix to contend in WCAL. But losing Dale to graduation is tough to replace. Their Senior class is a good group players.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
ST. FRANCIS LANCERS 2014 PRE-SEASON TEAM PREVIEW
St. Francis Varsity 2013 Team Record = 9-4 Overall, 4/3 in league, tied for 4th in WCAL
Junior Varsity 2013 Team Record = 4-6 Overall, 2/5 in league, 7th Place WCAL
Freshman 2013 Team Record = 7-2 Overall, 6-1 in league, 2nd Place WCAL
Best Game: Thrilling 41-34 upset of Serra at St. Francis on the Lancers senior night. Serra came in as the heavy favorite, but SF answered every TD Serra scored. The Lancers put up 41 points against a Serra D that had been allowing just 13 points per game.
Who would've thought?
Toughest Loss: 2 games the Lancers wish they could play one more time: 13-12 loss to then undefeated Mitty & upset loss 31-14 to Los Gatos in the Div. II CCS Championship.
The St. Francis Lancers come into 2014 rated as a marginally better team than 2013 - which is hard to calculate when you see how many good players the Lancers lost to graduation. Keep in mind the last game of 2013 was easily SF's worst game of the 2013 season losing to Los Gatos 31-14. The loss definitely dropped SF's standings at the end of the season and likewise makes this season's team projected to be as good or better all things factored [whether you agree or not]. So the real question is: Will St. Francis be better than last season & good enough to improve on their 9/4 record & tie for 4th place in the WCAL?
The loss to Los Gatos was shocking to many fans as SF was favored to take the Div. II crown. After all SF took down Serra and barely lost by 1 point to Mitty. In rounds 1 & 2 of the Div. II playoffs SF demolished Hill of San Jose 41-6 before manhandling Palo Alto 45-21 in round 2. Everything was in place for a red hot Lancers team to claim the Div. II trophy. Unfortunately most fans [myself included] were not giving Los Gatos any respect, due in part I suspect to an earlier 42-7 loss to Wilcox. Los Gatos however had 2 early season losses to Mitty & Menlo-Atherton, but rolled past MA later in season and showed steady improvement with the exception of the Wilcox blowout. Los Gatos played their best game of the year in the final against the Lancers and dominated most of the game. Overall record shows Los Gatos was indeed a very good team with the exception of the unexplainable bad loss to Wilcox, while the somewhat over-confidant Lancers going into that Div. II game were a good team in 2013 except in this one important game.
Will the Lancers actually be an improved team in 2014? All indications are "maybe" depending on your viewpoint.
First lets start with who is not returning for the Lancers: Landon Baty - one of the 2 best DB's in WCAL, Alex Andrighetto - another first teamer WCAL RB/DB, Jack Caurez - first team WCAL OL/FB, John Powers - first team WCAL LB/TE, Brandon Refuta - first team WCAL DT, Rad Guhit - first team WCAL OL/DE, Holden Mackey - LB/TE, Ryan Popolize - OL, Alex Lenarduzzi - T and the Kicker Pat Fordham = 10 players of significance including 5 first team all league players = a lot of talent to replace.
SF returns 33 Letterman which is among tops in terms of returning players among WCAL teams. Players expected to contribute include: Riley Quinn - DB, WR, K, 5'11 - 170, Alex Carbonel - LB,TE, 5'10 - 180, SF has 10 players listed at 200 lbs. or larger incl. 4 over 250. Among new players is highly regarded Washington transfer Thomas Toki -DT, 6'1 - 290. Another interesting transfer is QB Kamalii Akina, 5'10 - 150 from Texas who will compete for the starting job among a possible 3 QB's who will get looks and early playing time. Akina is highly rated & is athletic as a running QB & just maybe a good fit for the WCAL, unless SF chooses to go with a taller/bigger traditional drop-back passing QB. SF also returns Steve Dineen, 6'6" OLB/DE who will provide a pass rush and be tough to pass against on his side along with help from Alex Hall, 6'3 - 270 who will help anchor the O & D lines. Devin Hurtado at 6'2 - 200 LB/RB is another who will contribute who ran for over 500 yards in 2013 behind Andrighetto and should be the featured back this season. SF also returns several WR's with experience from 2013 who should perform well this season no matter who is the Lancer QB.
SF plays Oak Grove [Sept 5th, 7:30], then Palma @ Palma [Sept. 12th, 7:30], and finishes pre-season with Skyline of Oakland [Sept. 19th, 7:30]. So the Lancers start with 3 Friday night games - all 3 of which SF should win. The first league game is Riordan [Oct. 3rd - again 7:30] before engaging Mitty [Oct. 10th, 7;30]. SF schedule calls for 5 Friday night games to start the season if anyone was counting. On Oct. 18th, Saturday at 1:00 p.m. SF plays their first day game of the season at Serra. I expect SF to enter the Serra game at either 4/1 or 5-0 depending on the Mitty game outcome.
SF looks solid for 2014 even though losing its top 2 skill players Baty & Andrighetto. SF's Defense should be tough again and the main focus will be on offense, as in who will the QB be? I think its likely we will see the 2 competing QB's early on in the season sharing playing time. With Hurtado as the featured RB and several experienced WR's, SF should show a slightly improved offense overall. SF lost 3 close games in WCAL 21-14 to Bells, 13-12 to Mitty and 21-14 to VC - so all close and "winnable" games. Mitty & VC will again present tough foes in 2014 and SF should be able to hold off the Bells this season. Then there is Serra who looks tough again, but SF has a solid history of "The Curse" against Serra. The Curse is the period of 1973 - 2005 during which SF beat the Padres 32 years in a row. The Curse was broken in 2006, but seems to give some sort of psychological advantage to the Lancers possibly. In 2012 in the last league game of the season the Lancers came to Serra's home turf as a heavy under-dog and left with a 24-0 shut-out of Serra. Last season Serra was again favored with only one close loss to DLS on their record and SF shocked Serra once again with an exciting 41-34 win at St. Francis on Senior night. The game this year between the 2 teams Oct. 18th at Serra will be highly anticipated once again.
This season should be an exciting one for Lancer's fans & provide a lot of entertaining & exciting games. The Lancer's are picked & projected as 4th in WCAL, however are my "Dark Horse" pick for 2014 to finish at or near the top of the WCAL teams & exceed expectations.
Next Up: Valley Christian Warriors.
ST. FRANCIS LANCERS 2014 PRE-SEASON TEAM PREVIEW
St. Francis Varsity 2013 Team Record = 9-4 Overall, 4/3 in league, tied for 4th in WCAL
Junior Varsity 2013 Team Record = 4-6 Overall, 2/5 in league, 7th Place WCAL
Freshman 2013 Team Record = 7-2 Overall, 6-1 in league, 2nd Place WCAL
Best Game: Thrilling 41-34 upset of Serra at St. Francis on the Lancers senior night. Serra came in as the heavy favorite, but SF answered every TD Serra scored. The Lancers put up 41 points against a Serra D that had been allowing just 13 points per game.
Who would've thought?
Toughest Loss: 2 games the Lancers wish they could play one more time: 13-12 loss to then undefeated Mitty & upset loss 31-14 to Los Gatos in the Div. II CCS Championship.
The St. Francis Lancers come into 2014 rated as a marginally better team than 2013 - which is hard to calculate when you see how many good players the Lancers lost to graduation. Keep in mind the last game of 2013 was easily SF's worst game of the 2013 season losing to Los Gatos 31-14. The loss definitely dropped SF's standings at the end of the season and likewise makes this season's team projected to be as good or better all things factored [whether you agree or not]. So the real question is: Will St. Francis be better than last season & good enough to improve on their 9/4 record & tie for 4th place in the WCAL?
The loss to Los Gatos was shocking to many fans as SF was favored to take the Div. II crown. After all SF took down Serra and barely lost by 1 point to Mitty. In rounds 1 & 2 of the Div. II playoffs SF demolished Hill of San Jose 41-6 before manhandling Palo Alto 45-21 in round 2. Everything was in place for a red hot Lancers team to claim the Div. II trophy. Unfortunately most fans [myself included] were not giving Los Gatos any respect, due in part I suspect to an earlier 42-7 loss to Wilcox. Los Gatos however had 2 early season losses to Mitty & Menlo-Atherton, but rolled past MA later in season and showed steady improvement with the exception of the Wilcox blowout. Los Gatos played their best game of the year in the final against the Lancers and dominated most of the game. Overall record shows Los Gatos was indeed a very good team with the exception of the unexplainable bad loss to Wilcox, while the somewhat over-confidant Lancers going into that Div. II game were a good team in 2013 except in this one important game.
Will the Lancers actually be an improved team in 2014? All indications are "maybe" depending on your viewpoint.
First lets start with who is not returning for the Lancers: Landon Baty - one of the 2 best DB's in WCAL, Alex Andrighetto - another first teamer WCAL RB/DB, Jack Caurez - first team WCAL OL/FB, John Powers - first team WCAL LB/TE, Brandon Refuta - first team WCAL DT, Rad Guhit - first team WCAL OL/DE, Holden Mackey - LB/TE, Ryan Popolize - OL, Alex Lenarduzzi - T and the Kicker Pat Fordham = 10 players of significance including 5 first team all league players = a lot of talent to replace.
SF returns 33 Letterman which is among tops in terms of returning players among WCAL teams. Players expected to contribute include: Riley Quinn - DB, WR, K, 5'11 - 170, Alex Carbonel - LB,TE, 5'10 - 180, SF has 10 players listed at 200 lbs. or larger incl. 4 over 250. Among new players is highly regarded Washington transfer Thomas Toki -DT, 6'1 - 290. Another interesting transfer is QB Kamalii Akina, 5'10 - 150 from Texas who will compete for the starting job among a possible 3 QB's who will get looks and early playing time. Akina is highly rated & is athletic as a running QB & just maybe a good fit for the WCAL, unless SF chooses to go with a taller/bigger traditional drop-back passing QB. SF also returns Steve Dineen, 6'6" OLB/DE who will provide a pass rush and be tough to pass against on his side along with help from Alex Hall, 6'3 - 270 who will help anchor the O & D lines. Devin Hurtado at 6'2 - 200 LB/RB is another who will contribute who ran for over 500 yards in 2013 behind Andrighetto and should be the featured back this season. SF also returns several WR's with experience from 2013 who should perform well this season no matter who is the Lancer QB.
SF plays Oak Grove [Sept 5th, 7:30], then Palma @ Palma [Sept. 12th, 7:30], and finishes pre-season with Skyline of Oakland [Sept. 19th, 7:30]. So the Lancers start with 3 Friday night games - all 3 of which SF should win. The first league game is Riordan [Oct. 3rd - again 7:30] before engaging Mitty [Oct. 10th, 7;30]. SF schedule calls for 5 Friday night games to start the season if anyone was counting. On Oct. 18th, Saturday at 1:00 p.m. SF plays their first day game of the season at Serra. I expect SF to enter the Serra game at either 4/1 or 5-0 depending on the Mitty game outcome.
SF looks solid for 2014 even though losing its top 2 skill players Baty & Andrighetto. SF's Defense should be tough again and the main focus will be on offense, as in who will the QB be? I think its likely we will see the 2 competing QB's early on in the season sharing playing time. With Hurtado as the featured RB and several experienced WR's, SF should show a slightly improved offense overall. SF lost 3 close games in WCAL 21-14 to Bells, 13-12 to Mitty and 21-14 to VC - so all close and "winnable" games. Mitty & VC will again present tough foes in 2014 and SF should be able to hold off the Bells this season. Then there is Serra who looks tough again, but SF has a solid history of "The Curse" against Serra. The Curse is the period of 1973 - 2005 during which SF beat the Padres 32 years in a row. The Curse was broken in 2006, but seems to give some sort of psychological advantage to the Lancers possibly. In 2012 in the last league game of the season the Lancers came to Serra's home turf as a heavy under-dog and left with a 24-0 shut-out of Serra. Last season Serra was again favored with only one close loss to DLS on their record and SF shocked Serra once again with an exciting 41-34 win at St. Francis on Senior night. The game this year between the 2 teams Oct. 18th at Serra will be highly anticipated once again.
This season should be an exciting one for Lancer's fans & provide a lot of entertaining & exciting games. The Lancer's are picked & projected as 4th in WCAL, however are my "Dark Horse" pick for 2014 to finish at or near the top of the WCAL teams & exceed expectations.
Next Up: Valley Christian Warriors.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Good write up Rmbr26. I think the top 4 teams, SF, VC, Serra and Mitty are all very close with not much separation. Close enough to knock each other off. There should be a number of close games and regardless of what some are saying about VC, I dont see an undefeated league champ this year. If there is they will have certainly earned it. If you are a WCAL fan there is a lot to look foreword to and this should be an exiting year with some great match ups.
This post was edited on 7/26 10:31 AM by WCAL75
Good write up Rmbr26. I think the top 4 teams, SF, VC, Serra and Mitty are all very close with not much separation. Close enough to knock each other off. There should be a number of close games and regardless of what some are saying about VC, I dont see an undefeated league champ this year. If there is they will have certainly earned it. If you are a WCAL fan there is a lot to look foreword to and this should be an exiting year with some great match ups.
This post was edited on 7/26 10:31 AM by WCAL75
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Nice preview of the Lancers Rmbr26. Yes. Top 4 teams that will be fighting it out this season for the WCAL title will be VC, Mitty, SF and Serra. All of these squads possess proven speed and physicality. Bells and SI will have a say on this and should not be taken lightly. Coach Calcagno is a class act and a very good coach.
Nice preview of the Lancers Rmbr26. Yes. Top 4 teams that will be fighting it out this season for the WCAL title will be VC, Mitty, SF and Serra. All of these squads possess proven speed and physicality. Bells and SI will have a say on this and should not be taken lightly. Coach Calcagno is a class act and a very good coach.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Los Gatos was a very good football team by the end of the season last year. They did a great job preparing for St Francis snd played great defense to limit SF to two TDs. And not to diminish LG's win over St Francis, but SF were beat up on defense coming into the game. Andrew Hill and Paly didn't put up a fight so it didn't really indicate how weak SF's defense at that time. SF had 16 guys injured and not dressed for the Championship game and the defense was directly affected by it. But offensively, SF didn't do much because LG shut them down.
The stats may look as though Hurtado will be the feature back but I believe its going to be by run by committee. Two key players did not play last year. Dunne, FB/LB 6'0 210 was injured before the season started. Played varsity as a soph. He's a great blocker and can give you the tough yardages. But he will excel mostly in defense as a LB. Cameron Meszaros, RB/DB 5'7 150 was lost for the season after the Palma game. (broken foot). Feature back as a Fresh, JV, and would've shared time with Alex A last year. Reminds me of Kyle Evans from Mitty, very quick. He started at defense before the injury. 2-3 others can compete for time at RB as well. Competition is good. If the new QB from Texas starts, expect him to take off running if nothing is there. He will create havoc on opponent's defense.
Oak Grove is going to be very weak. OG senior group got destroyed by SF senior group during their freshman and JV years. Unless they gained some new skill players, its not going to be good. SF will take care of business and OG goes off to play Valley Christian the next week. Brutal. It will be over by halftime with Skyline. SF needs to schedule a tougher opponent next year.
Palma is going to be tough. Great rivalry. I think its going to be a pick'em game. Norcalfan's summary on Palma indicates that they are huge on both lines. Its going to be a low scoring game because of both defenses just locking things down. Big plays will win this game. Long run, return for a TD, or a critical turnover will win the game.
SF defense won't skip a beat. Lots of great players lost due to graduation but this is a group of players who are very close and very athletic. Doesn't hurt that they got 3-4 star DL in the offseason. I really don't see a weakness in any of the D positions. They are fast and go after the ball hard. Starters need to stay healthy because I think there is a big drop off in talent at the bench.
Los Gatos was a very good football team by the end of the season last year. They did a great job preparing for St Francis snd played great defense to limit SF to two TDs. And not to diminish LG's win over St Francis, but SF were beat up on defense coming into the game. Andrew Hill and Paly didn't put up a fight so it didn't really indicate how weak SF's defense at that time. SF had 16 guys injured and not dressed for the Championship game and the defense was directly affected by it. But offensively, SF didn't do much because LG shut them down.
The stats may look as though Hurtado will be the feature back but I believe its going to be by run by committee. Two key players did not play last year. Dunne, FB/LB 6'0 210 was injured before the season started. Played varsity as a soph. He's a great blocker and can give you the tough yardages. But he will excel mostly in defense as a LB. Cameron Meszaros, RB/DB 5'7 150 was lost for the season after the Palma game. (broken foot). Feature back as a Fresh, JV, and would've shared time with Alex A last year. Reminds me of Kyle Evans from Mitty, very quick. He started at defense before the injury. 2-3 others can compete for time at RB as well. Competition is good. If the new QB from Texas starts, expect him to take off running if nothing is there. He will create havoc on opponent's defense.
Oak Grove is going to be very weak. OG senior group got destroyed by SF senior group during their freshman and JV years. Unless they gained some new skill players, its not going to be good. SF will take care of business and OG goes off to play Valley Christian the next week. Brutal. It will be over by halftime with Skyline. SF needs to schedule a tougher opponent next year.
Palma is going to be tough. Great rivalry. I think its going to be a pick'em game. Norcalfan's summary on Palma indicates that they are huge on both lines. Its going to be a low scoring game because of both defenses just locking things down. Big plays will win this game. Long run, return for a TD, or a critical turnover will win the game.
SF defense won't skip a beat. Lots of great players lost due to graduation but this is a group of players who are very close and very athletic. Doesn't hurt that they got 3-4 star DL in the offseason. I really don't see a weakness in any of the D positions. They are fast and go after the ball hard. Starters need to stay healthy because I think there is a big drop off in talent at the bench.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Some very good info on St. Francis HSS75 and some good observations as well. That's interesting about the SF injuries going into the Los Gatos CCS game, especially if the majority were with defensive players. Meszaros as a RB sounds like he would compliment Hurtado well. Again the Texas QB transfer who is shifty and has the ability to scramble could cause havoc among many of the WCAL Defense schemes.
I agree with the assessment of Oak Grove & SF should win. Also Skyline as well ,should not be an issue and play everyone & limit injuries. I do disagree a bit on Palma as I think the Lancers should cruise in this game as well. Palma has not shown up as expected the last several season's even when highly hyped by its supporters. While Palma has gone 6-0 the last 2 seasons in the Monterey Bay - Gabilan League they have simply not been competitive in crucial games with other highly regarded programs. Last season SF 26 - Palma 0, and in CCS Open Div. - Mitty 28 - Palma 0. Until I see a quality win by Palma over a rated opponent I will consider their program to be somewhat in a rebuilding stage [in fairness to Palma they did win over SF by 12-7 in pre-season 2012 which was their best win in the last 2 season's along with a 2013 win over Palo Alto by 23-20 IMO].
I have no doubts the Lancers will be tough on D this season, but think they may be a big surprise on offense if everything "clicks".
We'll see...
This post was edited on 7/27 6:51 PM by Rmbr26
Some very good info on St. Francis HSS75 and some good observations as well. That's interesting about the SF injuries going into the Los Gatos CCS game, especially if the majority were with defensive players. Meszaros as a RB sounds like he would compliment Hurtado well. Again the Texas QB transfer who is shifty and has the ability to scramble could cause havoc among many of the WCAL Defense schemes.
I agree with the assessment of Oak Grove & SF should win. Also Skyline as well ,should not be an issue and play everyone & limit injuries. I do disagree a bit on Palma as I think the Lancers should cruise in this game as well. Palma has not shown up as expected the last several season's even when highly hyped by its supporters. While Palma has gone 6-0 the last 2 seasons in the Monterey Bay - Gabilan League they have simply not been competitive in crucial games with other highly regarded programs. Last season SF 26 - Palma 0, and in CCS Open Div. - Mitty 28 - Palma 0. Until I see a quality win by Palma over a rated opponent I will consider their program to be somewhat in a rebuilding stage [in fairness to Palma they did win over SF by 12-7 in pre-season 2012 which was their best win in the last 2 season's along with a 2013 win over Palo Alto by 23-20 IMO].
I have no doubts the Lancers will be tough on D this season, but think they may be a big surprise on offense if everything "clicks".
We'll see...
This post was edited on 7/27 6:51 PM by Rmbr26
Rmbr26 Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Rmbr26
"Palma has not shown up as expected the last several season's even when highly hyped by its supporters"
If you want to compare Palma's record against Saint Francis, that is not true and the facts speak differently. If you talk about how far Palma has gone into the playoffs (Open Division) compared to how they have done in CCS highest division in the past-
that is true.
Contrary to your statement, Palma actually has shown up and done well against Saint Francis recently and over the last 5 years.The facts speak for themselves.
Palma lost last year (2013) but defeated Saint Francis the year before 12-7 (2012 season). The previous year 2011 Palma defeated SF- 20-15 and 2010 Palma tied early in the season 7-7 and defeated SF 17-10 in the playoffs. In 2009, Palma defeated SF 31-14 early in the season and lost in the playoffs 45-7.
Palma's record against Saint Francis over the last 5 years is 3-2-1...this year I would give Saint Francis the advantage early in the season because Palma's strength is in its underclass, but next year and following Palma could be stronger. Palma has held its own against Saint Francis. Palma defense should be decent, so it will be interesting if there will be much scoring in the game when they play. Have to see how the defense looks against Carmel (who by the way should be very good- they have some very good skill players and some size on the lines this year) to predict, but they have potential to be very good come playoff time.
This post was edited on 7/28 5:09 PM by NorCalSportsFan
This post was edited on 7/28 5:12 PM by NorCalSportsFan
Rmbr26
"Palma has not shown up as expected the last several season's even when highly hyped by its supporters"
If you want to compare Palma's record against Saint Francis, that is not true and the facts speak differently. If you talk about how far Palma has gone into the playoffs (Open Division) compared to how they have done in CCS highest division in the past-
that is true.
Contrary to your statement, Palma actually has shown up and done well against Saint Francis recently and over the last 5 years.The facts speak for themselves.
Palma lost last year (2013) but defeated Saint Francis the year before 12-7 (2012 season). The previous year 2011 Palma defeated SF- 20-15 and 2010 Palma tied early in the season 7-7 and defeated SF 17-10 in the playoffs. In 2009, Palma defeated SF 31-14 early in the season and lost in the playoffs 45-7.
Palma's record against Saint Francis over the last 5 years is 3-2-1...this year I would give Saint Francis the advantage early in the season because Palma's strength is in its underclass, but next year and following Palma could be stronger. Palma has held its own against Saint Francis. Palma defense should be decent, so it will be interesting if there will be much scoring in the game when they play. Have to see how the defense looks against Carmel (who by the way should be very good- they have some very good skill players and some size on the lines this year) to predict, but they have potential to be very good come playoff time.
This post was edited on 7/28 5:09 PM by NorCalSportsFan
This post was edited on 7/28 5:12 PM by NorCalSportsFan
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
VALLEY CHRISTIAN WARRIORS 2014 TEAM PRE-SEASON PREVIEW:
Valley Christian Varsity 2013 Team Record = 8-4 Overall, 5-2 in WCAL, tied for 3rd place.
Junior Varsity 2013 Team Record = 9-1 Overall, 6-1 in WCAL, tied for 1rst place.
Freshman 2013 Team Record = 8-0-1 Overall, 6-0 in WCAL, League Champs
Best Game: CCS Open Div. Round 1 playoff win 26-7 over previously undefeated Terra Nova who handed SI their worst loss
of the year in pre-season. VC dominated Terra Nova physically on the lines while Terra Nova had no answer for VC's
power run game.
Toughest Loss: After a close competitive game vs Mitty in the regular season losing 14-13, VC was completely overwhelmed in
the Open Playoffs by 37-7 by Mitty leaving no doubt who the better team was.
The Valley Christian Warriors are perhaps the most difficult team to evaluate and project for 2014 for a number of reasons which I'll cover. In 2012 VC finished 6th in WCAL at 2-5 and 7-6 overall with an exciting offense and a dreadful defense. For 2013 VC was again projected to finish in the lower tier of the WCAL race. During the 2012 season VC lost 3 WCAL games by a total of 7 points [2 - FG's and a PAT], which otherwise would have left VC at 5-2 to show you how competitive league play is. With Kirk Johnson and others returning in 2013 I felt VC would be a much improved team and chose VC last year as my "Dark Horse" team to exceed expectations & projections. So VC did improve in 2013 despite injuries to Kirk Johnson and others. Going into the 2014 most fans are predicting 2014 to be the Warriors season to win it all & VC does have a lot of positive factors going for them. There are also some negatives so I'll weigh in on those as well.
In 2013 VC dropped its opener to a good Vacaville team in which VC should have been favored to win. Vacaville was able to contain VC's ground game to degree and the VC passing game was ineffective. Are stats misleading? For the 2013 season VC averaged 257 yards rushing per game, but only 26 yards per game passing. In the Vacaville opener VC was held to 150 yards rushing and 3 of 14 passing for 22 yards and an INT. During 2013 VC relied almost 100% on the run game with an ineffective and not often used passing game. This was clearly evident when Kirk Johnson their featured RB was not 100% healthy in some games and missed 4 other games altogether. Now VC has 2 other capable RB's in Tre McCloud & Mark Quimby [one of whom also was injured for a time], yet neither has the impact of Johnson to change a game. In losing to Vacaville the Warriors of Valley Christian faced an equally big and physical team. When Vacaville contained VC's run game in the 2nd 1/2 and without a pass game VC lost by 20-17. This same scenario was repeated in each of VC's other 3 losses to Mitty, Serra & Mitty again in Open Playoffs. Mitty & Serra were also big physical teams and unlike VC both Mitty & Serra could successfully pass the ball.
Keeping in mind VC's season average of 257 yards rushing per game & then their 4 losses below as described:
Vacaville, VC lost 20-17 VC held to 150 yards rushing with 4.17 YPC, 22 yards passing & an INT = total offense 172 yards
Mitty, VC lost 14-13 VC held to 67 yards rushing with 1.97 YPC, 18 yards passing & an INT = total offense 85 yards
Serra, VC lost 28-7 VC held to 92 yards rushing with 2.30 YPC, 36 yards passing = total offense 128 yards
Mitty, VC lost 37-7 VC held to 171 yards with 6.11 YPC, 70 yards passing with 2 INT's = total offense 241 yards
Against smaller D's & with Johnson, McCloud, Quimby healthy VC was successful such as with Terra Nova [26-7 win] where VC rushed for 363 yards & 39 passing for 402 yards of offense & no INT's. In 2014 VC will need all its RB's healthy as well as some form of a passing game.
The Roster for 2014 Warriors: Valley Christian loses MVP Offensive Lineman of year Charlie Nelson [6'4 - 280 to San Jose State,
Byron Baker - MVP Defensive Lineman of year, Danny Ginther - LB/RB first team WCAL, Jonah Moore DL/TE first team WCAL, Adam Vasquez - OL first team WCAL, Brandon Alexander - WR/DB, Rich Salazar - OL/DL, Auston Anderson - OL/DL, Kody Kroening - Kicker. So 9 impact players of which 5 were on the O+D-lines.
VC returns 31 varsity players + players from a 9-1 JV team and possibly added help from a few soph's off the undefeated Frosh team. VC will have 9 returning players over 200 lbs. with 4 over 240 and should be among the larger more physical teams.
Impact players returning: Kirk Johnson - 3 year starting RB, 5'11" - 190 first team all WCAL, Dan Dunham - 5'11 - 245 DL first team all WCAL, Jesse OSuna - 6'1" - 220 FB/LB first team all WCAL, Tre McCloud - RB, 6'0 - 190, 2nd team all WCAL, Mark Quimby - RB, 5'10 - 180, Mike Machado - QB 5'11 - 170, Collin Johnson - WR, 6'4 - 185.
The 2014 VC team success centers on offense. The D was solid in 2013, but the offense could not put up enough points to outscore the better teams. It was this inconsistency that sometimes kept the D on the field too long which helped the more explosive teams such as Mitty & Serra. Kirk Johnson is one of the 2 highest rated college recruits this year in WCAL. Johnson though injured in 2013 still rushed for 1228 yards in 142 carries for an 8.65 YPC [yards per carry] average with 175 per game and 11 TD's [so stop KJ & you stop a good deal of the VC offense]. In relation Tre McCLoud rushed for 710 yards for a 6.23 avg & Mark Quimby for 674 yards for an 5.27 avg. The QB Mike Machado with a year under his belt should show marked improvement. Part of the issue may have been such limited passing never allows a QB to get into any kind of throwing rhythm for consistency. The coaching staff has to be a bit more innovative this season in allowing their QB to throw more passes. VC has good athletes and a very capable target in the returning WR Collin Johnson at 6'4" who most DB's will not be able to out-jump.
VC's Passing Stats for 2013: 12 games = 27 of 77 for 35% completions, 331 yards, 5 - TDs and 4 INT's.
Warriors Pre-Season Schedule: Valley Christian has a mild pre-season schedule compared to other teams such as Serra & SI starting with Pioneer of San Jose Sept. 5th, followed by Oak Grove Sept. 12th & Milpitas Sept 19th. Valley Christian should win all 3 games with Milpitas last seasons CCS Div. 1 Champ being by far the toughest opponent - Milpitas is not regarded as talented as last season's team and had difficulty handling VC in a loss to them last season. VC's first WCAL league game will be hosting Serra.
Projection: VC must make changes to the 2013 offense in order to improve on their season record of 8-4 for 2013.
I believe VC will be an improved team this season, but possibly not enough to overtake both Mitty & Serra. To lose 2 WCAL games & a loss in the CCS Open Playoffs would put VC at 9-2 or 9-3 overall which would improve on their projected season win total of either 8-3 or 8-4. VC returns their top skill players and therefore will be as good or better than 2013. With 2 losses VC would finish in either 2nd place or again 3rd place in WCAL, but overall a game ahead of last season.
Next Up: Serra Padres
VALLEY CHRISTIAN WARRIORS 2014 TEAM PRE-SEASON PREVIEW:
Valley Christian Varsity 2013 Team Record = 8-4 Overall, 5-2 in WCAL, tied for 3rd place.
Junior Varsity 2013 Team Record = 9-1 Overall, 6-1 in WCAL, tied for 1rst place.
Freshman 2013 Team Record = 8-0-1 Overall, 6-0 in WCAL, League Champs
Best Game: CCS Open Div. Round 1 playoff win 26-7 over previously undefeated Terra Nova who handed SI their worst loss
of the year in pre-season. VC dominated Terra Nova physically on the lines while Terra Nova had no answer for VC's
power run game.
Toughest Loss: After a close competitive game vs Mitty in the regular season losing 14-13, VC was completely overwhelmed in
the Open Playoffs by 37-7 by Mitty leaving no doubt who the better team was.
The Valley Christian Warriors are perhaps the most difficult team to evaluate and project for 2014 for a number of reasons which I'll cover. In 2012 VC finished 6th in WCAL at 2-5 and 7-6 overall with an exciting offense and a dreadful defense. For 2013 VC was again projected to finish in the lower tier of the WCAL race. During the 2012 season VC lost 3 WCAL games by a total of 7 points [2 - FG's and a PAT], which otherwise would have left VC at 5-2 to show you how competitive league play is. With Kirk Johnson and others returning in 2013 I felt VC would be a much improved team and chose VC last year as my "Dark Horse" team to exceed expectations & projections. So VC did improve in 2013 despite injuries to Kirk Johnson and others. Going into the 2014 most fans are predicting 2014 to be the Warriors season to win it all & VC does have a lot of positive factors going for them. There are also some negatives so I'll weigh in on those as well.
In 2013 VC dropped its opener to a good Vacaville team in which VC should have been favored to win. Vacaville was able to contain VC's ground game to degree and the VC passing game was ineffective. Are stats misleading? For the 2013 season VC averaged 257 yards rushing per game, but only 26 yards per game passing. In the Vacaville opener VC was held to 150 yards rushing and 3 of 14 passing for 22 yards and an INT. During 2013 VC relied almost 100% on the run game with an ineffective and not often used passing game. This was clearly evident when Kirk Johnson their featured RB was not 100% healthy in some games and missed 4 other games altogether. Now VC has 2 other capable RB's in Tre McCloud & Mark Quimby [one of whom also was injured for a time], yet neither has the impact of Johnson to change a game. In losing to Vacaville the Warriors of Valley Christian faced an equally big and physical team. When Vacaville contained VC's run game in the 2nd 1/2 and without a pass game VC lost by 20-17. This same scenario was repeated in each of VC's other 3 losses to Mitty, Serra & Mitty again in Open Playoffs. Mitty & Serra were also big physical teams and unlike VC both Mitty & Serra could successfully pass the ball.
Keeping in mind VC's season average of 257 yards rushing per game & then their 4 losses below as described:
Vacaville, VC lost 20-17 VC held to 150 yards rushing with 4.17 YPC, 22 yards passing & an INT = total offense 172 yards
Mitty, VC lost 14-13 VC held to 67 yards rushing with 1.97 YPC, 18 yards passing & an INT = total offense 85 yards
Serra, VC lost 28-7 VC held to 92 yards rushing with 2.30 YPC, 36 yards passing = total offense 128 yards
Mitty, VC lost 37-7 VC held to 171 yards with 6.11 YPC, 70 yards passing with 2 INT's = total offense 241 yards
Against smaller D's & with Johnson, McCloud, Quimby healthy VC was successful such as with Terra Nova [26-7 win] where VC rushed for 363 yards & 39 passing for 402 yards of offense & no INT's. In 2014 VC will need all its RB's healthy as well as some form of a passing game.
The Roster for 2014 Warriors: Valley Christian loses MVP Offensive Lineman of year Charlie Nelson [6'4 - 280 to San Jose State,
Byron Baker - MVP Defensive Lineman of year, Danny Ginther - LB/RB first team WCAL, Jonah Moore DL/TE first team WCAL, Adam Vasquez - OL first team WCAL, Brandon Alexander - WR/DB, Rich Salazar - OL/DL, Auston Anderson - OL/DL, Kody Kroening - Kicker. So 9 impact players of which 5 were on the O+D-lines.
VC returns 31 varsity players + players from a 9-1 JV team and possibly added help from a few soph's off the undefeated Frosh team. VC will have 9 returning players over 200 lbs. with 4 over 240 and should be among the larger more physical teams.
Impact players returning: Kirk Johnson - 3 year starting RB, 5'11" - 190 first team all WCAL, Dan Dunham - 5'11 - 245 DL first team all WCAL, Jesse OSuna - 6'1" - 220 FB/LB first team all WCAL, Tre McCloud - RB, 6'0 - 190, 2nd team all WCAL, Mark Quimby - RB, 5'10 - 180, Mike Machado - QB 5'11 - 170, Collin Johnson - WR, 6'4 - 185.
The 2014 VC team success centers on offense. The D was solid in 2013, but the offense could not put up enough points to outscore the better teams. It was this inconsistency that sometimes kept the D on the field too long which helped the more explosive teams such as Mitty & Serra. Kirk Johnson is one of the 2 highest rated college recruits this year in WCAL. Johnson though injured in 2013 still rushed for 1228 yards in 142 carries for an 8.65 YPC [yards per carry] average with 175 per game and 11 TD's [so stop KJ & you stop a good deal of the VC offense]. In relation Tre McCLoud rushed for 710 yards for a 6.23 avg & Mark Quimby for 674 yards for an 5.27 avg. The QB Mike Machado with a year under his belt should show marked improvement. Part of the issue may have been such limited passing never allows a QB to get into any kind of throwing rhythm for consistency. The coaching staff has to be a bit more innovative this season in allowing their QB to throw more passes. VC has good athletes and a very capable target in the returning WR Collin Johnson at 6'4" who most DB's will not be able to out-jump.
VC's Passing Stats for 2013: 12 games = 27 of 77 for 35% completions, 331 yards, 5 - TDs and 4 INT's.
Warriors Pre-Season Schedule: Valley Christian has a mild pre-season schedule compared to other teams such as Serra & SI starting with Pioneer of San Jose Sept. 5th, followed by Oak Grove Sept. 12th & Milpitas Sept 19th. Valley Christian should win all 3 games with Milpitas last seasons CCS Div. 1 Champ being by far the toughest opponent - Milpitas is not regarded as talented as last season's team and had difficulty handling VC in a loss to them last season. VC's first WCAL league game will be hosting Serra.
Projection: VC must make changes to the 2013 offense in order to improve on their season record of 8-4 for 2013.
I believe VC will be an improved team this season, but possibly not enough to overtake both Mitty & Serra. To lose 2 WCAL games & a loss in the CCS Open Playoffs would put VC at 9-2 or 9-3 overall which would improve on their projected season win total of either 8-3 or 8-4. VC returns their top skill players and therefore will be as good or better than 2013. With 2 losses VC would finish in either 2nd place or again 3rd place in WCAL, but overall a game ahead of last season.
Next Up: Serra Padres
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Yes Jordan, aware of Akil Jones & actually chose not to include the info as with other JV players from teams. Sometimes their success at the lower level does not translate into success at the higher level due to size & speed from JV to varsity. While Akil Jones may have been very good at JV level and done well in track as well it would be unfair to rate him as a projected impact player next to the likes of Johnson, McCloud & Quimby, all 3 who excel at the varsity level as proven players and Johnson being a major college recruit.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Valley Christian also has
Morian Walker, Jr, RB, 6-1, 191, future star, 4.45 40, a top RB performer at Oregon Rival's 250 underclass challenge. Will be playing on Saturdays.
Line: Dan Dunham, Sr, 5-11, 264, DT, 1st team WCAL DL. bench 305;
Trevor Thomas, #73, Sr, 6-4, 290, RT, D1 calliber prospect;
Chase Batinich-Garcia, Sr, C/DT, 6-2,260;
Blair Ewers, Sr, 6-1, 205, OLB, 4.6 40; Brett Batey, Jr, MLB, 5-11, 220;
Mentioned earlier p Akil Jones, Jr, 6-1, 190, DE/RB, another great athlete (up from JV), 11.18 100M
VC has more D1 caliber prospects than any team in WCAL.
Valley Christian also has
Morian Walker, Jr, RB, 6-1, 191, future star, 4.45 40, a top RB performer at Oregon Rival's 250 underclass challenge. Will be playing on Saturdays.
Line: Dan Dunham, Sr, 5-11, 264, DT, 1st team WCAL DL. bench 305;
Trevor Thomas, #73, Sr, 6-4, 290, RT, D1 calliber prospect;
Chase Batinich-Garcia, Sr, C/DT, 6-2,260;
Blair Ewers, Sr, 6-1, 205, OLB, 4.6 40; Brett Batey, Jr, MLB, 5-11, 220;
Mentioned earlier p Akil Jones, Jr, 6-1, 190, DE/RB, another great athlete (up from JV), 11.18 100M
VC has more D1 caliber prospects than any team in WCAL.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Nice write up once again! I will say VC will have the most athletes out of any team in the WCAL, but how they will be utilized is another question. If the QB is not improved they will still be a good team, but not dominant . Great RBs can only take you so far, but with that being said I still like VC as a close favorite. Looking forward to serra and mitty write up.
Nice write up once again! I will say VC will have the most athletes out of any team in the WCAL, but how they will be utilized is another question. If the QB is not improved they will still be a good team, but not dominant . Great RBs can only take you so far, but with that being said I still like VC as a close favorite. Looking forward to serra and mitty write up.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Valley Christian Warriors
QB is the big question for VC IMHO. The elephant in the room. They need to be able to pass. NCSF didn't you mention last year that VC got a talented Soph that transferred to VC? What's the status with him? Could he step in a take over the QB position and give VC a pass threat. They have the receivers. They just need to be able to get them the ball. That would really cause teams problems considering the quality and depth of their RB's.
QB is the big question for VC IMHO. The elephant in the room. They need to be able to pass. NCSF didn't you mention last year that VC got a talented Soph that transferred to VC? What's the status with him? Could he step in a take over the QB position and give VC a pass threat. They have the receivers. They just need to be able to get them the ball. That would really cause teams problems considering the quality and depth of their RB's.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Here's my question for you: you mention Trevor Thomas at 6-4, 290 yet the 2013 roster shows him at 6-4, 245 which would mean a gain of 45 lbs in the off season. Same thing shows for Morian Walker, from JV's showing him at 6-0, 160 to your 6-1, 191 along with current internet info showing Walker now at 6-1, 205 [which again would be a 45 lb increase in a year]. So what are these kids eating & any idea what their real size is?
NorCal - question for you as you have good knowledge of VC's roster for this year. I did include Dan Durham in my post although based on last year's roster Durham was 5'11 - 240, so he must have lifted a lot of weights during the off season and would indeed be a package at 5-11, 264.
Here's my question for you: you mention Trevor Thomas at 6-4, 290 yet the 2013 roster shows him at 6-4, 245 which would mean a gain of 45 lbs in the off season. Same thing shows for Morian Walker, from JV's showing him at 6-0, 160 to your 6-1, 191 along with current internet info showing Walker now at 6-1, 205 [which again would be a 45 lb increase in a year]. So what are these kids eating & any idea what their real size is?
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Walker's weight was from his camp (it's most likely accurate), but looks like he may have put on more with training - 205 may be his projected for season start. He's between 190 and 205. He will be an impact player this year.
I am going by the weights published in camps and their most recruiting profiles from various sources that have been updated. I've watched film on ones I can find. Thomas looks like an FBS prospect and is big - whether 290- not sure (may also be projection but he looks big) . Given the frame and food and a weightlifting regiman, I don't think a 20-40 lbs weight gain is out of question for a kid 6-3 to 6-5 but probably is somewhere between (with weight training and a diet). Durham was from a profile and must have been from a camp since it is specific and not rounded. Gaining 20 lbs in a season at that age is not unreasonable. I know of one player that dropped 30 lbs from football weight due to wrestling and then has gained back at least 20 an is even stronger now. Probably should be at the 20-30 lb lower weight which is more natural. These kids must be eating lots of eggs and milk/protein shakes.
In general, these weights should be taken with a grain of salt. VC line will have some size this year. I think Machado will also have improved alot at QB and they are going to be very good this year. This may be among the most talented VC team ever as far as FBS talent, and they have had some very talented teams. Talent doesn't always transfer into wins, but this team has the potential to be a dominating/ elite team.
This post was edited on 7/29 10:05 AM by NorCalSportsFan
Walker's weight was from his camp (it's most likely accurate), but looks like he may have put on more with training - 205 may be his projected for season start. He's between 190 and 205. He will be an impact player this year.
I am going by the weights published in camps and their most recruiting profiles from various sources that have been updated. I've watched film on ones I can find. Thomas looks like an FBS prospect and is big - whether 290- not sure (may also be projection but he looks big) . Given the frame and food and a weightlifting regiman, I don't think a 20-40 lbs weight gain is out of question for a kid 6-3 to 6-5 but probably is somewhere between (with weight training and a diet). Durham was from a profile and must have been from a camp since it is specific and not rounded. Gaining 20 lbs in a season at that age is not unreasonable. I know of one player that dropped 30 lbs from football weight due to wrestling and then has gained back at least 20 an is even stronger now. Probably should be at the 20-30 lb lower weight which is more natural. These kids must be eating lots of eggs and milk/protein shakes.
In general, these weights should be taken with a grain of salt. VC line will have some size this year. I think Machado will also have improved alot at QB and they are going to be very good this year. This may be among the most talented VC team ever as far as FBS talent, and they have had some very talented teams. Talent doesn't always transfer into wins, but this team has the potential to be a dominating/ elite team.
This post was edited on 7/29 10:05 AM by NorCalSportsFan
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Regarding the VC soph who transferred from SJS after frosh year, I am not sure what happened to him. Didn't see him on roster so not sure if he is at school.
Regarding the VC soph who transferred from SJS after frosh year, I am not sure what happened to him. Didn't see him on roster so not sure if he is at school.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
VC's Trever Thomas' updated profile lists him at 6-5, 302- may be even bigger.
VC's Trever Thomas' updated profile lists him at 6-5, 302- may be even bigger.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Originally posted by Rmbr26:
Byron Baker - MVP Defensive Lineman of year
[/QUOTE]
Just an FYI...Byron will be playing football at the Air Force Academy this fall...
Originally posted by Rmbr26:
Byron Baker - MVP Defensive Lineman of year
[/QUOTE]
Just an FYI...Byron will be playing football at the Air Force Academy this fall...
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Just an FYI...Byron will be playing football at the Air Force Academy this fall...
[/QUOTE]Interesting & very good career choice by Baker - gets to play football, good education and possibly a good career as well.
Another very good Valley Christian player a few years back by name of Ryan Gardner received a football scholarship and attended and played football for the Falcons, graduating and married a track athlete also at the Air force academy on scholarship. Stationed with his wife back east I believe.
Just an FYI...Byron will be playing football at the Air Force Academy this fall...
[/QUOTE]Interesting & very good career choice by Baker - gets to play football, good education and possibly a good career as well.
Another very good Valley Christian player a few years back by name of Ryan Gardner received a football scholarship and attended and played football for the Falcons, graduating and married a track athlete also at the Air force academy on scholarship. Stationed with his wife back east I believe.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Curious while working on the Serra Padres team preview I wanted to see where the WCAL teams were rated state-wide and where the non-WCAL teams of note were ranked. Of the Freeman pre-season state rankings here are the WCAL teams among the 1074 high schools rated in California.
School / State Ranking - Ranking of Pre-Season Opponents
Mitty - #36 - Plays Los Gatos #129 & Pittsburg #136
Serra - #38 - Plays De La Salle #6 and also Sherman-Oaks #52
VC - #77 - Plays Milpitas #136
SF - #101
SI - #118 - Plays Terra Nova #56, Marin Catholic #105, St. Mary's -Stockton #148
Bells - #121 - Plays Franklin-Elk Grove #93, San Leandro #185
SHC - #291
Riordan - #513 - Plays Sacred Heart Prep #77, Milpitas #136.
* Pittsburg & Milpitas are ranked as dead even at #136
Note: due to the amount of schools rated even a small difference between 2 teams close in talent will result in a large difference in where they are ranked. On the other hand very close rankings such as Mitty/Serra & SI/Bells show that there is almost no difference in the pre-season talent as evaluated. The teams showing no teams listed: SF & SHC have no pre-season teams listed of any consequence listed in the state rankings and therefore should win all three pre-season games [unless Palma somehow surprises SF, but the odds are greatly against it]. Opposite of SF & SHC are Serra & SI who have the strongest pre-season opponents followed by then Riordan - Mitty - Bells - VC.
This post was edited on 7/30 7:22 PM by Rmbr26
Curious while working on the Serra Padres team preview I wanted to see where the WCAL teams were rated state-wide and where the non-WCAL teams of note were ranked. Of the Freeman pre-season state rankings here are the WCAL teams among the 1074 high schools rated in California.
School / State Ranking - Ranking of Pre-Season Opponents
Mitty - #36 - Plays Los Gatos #129 & Pittsburg #136
Serra - #38 - Plays De La Salle #6 and also Sherman-Oaks #52
VC - #77 - Plays Milpitas #136
SF - #101
SI - #118 - Plays Terra Nova #56, Marin Catholic #105, St. Mary's -Stockton #148
Bells - #121 - Plays Franklin-Elk Grove #93, San Leandro #185
SHC - #291
Riordan - #513 - Plays Sacred Heart Prep #77, Milpitas #136.
* Pittsburg & Milpitas are ranked as dead even at #136
Note: due to the amount of schools rated even a small difference between 2 teams close in talent will result in a large difference in where they are ranked. On the other hand very close rankings such as Mitty/Serra & SI/Bells show that there is almost no difference in the pre-season talent as evaluated. The teams showing no teams listed: SF & SHC have no pre-season teams listed of any consequence listed in the state rankings and therefore should win all three pre-season games [unless Palma somehow surprises SF, but the odds are greatly against it]. Opposite of SF & SHC are Serra & SI who have the strongest pre-season opponents followed by then Riordan - Mitty - Bells - VC.
This post was edited on 7/30 7:22 PM by Rmbr26
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
I don't think I see any of these pre-season rankings that I disagree with [at least within the WCAL which I think are accurate, yet disagree with Riordan & SHC for the 2nd year in a row].
Anyway curious to hear our opinion on who's too high or too low.
PAL - if you're not familiar with Freeman Ranking & CalPreps they may appear a bit "out of whack", however from following them for quite a few years they are about near what I expected if you look at them individually based upon the end of last year and this year.
I don't think I see any of these pre-season rankings that I disagree with [at least within the WCAL which I think are accurate, yet disagree with Riordan & SHC for the 2nd year in a row].
Anyway curious to hear our opinion on who's too high or too low.
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Irish ARE that much better than Riordan Rmbr... but it will be hard to tell until the league starts.
This post was edited on 7/31 8:29 AM by Irish_Cheers
Irish ARE that much better than Riordan Rmbr... but it will be hard to tell until the league starts.
This post was edited on 7/31 8:29 AM by Irish_Cheers
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview -
Ok VC at 77 and Terra Nova at 56? If im not mistaken didnt VC destroy them in the playoffs last year? Vc will be stronger this year and Terra Nova will take a step back. I also believe Pitt should be much lower with all of the prospects they have coming back. The Bells will drop both games against San Leandro and St Marys. I know Sacred Heart Prep had a good run last year, but they would have huge problems beating any of the teams listed in the 100's. I will give them that they got El Cerrito good, but the top 5 teams in the WCAL would beat shp pretty bad. Just my opinion.
Ok VC at 77 and Terra Nova at 56? If im not mistaken didnt VC destroy them in the playoffs last year? Vc will be stronger this year and Terra Nova will take a step back. I also believe Pitt should be much lower with all of the prospects they have coming back. The Bells will drop both games against San Leandro and St Marys. I know Sacred Heart Prep had a good run last year, but they would have huge problems beating any of the teams listed in the 100's. I will give them that they got El Cerrito good, but the top 5 teams in the WCAL would beat shp pretty bad. Just my opinion.
