2015 Dispatch Football Preview

2015 DISPATCH FOOTBALL PREVIEW

Dispatch Football Preview |

SCHEDULE

San Juan Hills’ Cole Suscheck runs through a drill during an offseason practice. Photo: Steve Breazeale

a standout 7-on-7 passing league season. O’Brien was also invited to compete in the prestigious Elite 11 quarterback passing competition, where he advanced to the penultimate stage of 18 players.

O’Brien now has a year of starting varsity experience under his belt and spent the summer competing against the nation’s best prep prospects. Flowers, a former standout signal-caller himself, believes his quarter-back has refined his skill set enough to have another successful season.

“With all of the exposure (O’Brien) has received, two different kinds of coaching, he’s really just come to understand the of-fensive and defensive side of what everyone is trying to do,” Flowers said. “You definitely feel more comfortable with him when you call a play that it’s going to get executed.”

On defense the Stallions will be anchored

by senior linebacker Tim Newman and junior defensive lineman JJ Glass, two playmakers who had big 2014 seasons.

Newman was the team’s leading tackler last year, racking up 81 total tackles and eight sacks, at defensive end. The 6-foot-2-inch senior was moved off the line to take over at middle linebacker this year. Flowers plans on using Newman, who weighs 230 pounds, at defensive line at times and will deploy him on offense at tight end.

As a sophomore, Glass broke through for 50 tackles and two sacks. The junior will play nose guard this season and has been pegged by Flowers and his teammates as a player to watch.

Despite Glass’ presence on the line, the Stallions’ defensive front and defensive back depth charts are relatively inexperienced.

“Defensive line and at defensive back is

where we need guys to step up. Guys who have maybe not played that much at the varsity level will need to step up and make plays for us,” Flowers said.

The Stallions’ schedule remains relatively intact, with the exception of adding 2014 CIF-SS Southwest Division runner-up San Clemente for the season opener on Aug. 28. Other top nonleague games to watch will be a rivalry match against the Sea View League’s Capistrano Valley on Sept. 11 and a home game against Los Alamitos on Sept. 25.

Aug. 28 vs. San Clemente@ SJHHS, 7 p.m.

Sept. 4 vs. Canyon@ El Modena High, 7 p.m.

Sept. 11 vs. Capistrano Valley@ SJHHS, 7 p.m.

Sept. 18 vs. Marina@ Westmintster High, 7 p.m.

Sept. 25 vs. Los Alamitos @ SJHHS, 7 p.m.

Oct. 2 vs. Beckman @ Beckman High, 7 p.m.

*Oct. 16 vs. El Toro @ ETHS, 7 p.m.

*Oct. 23 vs. Mission Viejo @ SJHHS, 7 p.m.

*Oct. 30 vs. Dana Hills @SJHHS, 7 p.m.

*Nov. 6 vs. Tesoro @ THS, 7 p.m.

*—denotes league game

Maintaining intensity key for Stallions in claiming consecutive playoff berth

Patrick O’Brien still wears the same wrist-band he wore at the tail end of last season. Even as the training camp practices wind down and the season opener creeps into his view, the band remains a constant fixture on the wrist of the San Juan Hills football team’s senior quarterback.

O’Brien said the team still wears the bands, not wanting to forget the experience they all earned after their first year in the South Coast League and an appearance in the CIF-SS West Valley Division playoffs.

The program’s “Ride for the Brand” motto is on one side of the wristband and on the other, in all caps, reads the word “FINISH”.

The Stallions placed fourth in the competi-tive South Coast League last season and, despite their 4-6 regular season record, put together a strong enough strength of schedule resume to punch their ticket to the playoffs.

The team was competitive throughout the year, but saw a slight dip in their intensity at the end of South Coast League games. San Juan Hills watched as El Toro, Mission Viejo and Tesoro pulled away in the second half and held on for victories. The wristbands the Stallions’ players wear remind them of what it will take to stay in the playoff hunt.

“It’s more than just 24 minutes, it’s 48 (minutes),” O’Brien said. “We have a lot more guys that know how to play a full 48 minutes now and I feel like it’s going to be a different story this year.”

San Juan Hills will return 11 players who now know what it takes to succeed in one of the top public school leagues in the county.

O’Brien, a Nebraska commit, will lead an offense that lost its starting running back to graduation but returns top receiver, Jacob Huff. O’Brien and Huff, a junior, connected for 64 receptions, 746 yards and six touch-downs in 2014. The Stallions running back has yet to emerge, but head coach Aaron Flowers said a committee of Devin Wegis, Brock Cazel, Cole Suscheck and Anthony Aguayo are all in the mix to get touches. Wegis has the most experience of the group, having played in five games last season.

Flowers said the team’s offensive line, which includes seniors Nathan Carlson, Tommy Gaisford, Jared Aviles and Zac Oblea will have to play well, especially against the talented defensive fronts they will face in league.

O’Brien spent the offseason honing his craft and blazing the recruiting trail. The senior quickly became one of the top rising quarterback prospects in the county after

www.thecapistranodispatch.com

SAN JUAN HILLS BY STEVE BREAZEALE

San Juan Hills senior quarterback Patrick O’Brien will be key to the Stallions’ success in 2015. Photo: Steve Breazeale



SCHEDULE

haven’t seen guys perform under a tremen-dous amount of pressure in a game-type situation. I thought we might be able to see some guys perform (at Seal training) and we did,” Hartigan said. “We saw some guys step up.”

The experience was not lost on the play-ers, who rallied around each other to get through what some described as their hard-est workout day ever.

“That was one of the hardest things of my life. It made us count on one another and push each other through hardships and made us strive to finish,” senior safety Conor

O’Brien said. The Lions’ offense will rally around their

big and talented offensive line, which re-turns Luke Wattenberg and Nick Harris, who are both University of Washington commits. Wattenberg, a 6-foot-5-inch 275-pound right tackle, is regarded as one of the top lineman in the county. Harris played right tackle last season as a junior but has transi-tioned to center.

The reason behind Harris’ move to center is the Lions’ quarterback scenario. Junior Riley O’Brien, younger brother of Conor, and sophomore Matthew Robinson are currently

vying for the starting quarterback job. The two have yet to start a varsity game and Hartigan moved Harris to center in order to provide the offense with leadership and stability up front.

Hartigan said both Riley O’Brien and Robinson will get playing time in the season opener against Cabrillo on Aug. 28.

Rounding out the rest of the Lions’ offen-sive line will be senior Shane Avera, junior Zelan Tupuola and rising sophomore Jake Parks.

Two transfers into the program should provide immediate results.

Junior Avery Williams transferred in from St. Francis of La Canada and will be the team’s starting running back. Hartigan said Williams has the ability to put up numbers comparable to Vander’s last year.

On defense, Dana Hills transfer Corey Sel-enski will join a linebacker unit led by return-ing senior Kyle Adams, who recorded 64 tackles last season. Selenski, who had 100 tackles as a junior at Dana Hills, and Adams are both hard-hitting linebackers who have the ability to play tight end on offense.

Leading the secondary will be safety Conor O’Brien, who had a breakout junior season that featured 77 tackles and a team-high four interceptions.

The Lions’ nonleague schedule remains similar to last season, with the exception of dropping St. Bonaventure for Hamilton in week four. The Lions’ nonleague slate is highlighted by a road game against Chino Hills on Sept. 4, which should serve as a litmus test for the Lions to see where they stack up against tough competition.

Aug. 28 vs. Cabrillo@ JSerra, 7 p.m.

Sept. 4 vs. Chino Hills@ CHHS, 7 p.m.

Sept. 11 vs. Huntington Beach@ JSerra, 7 p.m.

Sept. 18 vs. Hamilton@ JSerra, 7 p.m.

Sept. 25 vs. St. Paul @ SPHS, 7 p.m.

*Oct. 9 vs. Servite @ Cerritos College, 7 p.m.

*Oct. 16 vs. Santa Margarita @ Saddleback College, 7 p.m.

*Oct. 23 vs. St. John Bosco @ Cerritos College, 7 p.m.

*Oct. 30 vs. Mater Dei @ Saddleback College, 7 p.m.

*Nov. 6 vs. Orange Lutheran @ JSerra, 7 p.m.


Lions rebuild following breakout season Following the program’s most successful

season to-date, the JSerra football team is faced with the difficult task of reloading for another playoff run.

The Lions finally had the breakout season head coach Jim Hartigan envisioned when he stepped into the role back in 2007. Led by a balanced team filled with experienced seniors, the Lions defeated Santa Margarita, Mater Dei, Orange Lutheran and Servite en route to a 4-1 record and a second-place finish in the Trinity League, one of the tough-est prep football leagues in the state. JSerra even won their first-ever playoff game.

There was a lot of offseason movement on the Lions’ roster, which included some high-profile transfers.

JSerra lost all-league running back Ed-ward Vander and all-league receiver Isaiah Diego-Williams when the two transferred to Paramount and Serra of Gardena, respec-tively. Several key seniors, like 2014 Trinity league co-MVP Nick Robinson and defen-sive end D.J. Bailey, graduated.

With all of the offseason movement, Hartigan and his team have adopted a “next man up” philosophy. The Lions, who still return several impact players, are meeting the challenge head on.

In order to gauge how tough mentally and physically his team would be this offseason, Hartigan and his staff took the players to boot camp—literally. The Lions participated in a Navy Seal training day that featured being in the water in the wee hours of the morning accompanied with grueling physi-cal exercise.

“Since we were so inexperienced, I really


JSERRA CATHOLIC BY STEVE BREAZEALE

JSerra’s big and physical offensive line will be a strength in 2015. Photo: Steve Breazeale

Junior Nick Callen runs the ball during a JSerra football practice. Photo: Steve Breazeale

www.thecapistranodispatch.comThe Capistrano Dispatch August 14–27, 2015 Page 3


posing offenses last season and returns two of their strongest players in Bunnel and Hill. Bunnel and Hill accounted for 50 and 69 tackles last season, respectively, and had a knack for getting to the quarterback. Bunnel recorded a team-high 11.5 sacks and Griffin tallied 8.5 sacks last season.

“I think 20 sacks combined is a goal they (Bunnel and Craig) should achieve with ease. Although I know both those guys can care less about personal stats and care more about doing their job defensively,” Pearsall said. “In practice they are constantly wreak-ing havoc on our offense.”

In 10 regular season games last year, the Warriors defense held opponents to 14 points or less eight times. In five of those games, Saddleback Valley Christian held their op-ponents to seven points or less. The defense also returns All-CIF defensive back Marc Audet, the Warriors top lockdown defender. Molina will also double as a defensive back.

Saddleback Valley Christian dropped three opponents from last year’s schedule and replaced them with Crean Lutheran, out of the larger Academy League, California Military Academy and the Orange Coast League’s Calvary Chapel. The Warriors biggest regular season game will likely be their San Joaquin League opener against Capistrano Valley Christian on Oct. 10. The Eagles threatened the Warriors last season but Saddleback Val-ley Christian held on for a 14-10 win.

The Saddleback Valley Christian football team looks positioned to make another deep playoff run, thanks to a large group of returning starters from last year’s squad, which reached the CIF-SS East Valley Divi-sion semifinals, suiting up for another run.

Last year was a landmark campaign for the Warriors and then-first-year head coach Brian Pearsall, as the team won 12 games for the first time since 2007 and claimed its eighth consecutive San Joaquin League title.

Seven starters return to both the offensive and defensive side of the ball, although sev-eral Warriors will be starting both ways.

Pearsall said this year’s offensive line is the largest in school history and believes his starting five up front are also among the quickest units in the East Valley Division. Returning seniors Jonathan Bunnel, Miguel Gonzalez, Craig Hill, Luc Audet and Sean Carpenter have played alongside each other for several years and have impressed their coach in training camp.

“They are the hardest working group on our team … At any level of football you can win a lot of games with a good offensive line and I think that the success of our season will have a lot to do with how those big guys up front play,” Pearsall said.

The Warriors return their quarterback from last season, junior Cade Henjum, and will surround him with a dynamic senior running back tandem of David Molina and Dalton Lohman. Molina displayed his offen-sive versatility last season, rushing for 852 yards and six touchdowns while catching 25 passes for 581 yards and five touchdowns. Pearsall said Molina will again be a dual threat to score out of the backfield or out on the field running routes. Lohman ran for 234 yards and five touchdowns and will return to his role of racking up tough yards as the team’s up-the-middle rusher.

Henjum had a solid sophomore season under center. After splitting time with former senior Jake Markum, Henjum took control of the offense, throwing for 1,432 yards and completing just over 57 percent of his passes. He also kept turnovers to a minimum, throwing 15 touchdowns to six interceptions. Henjum also showed off his running ability, carrying the ball 91 times for 384 yards and eight scores. Pearsall, who is also the team’s offensive coordinator, believes Henjum has carried over the success from a strong 7-on-7 passing league season into pads.

Saddleback Valley Christian lost several impact receivers and will rely on junior wideout Savaii Cravens to be one of Hen-jum’s go-to options. Cravens is the younger brother of Su’a Cravens, a standout three-year starter for the USC football team.

The Warriors defensive line punished op-

SADDLEBACK VALLEY CHRISTIAN

Returning depth has Warriors primed to defend league title

SCHEDULESept. 4 vs. Crean Lutheran

@ Irvine High, 7 p.m.Sept. 11 vs. Malibu

@ Malibu High, 7 p.m.Sept. 18 vs. Garey

@ Garey High, 7 p.m.Sept. 25 vs. California Military Institute

@ Tesoro High, 7 p.m.Oct. 2 vs. Calvary Chapel

@ San Juan Hills, 7 p.m*Oct 10 vs. Capistrano Valley Christian

@ Capo Valley High, 7 p.m. *Oct. 16 vs. Southlands Christian

@ Rowland, 7 p.m. *Oct. 24 vs. Fairmont Prep

@Yorba Linda High 7 p.m. *Oct. 30 vs. Santa Clarita Christian

@ Tesoro, 7 p.m.*Nov. 6 vs. The Webb Schools

@ San Juan Hills, 7 p.m.


BY STEVE BREAZEALE


through three consecutive winning seasons from 2011 to 2013. Preszler followed in his mentor’s footsteps, leading Capistrano Valley Christian to the CIF playoffs with a 7-4 overall record in 2014.

This year, Preszler has coached his first full offseason with the team and is among those excited for the school’s week six rivalry matchup against Saddleback Valley Christian.

“They’re the league champions now and they have been for years, and ultimately that’s our goal—to win league,” Preszler said.

The Eagles head in to what is expected to be a highly competitive football schedule. Their regular season opener will take place against Tri-City Christian on Aug. 29 at Cap-istrano Valley High School.

After undergoing many vital changes, it seems Capistrano Valley Christian will no longer tolerate the “little brother” role in 2015.

The small school’s transitioning process began in 2012, when the Eagles’ football pro-gram switched from playing 8-man football in the Express League to 11-man football in the San Joaquin League. Since the switch, the Eagles have tallied an overall record of 24-9, accompanied by an impressive 11-3 perfor-mance in league play.

However, the team has yet to claim a San Joaquin League championship. Each year they have found themselves with a sole disap-pointing loss in league play against crosstown rival Saddleback Valley Christian.

Fortunately for this year’s Eagles squad, they welcome both skill and experience back into the starting lineup.

Returning to the wide receiver position is Arkansas State commit Ben Sukut. Last year, he was the go-to receiver and led the team in all-purpose yards, piling up 52 receptions, 12 touchdowns and 791 receiving yards.

The team also returns running back Kci Thompson, who will be called on to run the ball more this year following a pass-happy campaign in 2014. He averaged 6.9 yards per carry last year, rumbling for 850 yards and nine rushing touchdowns along the way.

Sukut and Thompson are known commodi-ties. The biggest question mark, however, lies in Dawson Piper, who begins his junior year as the team’s starting quarterback.

“This time last year, I didn’t know if I was going to be the starter,” Piper said. “I just worked every day as if I was going to end up playing.”

Piper will need to step into the role quickly, given the past performance of the player he is replacing.

Former Eagles standout quarterback Riley Babbit graduated in 2014 after putting together an impressive passing season. Babbit led the team to a 7-4 overall record with over 2,100 passing yards and 26 touchdowns.

Despite his inexperience as a starter, this Eagles squad seems fully confident in Piper’s work ethic and ability to fill in at the position.

“We’re not worried about (Piper) any-more,” Thompson said. “He really proved himself this offseason and during passing league.”

Last offseason the Eagles had more to worry about aside from any roster changes. In March of 2014, Capistrano Valley Christian replaced head coach Dan Dodd with assistant coach Eric Preszler.

Dodd had an impressive three-year tenure as head coach for the Eagles, leading the team

CAPISTRANO VALLEY CHRISTIAN

Eagles searching for breakout year in league play

SCHEDULEAug. 29 vs. Tri-City Christian

@ Capistrano Valley High, 7 p.m.Sept. 4 vs. St. Margaret’s

@ SMES, 7 p.m.Sept. 11 vs. Mary Star of the Sea

@ CVHS, 7 p.m.Sept. 19 vs. Brethren Christian

@ Oceanview High, 7 p.m. Oct. 1 vs. Crean Lutheran

@ CVHS, 7 p.m.*Oct. 10 vs. Saddleback Valley Christian

@ CVHS, 7 p.m. *Oct 15 vs. Fairmont Prep

@ CVHS, 7 p.m. *Oct. 24 vs. Santa Clarita Christian

@ Canyon High, 7 p.m. *Oct. 30 vs. The Webb Schools

@Damien High, 7 p.m. *Nov. 6 vs. Southlands Christian

@ Damien High, 7 p.m.



BY CONNOR SCHMITT

Kci Thompson, middle, and the Capistrano Valley Christian football team are looking for their first San Joaquin League title in 2015. Photo: Courtesy CVCS Athletics



SCHEDULEtations concerning the player under center.

In 2013, the focus was on star quarter-back Josh Davis, who led St. Margaret’s to a CIF Championship game in his senior season and eventually committed to play quarterback at Football Championship Subdivision-member Lafayette College. Krantz said he learned a lot from the Tartans former star quarterback.

“(Davis) really helped me out when I was a freshman. He gave me advice on and off the field and helped me familiarize with the offense,” Krantz said.

But unlike many St. Margaret’s teams of the past, this team hopes to continue its success by adding more challenging oppo-nents to the schedule.

Last season, the Tartans outscored non-league opponents 257-41 and outscored their Academy League rivals 173-41 in four league games. The Tartans saw their fair share of landslide victories. This year’s team, however, will play to an elevated level of competition.

Between the team’s Sept. 18 matchup against Bishop’s of La Jolla and their Oct. 10 game against Justin-Siena of Napa, the Tartans will host the reigning CIF San Diego Section Div. 4 and CIF North Coast Section Div. 4 champions, respectively.

The Tartans will also face two 2014 playoff teams in their first two weeks of the season in Capistrano Valley Christian and The Webb Schools.

“When we start playing tougher oppo-nents, I think it really helps to set the stage

for CIF-level competition,” Krantz said.“We play some great teams this year and

we understand that the best team they’re going to see this season is us,” Barbee said.

The Tartans have made it clear that their mission is to not only win these high-profile games, but win every single game.

Not only are the Tartans following in the footsteps of their 15-1 season in 2014, they are also representing a school that has had a long-standing tradition of playoff success.

Since the inception of the school’s football program, the Tartans have won six CIF Championship banners in eight trips to the finals. All six of those championship games have taken place in the last ten years. On top of that, the team has shown success in

state championship games as well—win-ning it all in 2008 and appearing in the state finals last season.

And it is clear now what the expecta-tion is for 2015. Krantz, who already has a championship ring to his credit, put it plain and simple.

“Our goal is to win the CIF Champion-ship,” he said.

The St. Margaret’s football team enters this season with commanding momentum and great expectations.

After suffering the program’s only loss of the 2014 season at the CIF State Division IV Championship game, it became known once again that this small San Juan school off La Novia Avenue could do big things on the football field.

“The team views that loss with a sense of unfinished business,” head coach Stephen Barbee said. “After seeing what happened last year, we know at this point that our hard work will get us far.”

The Tartans have worked this offseason in hopes of bringing another high caliber foot-ball team to the city of San Juan Capistrano, working diligently both in the weight room and off the field.

Barbee said the team’s motto this season is “We,” a reference to the team’s commit-ment and effort in the offseason.

The team has adapted well to Barbee’s competitive philosophy. Even the Tartans’ most heralded offensive stars of the 2014 season kept their cool in the face of such high expectations for 2015.

“I know that I’m viewed as a leader and I try to set an example,” standout senior wide receiver Nick Shanks said. “But really everyone on the team holds some form of leadership.”

Shanks was a big part of the Tartans’ 15-win campaign one year ago. Shanks played every game last year, reeling in 33 receptions for 819 yards, averaging nearly 25 yards per catch. He led their receiving core by a landslide with 11 touchdowns and firmly believes that his best season has yet to come.

“This offseason has been surreal and I’ve been putting everything I have into my last year,” Shanks said.

The Tartans remain optimistic about this season despite the loss of last year’s stand-out running back Oscar Gomez Jr., who ran for 2,392 yards and 38 touchdowns as a senior. Despite such tremendous numbers from the ground game, the team never claims to have been a rushing program.

“I’d say we’re about 50-50,” Coach Barbee said. “As an offense, we game plan. If they force us to pass, then we will pass.”

A great source of the team’s confidence is due to the return of junior quarterback George Krantz, who threw for nearly 1,700 yards last season as a sophomore. Krantz will be surrounded by playmakers, like Shanks, on offense.

While a great amount of this team’s suc-cess will depend upon the young quarter-back, this is not the first year in recent history that the Tartans have dealt with high expec-


ST. MARGARET’S EPISCOPAL BY CONNOR SCHMITT

Tartans aim to continue their success in the postseason

Aug. 26 vs. Anaheim@ SMES, 7 p.m.

Sept. 4 vs. Capistrano Valley Christian@ SMES, 7 p.m.

Sept. 11 vs. The Webb Schools@ Damien High, 7 p.m.

Sept. 18 vs. Bishop’s@SMES, 7 p.m.

Sept. 25 vs. Arrowhead Christian @ SMES, 7 p.m.

Oct. 2 vs. Whittier Christian @ Whittier College, 7 p.m.

Oct. 10 vs. Justin-Siena @ JSHS, 5 p.m.

*Oct. 16 vs. Sage Hill @ SMES, 7 p.m.

*Oct. 24 vs. Brethren Christian @ Ocean View High, 7 p.m.

*Oct. 29 vs. Crean Lutheran @ Irvine High, 7 p.m.

*Nov. 6 vs. Victor Valley @ SMES, 7 p.m.


St. Margaret’s junior quarterback George Krantz threw for 1,700 yards as a sophomore. Photo: Courtesy St. Margaret’s Athletics

James Eidt, left, and Nick Shanks run downfield during a game in 2014. Photo: Courtesy St. Margaret’s Athletics

2015 Dispatch Football Preview

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