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WCAL 2014 - Returning Impact Players for 2015

Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Serra Padres vs De La Salle Spartans TONITE

53 Total Yards. Zero points. Lose by 4 touchdowns. The GREAT off season prep, the best group of skill players since 2008, the brilliant offensive scheme and the magic choo choo train whistle. That was the best he could do. Too much talent on that team for this to continue.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Serra Padres vs De La Salle Spartans TONITE

As a WCAL fan I root for all WCAL teams. Is what I see is Riordan fans looking for any positive changes in the program. They tend to be in the "glass is half full" rather than the "glass is half empty" category. I dont see anything wrong with that. We all look at our programs that way. I'm not sure if the lack of "love" is coming from WCAL fans or others but I do think that it is misplaced. Riordan is what it is right now and I wish the program well and am pulling for it to get better in the years ahead.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th


Valley Christian 1-0 vs Oak Grove 0-1 Friday nite @ 7:30 at Oak Grove

Last week's results: Valley Christian 55-0 over Pioneer, Oak Grove lost to St. Francis 28-0

The San Jose Mercury came out today with its first in season Top 15 football rankings & Valley Christian is ranked #1. In the article Coach Mike Machado of Valley Christian says of Oak Grove "We've watched them on film, and they're athletic" - ie: "I can't think of anything else to say about Oak Grove other than we're going to beat them by a lot".

Last week VC was in full force and many were curious to see just how potent their offense was and were not disappointed. Pioneer did not have a chance against VC and were simply overwhelmed in the game. VC's QB Michael Machado passed 6 of 9 for 146 yards with a QB rating of 149.3. VC's foursome of RB's had 387 yards of which Kirk Johnson had 223 all purpose yards - McCloud rushed 4-18,
Quimby was 3-25 and highly rated newcomer Maurian Walker had 1 rush for 8 yards. Kirk's brother Colin Johnson the big WR snagged 4 catches for 90 yards and a TD. VC's new power rating has jumped to 43.3

Oak Grove was held scoreless by St. Francis relentless defense last week and things don't get any easier this week. Oak Grove in the 28-0 loss had 8 yards passing [3 of 8] and 141 yards rushing of which RB R. Fontenette had 12 rushes for 104 yards. The QB rating for the game was 45.8. Oak Grove's new power rating is "0".

Not quite sure how productive these first 2 games are for Valley Christian in pulverizing 2 weak teams which was foreseeable last season based upon their records. The other 2 pre-season top ranked WCAL teams Mitty & Serra both lost last week, so that vaults VC into the premiere position of #1 in most of the CCS rankings/polls. The massacre that is about to take place at Oak Grove will not change those rankings for at least another week when the Warrior's host Milpitas - whom the Warrior's beat last season 48-24 [and Milpitas was rated slightly higher last season]. So for all those Valley Christian fans and those wondering how just how good is VC this year - you will have to wait one more week to find out.

Prediction: VC 42 - Oak Grove 0
This post was edited on 9/11 9:21 AM by Rmbr26
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th

Rmbr, I think they may have to wait more than one week. Milpitas is not as good as last year and VC on paper is much better this year. I expect blowouts is their first 3 preseason games. They should have scheduled at least one powerhouse if this was supposed to big their big year. I think they will have a tough time with Serra because of the way Serra's preseason schedule is. I look forward to your pick in that game.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th


Read the MercuryNews write up on the VC game and was set back a bit by:



"The shutout Friday came despite the absence of last year's co-West Catholic Athletic League linebacker of the year Jesse Osuna, who left Valley Christian after what Machado described as an incident at the school.

"He and his family felt it was better for him to go someplace else," Machado said.

Among the defensive players Machado credited was Mark Quinby, who the coach said did a great job at middle linebacker, filling the hole left by Osuna's departure."

Osuna is a heck of a player. He was projected as a two way starter. Where is he now?
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th








** GAME OF THE WEEK **

Serra Padres 0-1 vs Notre Dame - Sherman Oaks "Knights" 2-0 Friday nite 7:00 @ NDSO's

Last week's results: Serra lost to DLS 41-13, NDSO's beat Birmingham 56-6 & previous week beat Mira Costa 70-34.

An interesting game on paper and most fans including all the SoCal fans expect Notre Dame - Sherman Oaks to win - period.
Notre Dame - Sherman Oaks crushed their first 2 opponents while Serra suffered somewhat of a beat-down against nationally ranked DLS.
NDSO's comes in as usual loaded with talent & speed and also outsizes Serra physically. Coach Walsh can be a bit unconventional at times and likely will have a different game plan than used against DLS.

Notre Dame - Sherman Oaks is one of the premiere football programs in SoCal having a tough schedule annually and enjoying much success over the years. Serra has been a rising star in CCS/NorCal in recent years under Coach Walsh and is looking to build its program by scheduling tough pre-season opponents prior to the WCAL League play. NDSO's has a big roster and big talent and this year is no different having both speed and size. The Knights primary skill players are the QB Cole Klayman 6'0 - 195, their premiere RB who gets most of the carries Leo Lambert 5'10 - 180 and their primary WR CJ Sanders 5'10 - 180.

In their first 2 blow-out wins Notre Dame - Sherman Oaks stats were quite similar: 8/14 passing for 153 yards & 6/13 passing for 155 yards [QB ratings of 89.3 & 129.8]. Most of their yardage comes on the ground via Leo Lambert and the totals rushing for the 2 games were 233 yards with 9.0 APC and 353 yards with a 13.6 APC [scary!]. If you stop Leo Lambert & CJ Sanders you stop most of the Knights offense - so Serra will at least have to key on Lambert and have help from the safety on CJ Sanders. The primary goal for Serra will be to slow down the Knights rushing game and if not could be a long night.

Serra played respectively against nationally ranked DLS in starting a converted soph at QB while the projected starter, a transfer from St. Francis Hunter Bishop sits out a number of games. The young QB is Sitaleki "Leki" Nunn 5'10 - 160 who was 14/31 for 156 yards, 2 TD's and 2 INT"s which DLS converted into TD's. I was impressed that Nunn played as well as he did vs DLS in his first varsity game [can you imagine being 15 years old and starting your first game at QB & you're playing DE LA SALLE at DLS??]. Nunn also had 10 rushes for 20 yards trying to scramble away from DLS defenders. Serra's premiere RB Kava Cassidy a 3 year player only played the 2nd 1/2 vs DLS and still accounted for 90 yards rushing & receiving. I was surprised Serra did not utilize their other explosive RB Lataimua Kelepi - a junior who played varsity last season was the WCAL 100M champ and has excellent hands as well. Lataimua had 2 carries for a minus 4 yards and no catches [?] - Coach Walsh should utilize Lataimua's talents to the fullest vs the Knights tomorrow night.
In the DLS game the Serra RB Cassidy & WR McCoy accounted for 9 catches between them of the 14 completions QB Nunn had - Serra will need to spread it around more as NDSO's is likely to double cover McCoy in this game.

Conclusion: The Knights are favored by 2 TD's in this game & if Serra cannot slow them down the point spread could be more. The 2 most likely scenario's are another blow-out win by Notre Dame Sherman Oaks OR perhaps a closer game with a 7-10 point spread.
Serra has to stop NDSO's run game first and Serra also has to be able to get their own run game in sync early in the game. Since NDSO's is a larger team Serra's D cannot be on the field for extended periods such as the DLS game. It will be interesting to see how coach Walsh uses the double wing vs the spread offense against the Knights. Another possibility is that Walsh's primary objective will be to win WCAL League and then CCS, so will he pull out all the stops against an out of area highly ranked opponent? So Serra's 2 keys to the game are its Defense and how young QB "Leki" Nunn will perform in only his 2nd game. I'll go on a hunch instead of common sense as sometimes weird stuff happens in HS football.

Prediction: Serra 27 - NDSO 21




This post was edited on 9/11 12:20 PM by Rmbr26

This post was edited on 9/11 5:05 PM by Rmbr26
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th

Originally posted by Rmbr26:



Not quite sure how productive these first 2 games are for Valley Christian in pulverizing 2 weak teams which was foreseeable last season based upon their records. The other 2 pre-season top ranked WCAL teams Mitty & Serra both lost last week, so that vaults VC into the premiere position of #1 in most of the CCS rankings/polls. The massacre that is about to take place at Oak Grove will not change those rankings for at least another week when the Warrior's host Milpitas - whom the Warrior's beat last season 48-24 [and Milpitas was rated slightly higher last season]. So for all those Valley Christian fans and those wondering how just how good is VC this year - you will have to wait one more week to find out.

Prediction: VC 42 - Oak Grove 0

This post was edited on 9/11 9:21 AM by Rmbr26
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I was pretty disappointed in the weak schedule VC put together this year. They knew a couple years ago they had a good team coming and actually lightened up their schedule. Not sure how that will play out for preparation for WCAL league competition. It could help morale or it could set them up for failure. Either way, I think the first meaningful game they will play is against Serra in October.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th

Other than Jack Dreyer, the human condominium, Serra has very few interior linemen, whether on offense or defense, who stand out, unlike 2013. It's going to be a constant struggle for the Padres to produce any sort of consistent dominance on either side of the ball this year. Serra is simply too thin up front, Dreyer, of course, being the obvious exception.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th

Originally posted by colhenrylives:
Other than Jack Dreyer, the human condominium, Serra has very few interior linemen, whether on offense or defense, who stand out, unlike 2013. It's going to be a constant struggle for the Padres to produce any sort of consistent dominance on either side of the ball this year. Serra is simply too thin up front, Dreyer, of course, being the obvious exception.
Click to expand...
I had that same suspicion Colhenry, but not altogether convinced their lines will be that bad. Serra in statistical terms played DLS better than Jesuit and with a handful of plays and without the INT's Serra's young QB threw the Padres could have been closer in score in the game, ie: 41-20 or 35-13 or even 35-20 which would have been seen as much more respectable. All in all the Padres didn't do badly considering the size differential that DLS had on them. Not sure if any changes were in store on the O/D-lines for tomorrow nite, but Walsh is good at making adjustments where needed.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th

The Padres had a two-way lineman starter not play vs. DLS due to injury, he also started last year. He will help on both the o and d lines this week.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th


Originally posted by prep_guru:
The Padres had a two-way lineman starter not play vs. DLS due to injury, he also started last year. He will help on both the o and d lines this week.
Click to expand...
Interesting Guru - do we have a name & for sure he will be playing?? I wasn't aware Serra had any starters who could not play vs DLS [but then again coach Walsh isn't the best when it comes to updating me prior to game time
wink.r191677.gif
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th

hey y'all. Just got through some long-term computer issues and now am back in business.

This year for Saint Francis is pretty set, as long as everyone is healthy. Akina is gonna get most of the reps at QB, and we should see the type of spread-the-wealth running attack Calcagno did for good portions of last season, except Hurtado is the feature back instead of Andrighetto (with Baty as the specialty #2 feature back)

With Palma on the docket tomorrow, Saint Francis is happy to finally make a trip down there and NOT go to a House of Horrors for them: Salinas Sports Complex. After a tie in the 2010 regular season (7-7), a hard-fought loss in the 2010 CCS Playoffs (17-10) and a horrendous loss in the 2012 regular season (10-7 with 5 INT's), I know SF will be happy to get away from the rodeo show field and head over to Rabobank, Palma's new home as of last year.

SF should be considered the favorite, but the 2 hour trip down to Salinas hasn't treated SF well since the 2009 CCS Playoffs (my freshman year... seems only a few days ago, yet it has been 5 years).

I'll be following closely - glad to see Rmbr26 has this thread alive and well for this year.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th


I expect to be at the game and will post during the game.

Rabobank Field is a great field...should be for $7 million. Looking forward to the game. Looks like both SF and Palma are better than last year at this stage. Palma offense will have a tough task against the SF defense, but also they are much better on the line and skill players have more speed and explosiveness overall. Palma defense is better than last year as well. Of course, same can be said of SF. SF should be the favorite, but this Palma team is going to be very good by playoff time and could surprise this game.

I believe Palma still has an overall winning record against SF. May lose this game, but Palma should be in an uptrend.
This post was edited on 9/11 10:40 PM by NorCalSportsFan
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th

"I believe Palma still has an overall winning record against SF. May lose this game, but Palma should be in an uptrend."

Mercury News mentioned 5 SF starters (defensive players) did not play last week and highly doubt they'll play in this game. Plus Toki and another defensive starter is out today as well. So it's going to be an interesting game to watch. SF played great defense last week but is it strong enough against Palma? Will they let Akina run wild or stick to the plan with Power Running and occasional play action? Is the game on NFHS?

Predictions: Pre-Season Wk2

Riordan 14 - Sacred Heart Prep 35: SHP has too much offense.
Bellarmine 35 - San Leandro 21: Bells will handle SL (without their star player)
Serra 28 - ND Sherman Oaks 42: High scoring game. Will have to give the nod to ND.
Sacred Heart Cathedral 35 - Novato 14: Just because.
St Francis 28 - Palma 24: Score maybe lower but it will be a good game at the new stadium.
St Ignatius 21 - Terra Nova 35: SI played great against MC but I think TN will air it out with success.
Valley Christian 45 - Oak Grove 0: Ugly game.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th

St. Francis 1-0 vs Palma 1-0 tonite 7:30 @ Palma

Last week's results: SF beat Oak Grove 28-0 while Palma cruised by Carmel 30-7.

Last season WCAL vs Palma: SF beat Palma in pre-season 26-0 while Mitty beat Palma in CCS playoffs 28-0.

Palma once a dominant team in CCS has seemingly fallen on tough times in recent years and is trying to rebuild their program to its former glory days. St. Francis always tough has what looks like to be a very good team this year. SF is rated slightly higher than last season and has several high profile transfers added to its arsenal while Palma is rated about the same as last year - which is not the best news for Palma. Palma does have a nice win under their belts to start the season, however Carmel is not a top tier team. SF rolled over Oak Grove also not a top tier team, however the game was not similar to the Palma/Carmel game in competitive nature. SF is the 8th ranked CCS team while Palma is #15. SF has a power rating of 36.0 while Palma is at 20.5.

Palma is not a huge team physically and SF will def have a size advantage over the Chieftains. Palma's QB Jack Richardson 6'4 - 195 was 6/16 for 91 yards against Carmel & will need to step his game up if Palma is to have any chance against the Lancers.
Palma's surprise RB Emilio Martinez 5'9 - 170 accounted for the bulk of Palma's offense with 26 carries for 156 yards and 3 TD's.
Palma's Defense came up big against Carmel and will have a much stiffer challenge against a larger SF O-line. Palma does have an excellent kicker in Miguel Mendez who had 2 FG's of 37 & 27 yards.

Conclusion: Even without some starters playing for St. Francis the Lancers on paper appear to be too deep for Palma to match up against evenly. St. Francis has a noticeable edge in size and talent at the skill positions. The Lancers rely on their D and will make it difficult for Palma to pass and likely will not allow Palma's Martinez 156 yards on the ground in his 2nd game. Realistically I do not see this game as being altogether different from last season's early contest between the 2 teams with the edge on the side of the Lancers as the heavy favorite.

Prediction: St. Francis 28 - Palma 10
This post was edited on 9/12 9:30 AM by Rmbr26
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th

Originally posted by Rmbr26:
St. Francis 1-0 vs Palma 1-0 tonite 7:30 @ Palma

Last week's results: SF beat Oak Grove 28-0 while Palma cruised by Carmel 30-7.

Last season WCAL vs Palma: SF beat Palma in pre-season 26-0 while Mitty beat Palma in CCS playoffs 28-0.

Palma once a dominant team in CCS has seemingly fallen on tough times in recent years and is trying to rebuild their program to its former glory days. St. Francis always tough has what looks like to be a very good team this year. SF is rated slightly higher than last season and has several high profile transfers added to its arsenal while Palma is rated about the same as last year - which is not the best news for Palma. Palma does have a nice win under their belts to start the season, however Carmel is not a top tier team. SF rolled over Oak Grove also not a top tier team, however the game was not similar to the Palma/Carmel game in competitive nature. SF is the 8th ranked CCS team while Palma is #15. SF has a power rating of 36.0 while Palma is at 20.5.

Palma is not a huge team physically and SF will def have a size advantage over the Chieftains. Palma's QB Jack Richardson 6'4 - 195 was 6/16 for 91 yards against Carmel & will need to step his game up if Palma is to have any chance against the Lancers.
Palma's surprise RB Emilio Martinez 5'9 - 170 accounted for the bulk of Palma's offense with 26 carries for 156 yards and 3 TD's.
Palma's Defense came up big against Carmel and will have a much stiffer challenge against a larger SF O-line. Palma does have an excellent kicker in Miguel Mendez who had 2 FG's of 37 & 27 yards.

Conclusion: Even without some starters playing for St. Francis the Lancers on paper appear to be too deep for Palma to match up against evenly. St. Francis has a noticeable edge in size and talent at the skill positions. The Lancers rely on their D and will make it difficult for Palma to pass and likely will not allow Palma's Martinez 156 yards on the ground in his 2nd game. Realistically I do not see this game as being altogether different from last season's early contest between the 2 teams with the edge on the side of the Lancers as the heavy favorite.

Prediction: St. Francis 28 - Palma 10
This post was edited on 9/12 9:30 AM by Rmbr26
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@ HSS75, St Francis will not be the team tonight that they will be when league play starts. They are definitely diminished and depleted right now. From what I heard they are in no hurry to bring back those starters unless they are truly ready to go. They said that Toki will be ready to go when league play starts. The good news is that they should be close to full strength for the start of the WCAL. Being that their first game is against Riordan they may rest some for that game also.

@Rmbr26, I hope your right. Outside of the top teams in league play, if there is one game where SF could be challanged with all those starters out, it will be tonight.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th


Rmbr26

I think the score could be where you have it, but will find out early in the game based on whether Palma has any success with its passing attack and whether Palma defense can stop or slow the SF ground game). If it is close in the first half, Palma could pull an upset (they make good adjustments at half).

It is a misnomer you mention about Palma size. Palma lines are not small. Actually offensive line has some size and they are quick (the offensive line may actually be bigger than SFs). SF defensive line is big in the middle (tall at OLBss/DEs) but the test will be whether Palma has enough time to pass the ball if they have trouble getting the running game going. Palma defensive line is also missing a couple linemen (the best defender out for the year due to Achilles injury, and another that is sitting out that is a returning starter). Palma's NG is an animal (very strong and quick) and among the best in CCS (after Toki), and the other DL are very quick. Palma LBs looked pretty good, but rely more on good reads although one ILB is very physical. Palma's DBs are its strength and they have some size and decent speed. Question is whether Palma defense will be able to able to stop that SF power game and still contain the QB and also not get burned by the pass.

Palma may have a special teams advantage and could be a factor is a close game. Their placekicker is a D1 prospect and can probably hit a 50 yard FG (He's had several over 42 yards and kicked 3 FGs last week). He also kicks a majority of his kickoffs into the end zone. Punter is decent as well.

I still think SF will be a generous favorite. Palma will be more physical than Oak Grove and they also have a few players with some speed, but I think SF will be more physical (with Toki). SF's senior class overall is stronger, but Palma's underclass are stronger. Probably going to be a better game than last year, but I am uncertain how Palma's offense will do against SFs defense which is its strength. Won't know until they play. Palma will have to spread the ball around more than they did against Carmel and also will need to throw the ball more. Definitely will need a different game plan. Carmel offense is very formidable as far as line, passing attack, mobile QB, and they had a physical rusher. Palma had to key on QB and passing attack first in that one. Against SF, Palma will have to key on rushing, QB containment and not get burned by pass (Will SF change things up and pass more?). Will be interesting to see how either team changes their offensive plans or sticks to what they did last week. I think SF will try to establish the rush first and power through Palma (Calcagno's MO), so Palma will have to stop that rushing attack or it will be a long night. Palma will try to do the same, but I think SF rush defense is very stout. Palma's offensive line is better than Oak Grove's, but rushing success is still question. Palma will have to be balanced on offense and execute it's passing attack better. Palma QB can spread the field with his arm if he has time to throw the ball (another question mark).

Reports state Emilio is only 170lbs and small, but he's at least 10 lbs+ heavier although only 5-8. He's very strong for his size and- runs low and a slashing rusher with excellent vision. He is really fun to watch. One of the better between tackle rushers I have seen. Not a big RB but deceptive as far as strength and cuts on a dime. Palma's other RB is good but not a impact player as Emilio. He's a good 5-10 yard gain per rush and is consistent. They lost a potential starter that was an impact player that is either sitting out this year or left the school who was an impact player. SF defense is definitely going to be test.

This post was edited on 9/12 10:47 AM by NorCalSportsFan
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th

I dont think that you will be able to gauge SF as a team tonight as so many starters are out. What we will see is how good the SF depth is.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th


What SF starters are out? Palma DT is out. Toki....and what others?
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Preview for St. Francis - Palma Tonite

Is this game being streamed anywhere?
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th

Originally posted by NorCalSportsFan:

What SF starters are out? Palma DT is out. Toki....and what others?
Click to expand...
This is a quote from the SJ Mercury News:

"The Lancers played without highly touted defensive tackle Thomas Toki, who is nursing a sore shoulder. Toki is verbally committed to Washington State. Five other starters were missing for the Lancers for a variety of reasons."

Another starter went down at the beginning of the OG game.That may have been Alex Carbonel but I'm not sure.

So with Toki and Carbonel down that makes 7 starters that may likely be out tonight.

The Mercury News did not specifically say who the 5 starters were and it was hard to tell who was missing with the OG game being the first game of the season.








This post was edited on 9/12 12:39 PM by WCAL75
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Previews for Fri-Sat Sept. 12th & 13th

I will have the roster and will check at the game. Wow....maybe I better change my Pickem to Palma with this new knowledge. LOL
 
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells

Originally posted by oalfan:
watch what san leandro does to bellarmine this year...
Click to expand...
Apparently didn't do enough.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells

Originally posted by oalfan:
watch what san leandro does to bellarmine this year...


Originally posted by bella123:
Apparently didn't do enough.
Click to expand...
Bella - I remember this post and chuckling at the time, but in fairness to the poster the remark was made before they lost their best player.

With the losses by Mitty & SF it is starting to look like maybe:

1 VC
2 Serra
3 Mitty / Bells
4 SI / SF
5 SHC
6 Riordan
 
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells

Originally posted by Rmbr26:
Originally posted by oalfan:
watch what san leandro does to bellarmine this year...


Originally posted by bella123:
Apparently didn't do enough.
Click to expand...
Bella - I remember this post and chuckling at the time, but in fairness to the poster the remark was made before they lost their best player.

With the losses by Mitty & SF it is starting to look like maybe:

1 VC
2 Serra
3 Mitty / Bells
4 SI / SF
5 SHC
6 Riordan
Click to expand...
Yep, that's where SF belongs right now until they prove otherwise. I dont care how many starters were or were not out.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells


WCAL - I have yet to see St. Francis in action, but the reports and articles this morning indicate Palma was in control of the game throughout. SF was not able to stop what appears to be a very limited attack by Palma's offense and SF in reverse was not able to generate much offense. The comments regarding all the starters being out have some bearing, but SF should be deep enough to make adjustments to cover for any injured players. I think back to Serra's close loss to DLS last season in which Serra was missing 4 of their starters going into the game & 2 of them played both ways [but made adjustments with other players & it worked].

It is surprising though as SF was solid last season, returned a good nucleous and added some excellent transfer players which only added to their pre-season increase in rankings & ratings. So is Palma THAT GOOD or did SF simply implode?

BTW - Los Gatos is for real and demolished Menlo-Atherton last nite 35-7 . RB Joey Wood is going to be hard for any team to stop.
SI up 21-0 in first 1/2 held on for a 27-24 win against Terra Nova, so SI is a surprising 2-0 against 2 quality teams.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells

Surprised to see the result if this game, too. SF has a roster size of 60 players, I would think the would have capable backups. Looks to be an interesting WCAL this season.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells

Not sure who was out for SF. Toki played. Was tough up the middle but not disruptive. Palma also missing a starting DT/DE and OL. Not sure who else was missing.

SF did a great job of limited Palma's soph RB between tackles although he had some nice runs towards the end and took a screen pass 49 yards for a TD. Maybe SF missing DB? SF pass defense was kind of passive, although Deeneen's height and wing span gave Palma's 6-4 QB trouble and batted down a few passes. Palma's defense sacked SF QB a few times and also made him intentionally ground the ball which resulted in a safety. Palma's defense was very good. Best in a long time. With exceptions a few big plays gave up, they were pretty dominating. Palma's offense is clearly better that last year. They look like a top 10 team in CCS and most of their skill players are underclass. With their defense, I think they are clearly the top team in their league. None of Palma classes have ever lost to Hollister and that defense is going to give Monterey problems as will their offensive line. SF's QB is dangerous when he is scrambling because he buys time and can hit WRs pretty much anywhere, but Palma seemed to have him in disarray a lot and Palma DBs covered the SF WRs extremely well except for a few plays. Palma clearly looked better than SF tonight. SF did have a patch where they caught momentum and looked like they could pull a win out, but then muffed a punt and Palma recovered and put it out of reach after that. Palma's special teams (especially place kicker and punter) are great. That was an advantage as well. SF rarely started with good field position.


Palma's Martinez had 108 yards on 28 carries (2 TDs) and QB Richardson completed 13 of 22 passes for 201 yards. Palma's Wesley Johnson had six catches for 53 yards and TE Liam McMillin had three catches for 85 yards. Palma's QB was a little like Jeckle and Hyde but rarely made bad decisions. He seemed to at times makes some really great pin point throws (can air it out a little) and other times seemed to have mechanics issue and pass didn't look good (didn't get his feet right and rushed pass due to SF pass rush). He also at times looked at his targeted receivers from start. Much of this will get better with experience. SF's Dinneen is a formidable pass rush - don't believe he had a sack but with his height is tough to get a pass by him and he was disruptive (Definitely an all CCS type player). Palma's WR Johnson a junior and 6-3 made some really great catches. TE McMillian made a great catch on perfect pass that almost resulted in a long score. They also have speed at the slot. Palma QB, a junior, is going to improve a lot as the season goes. I think this Palma team is one that will improve a lot by playoff time.

St. Francis had 53 yards on the ground on 29 carries. Palma stopped them 11 times for minus yardage. SF's QB Akina Kamalalii 4-for-7 for 115 yards. Reported he threw only two passes in the second half for 32 and 36 yards.



This post was edited on 9/13 12:44 PM by NorCalSportsFan


This post was edited on 9/13 2:01 PM by NorCalSportsFan

This post was edited on 9/13 2:39 PM by NorCalSportsFan
 
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells

Originally posted by NorCalSportsFan:
St. Francis had 53 yards on the ground on 29 carries. Palma stopped them 11 times for minus yardage. SF's QB Akina Kamalalii 4-for-7 for 115 yards. Reported he threw only two passes in the second half for 32 and 36 yards.
Click to expand...
NorCal - great info on the game last nite & I found the above stat the most interesting of all the break-down you provided.
In comparison the previous week in Palma's 30-7 win over Carmel, one of Carmel's RB's had 84 yards of which 61 yards were in the first 1/2 - so the Carmel RB had more rushing yards in the first 1/2 than all St. Francis RB's had the entire
game vs Palma [?]. Something is very wrong with SF's rushing game unless Palma has perhaps the toughest D in CCS to run against. Who would've thought....
 
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells


Palma was defending against Carmel pass....against SF Palma defended run first. Palma shut down Carmel offense in 2H.

By the way Salinas HS defeated Carmel 61-29 earlier today.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Preview for St. Francis - Palma Tonite

I think Palms defense is really good. Probably the best since mid 2000s. The defense wont have its first real test until they play Salinas in a few weeks. Salinas doesnt have an amazing offense however they are extremely balanced. This defense has proved to be very good at making teams one dimensional so far. They may struggle against teams with really good athletes like they have in previous years. So the monterey game should be interesting. If palmas defense continues to play this way and the offense keeps improving every week without a doubt they should be a top 10 team in CCS.
As far as St Francis, I am assuming the 5 that were out played some big roles. Besides a few big plays as Norcal mentioned their offense looked really bad. Palma was blitzing a lot and SF struggled all night picking it up. SFs defense didnt look bad palmas passing game looked much improved and that was the deciding factor in the game IMO. These two teams have had some very good games in the past and this one was the same. Hopefully they continue playing eachother.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells

Just watched the film against SF vs Palma. Great game. I thought Palma would give SF trouble and they did. The thing about Calgano is that he is very predictable when running his offense. If you saw film on all his varsity games so far dating back from last year is that he hasn't changed a thing. Palma was strong on the run and is a going to be a force coming to playoffs. I also expect SF to make adjustments since I don't think he has the plays so far to take advantage of the QB. He is accurate and should take advantage of that. They came back really quick and would've had possession to take the lead but Palma got the ball after an SF player touched the ball when it hit the ground during the punt. Palma had open receivers all day. Two starters on DB/CB were on the sideline. Starting LBs that night were not regular starters so they were having trouble with with reading plays which I can see on film. Toki played but didn't make an impact as much. It may take a another game to get his football speed back since he was sidelined for a few weeks. Dineen is shaping up to be all-state caliber. He was an animal. Would love to see Palma take on SF again if they meet in the playoffs.

Hope the Palma player that went down early in the game is fine. He looked like he was in pain.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells


I was surprised by Calcagno play calling as well. With such a good passing QB, thought he would pass more. More of a pass first and then run. Seemed defense new SF was going to run every down except 3rd. When SF did pass in those running situations, they had success.

I think the SF defense will be pretty formidable in the WCAL when they are at full strength. Definitely will need to open the offense up some though. They have lots of talent and were very predictable.

The Palma player that went out injured (one of their LBs) actually came back in the game. I thought he blew his knew out, based on how he was helped off the field. He came back in after a series and seemed fine. Would be big loss for team if he is out, he is a starting OLB and also rotates in at FB.

What I like about this Palma team is that the offense has a high upside for improvement with all the youth. The defense with exception of DBs (and they have good underclass backups), has a lot of youth at LBs and d-line. They should get a very good returning starter senior back at DT in a couple games (and he plays o-line as well, but seems the underclassman at o-line is doing a great job). Palma definitely will need to improve if these teams face each other again. The last time SF defeated Palma in the playoffs in a second game, it seemed SF made lots of adjustments after Palma won the first game, and Palma seemed to use the same game plan. Hopefully this is changed up some if they face again. SF always improves a lot as the season progresses-probably a result of having to face tough opponents in the WCAL. I think the MBL Gab is relatively stronger this year and that will also help Palma improve. I think Monterey and Hollister and Palma will compete for the title and maybe Salinas as a long shot. In any event, both teams need to improve as the year progresses.

If they continue the series, I think Palma will have an advantage the next couple years-although SF sophs have some very big kids on the line and some very good athletes. I know they hade 3 up on varsity as did Palma who had three sophs and all are starters (2 both ways - LB/FB, C/DT). Soph Emilio Martinez starts at RB and also punts. Can you imagine when Emilio decides to run when he punts? He is a decent punter as well, but always a threat to take off if he is flushed out. Palma sophs (on JV) are stacked at the skill positions - The JV have another really good RB and their WRs all could play varsity. Palma underclass have lots of speed (they should have a good 4x100 track squad again this year including two sophs). Soph QB isn't very big, but an extremely accurate passer. They defeated the SF JV on a 2 minute drive of pin point passing that a varsity squad would love to have. SF sophs are big and athletic, and they will make an impact as juniors as SF current juniors aren't a particularly strong class. I see SF as being down next season, but rebounding the following year. Palma will have the advantage next season, but should be very good game the following. Both Palma and SF frosh classes are very even. SF frosh won 6-0 after Palma muffed a punt and SF took it in in a final drive. Not sure who strong SF frosh class is until WCAL starts. Palma frosh already defeated Hollister (but in a close game). Still to early to tell how good they will be. The Palma frosh do seemed to complement the sophs with linemen.

On an interesting note, this SF seniors class handily defeated this Palma senior class as freshmen 48-7. SF got ahead early at the start as Palma defense made some terrible reads and SF broke a couple long runs that scored. At half Palma made some adjustments but still ended up a blow out. So not sure how much frosh results indicate future success- although I know the Palma seniors made a huge jump as sophs losing only 17-7 9although SF had some sophs up). I tend to look at two classes as far as how they compliment each other and although SF jniors aren't particularly strong, I would expect this years sophs to have an impact next season. Just think Palma's two underclass classes overall are stronger than SF's and reason why I think Palma will have advantages next year and possibly the following. Still would like the series to continue as both teams playing each other are good preparation for league and potentially playoffs.


This post was edited on 9/14 2:38 PM by NorCalSportsFan


This post was edited on 9/14 2:39 PM by NorCalSportsFan

This post was edited on 9/14 2:56 PM by NorCalSportsFan
 
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells

HSS75 & NorCal - Really great insight both both posters on the SF-Palma game & looks just maybe Palma really has something this year [& St Francis does not unfortunately]. SF was my "dark horse" pick of the WCAL & I was honestly shocked by the decisive win by Palma. For first time in a number of years it looks like Palma the small school DLS of the CCS could again be a power when it comes playoff time - which would be very cool to see IMO.

Would anyone out there be excited to see a Valley Christian - Palma CCS Open Championship?
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Preview for St. Francis - Palma Tonite

It looks like Los Gatos might be strong enough to spoil that papal party.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Preview for St. Francis - Palma Tonite


Early in the season to make an Open Division prediction, but Los Gatos is looking pretty good this year so far. Upcoming Hollister game should be interesting, Hollister has good run defense (but definitely tough to stop Wood), and Los Gatos is balanced on offense with pass. Last year the games was 28-14 and both seem to be better at this stage of the season. Would think Los Gatos is favored but maybe a good game this year.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 - Game Preview for St. Francis - Palma Tonite

VC, LG, Palma appear all legit but It is early. A key factor will be which team is the healthiest entering post season.
 
Re: WCAL 2014 Pre-Season Preview - Bellarmine Bells

"SF was my "dark horse" pick of the WCAL & I was honestly shocked by the decisive win by Palma."

SF too dangerous to count them out. They have Skyline, Bye, and Riordan, so I hope SF take the next 4 weeks to make the right adjustments when they play Mitty, Serra, VC consecutively. Also most or all of the starters that did not play will be back and healthy by then. Palma definitely did outplay them but it's still along season.

This post was edited on 9/15 1:19 PM by HSS75
 
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