A Pre-Season Look at each of the WCAL’s Teams and what to possibly expect in 2017
So now to look at each team and its returning players from last season’s varsity who will form the core of each team along with any impact players up from last year’s JV’s and maybe a few talented soph’s thrown into the mix. As history shows us though primarily it will be last years’ juniors who started that the teams will rely most heavily on. I reviewed the teams earlier based upon their overall win/loss record for last season and I’ll reverse that by starting with the lowest win total and going up from there which would be:
Riordan Crusader’s 2017 - A Season of Hope?
The Riordan fans endured somewhat of a roller coaster ride the last 3 seasons going from misery to euphoria and back to a somewhat miserable season last year in 2016. So is there any hope for the upcoming season or will Riordan again be the proverbial “doormat” of the WCAL? First off let’s take a look at the roster and see WHO is not returning.
In 2016 Riordan had a roster showing well over 50 players which would indicate substantial depth and hopefully enough athletic players to assemble a competitive team. Unfortunately though the 2016 Riordan team limped through a 2-8 season, so possibly the players not returning will not be missed to great degree. Here is the list and you be the judge.
2016 Riordan senior’s not returning this season: Phil Kaulave – OL/DT 6’1-300 first team All WCAL, Donny Bendo – WR/SS 6’0-155 first team All WCAL, Keelon Best – WR/CB 6’2-175 2nd team All WCAL, Randy Bellorin G/T 6’3-275 WCAL Honorable Mention, Joshua Boone– QB,WR,CB 5’7-150, Xavier Caracter QB 6’3-195. There are certainly others who may have contributed, however these are the names that stand out.
So now that we know who left who will be returning & can there be any cause for hope this season? The simple answer is Yes Crusader fans. At least on paper the 2017 Riordan team looks to be a bit more solid than last season’s version. The 2017 Riordan team really was devoid of any explosive players on offense and its biggest weak spot was at the helm of the offense, which is of course at the QB position. Riordan’s offense production was abysmal and simply put “cannot get any worse”. It appeared more based upon a lack of execution by players rather than athletic talent, as at times Riordan’s players appeared that they could compete against other teams they lost games to. At any rate let’s see who we have returning for the 2017 season.
Returning Players of Impact for Riordan 2017: Lasa Tofi – FB/LB 5’9-225 1rst team All WCAL and a player Riordan will count on heavily on both sides of the ball. Isaias Sierra T/DT 6’2-260 a young soph player who made an impact last season and 2nd Team All WCAL can play both ways as well, Demanuel Talauati-Brown – RB 6’2-240 could be a bit of a surprise player as 2nd team All WCAL, after all, who wants to tackle a 240 LB RB in HS? [I think Pitt wanted to recruit Brown but he was too tall], Max Mezie – WR/CB 5’11-170 another good athlete type who can play both ways and will need to step it up on offense. Overall Riordan does not lose a lot to graduation as they were a very young team last season and therefore return about 75% of the team including many of their starters. So an important question is: Can a 2-8 team returning most of its players be any better this season? The answer is Yes as before in that at this level the young players can only get bigger, faster and smarter based upon a years’ experience. Riordan will likely rely on its QB chores from an underclassman Demanuel Taulauti [ARHS fans correct me if wrong] who has good size at 6’1 and is athletic. They return their key RB who performed adequately last season and their best 2-way lineman and a good WR with experience. Of course the key player is the QB as Riordan struggled last season at this position and will need to simply score more points to better that 2-8 record. While the team was young last season Riordan also was adjusting to new coaching and that transition can be anything than smooth at the HS level. Riordan should be very competitive on defense with the starters they have returning if the offense can keep them off the field.
Conclusion: The Crusader’s lose a marginal number of players of impact while bringing back most of their key component players. With a reliable RB and WR if Riordan has a capable & most importantly “efficient” QB who can direct the offense they can be competitive. I say competitive rather than winning as last season Riordan was simply not competitive and that is the first hurdle to overcome – to stay within striking distance of the better teams. I think Riordan will be solid on defense and if Riordan can pass then Riordan can win. That is the part that will be the coaches responsibility for this upcoming season – to move their QB up from being the #8 ranked QB in the 8 team WCAL. Offense is the name of the game for Riordan in 2017.
Next Up: Sacred Heart Cathedral “SHC” Irish
