By Mitch Stephens
MaxPreps.com
In the searing heat in a meaningless scrimmage with a few hundred fans in attendance at Pittsburg High, the 2007 De La Salle football team spoke collectively without saying a word on Friday.
It was loud and emphatic.
On the first play senior running back Tito Pica was smacked hard by a Pittsburg defender right at the line of scrimmage, but kept his feet moving, bounced outside and rambled about 35 yards.
On the next series an instant replay. Junior tailback Kylan Butler's first carry looked bleak but after a loud collision he turned it into another long gainer.
On Michael Czyz's first catch, he too shed a big hit from a Pittsburg defender and rolled up extra yardage.
"We definitely showed some fire," De La Salle defensive coordinator Terry Eidson said. "We showed it all the way across."
Here's a scary thought for high school football teams around the Bay Area and beyond:
De La Salle has something to prove.
That's gotta hurt.
The boys from Concord have set a pretty fair standard over the last couple decades plus, what with five mythical national championships and that little national-record 151-game win streak that lasted from 1992 to 2005. They've won 22 North Coast Section championships, the last 15 consecutively.
But for the first time since 1991 - an amazing 16 years - the Spartans enter the 2007 season coming off a defeat.
It was a bitter loss to be sure, a 27-13 pill to Canyon-Canyon Country, in the Division I game of the initial state CIF State Championships in December at the Home Depot Center in Carson.
Eight starters return from that team to go along with a strong, athletic group from freshman and junior varsity teams that went undefeated last year.
Their nationally ranking are mixed, MaxPreps.com has the Spartans No. 10, but they are clearly the No. 1 Division I team in Northern California. That makes them favorites to represent Northern California at the state title game.
That's a long way off, Eidson warns, but last year's loss was both humbling and served as a learning tool.
"The kids definitely talked about (the season-ending loss) during the summer," Eidson said. "We all did. And we talked about all the little things we need to do."
For one, the skill position players are physically stronger.
Weight training and conditioning has always played a huge role for the usual smallish Spartans, especially among their undersized lineman.
But Eidson challenged his skill guys to hit the weights as hard as their under appreciated brethren. Judging how they kept ticking after some serious licks on Friday, the playmakers took it to heart.
"I'd say its safe to say we're ahead of where we were last year," Eidson said. "This team has great potential. They just have to go do it."
Much of the promise appears on defense, led by potential All-State linebacker Brady Amack, a 6-foot-1, 225-pound Robocop in the middle. Technically flawless, athletic - he kicks and plays tight end - and bright, Amack is the team's one sure-fire Division I-A college prospect.
"He's the last one we have any concerns about, that's for sure," Eidson said.
He's surrounded on defense by an experienced and physical defensive line led by Jordan Bouey (6-0, 270), Donald Walter (6-0, 235) and Dimitri Mastorakos (5-10, 202). Senior Xavier Vigney, at 6-7 and 272 pounds is an anomaly at De La Salle, and will add a huge presence on both sides of the ball.
The secondary is as fast and athletic as some of De La Salle's best. Its led by Graylon Sanders (5-11, 178), Noah Perio (5-11, 158), Blair Wishom (5-11, 187) and Andrew White (5-7, 141), the latter trio all juniors.
"The scuttlebutt I'm hearing is this is one of the best defenses they've ever had," said Serra coach Patrick Walsh, a former All-State running back at De La Salle and whose team plays at the Spartans Friday. "It's definitely the strength of the team."
With their top four running threats from last year graduated, the load will be carried by Pica and Butler though they combined for just 44 carries and 370 yards last year.
Third-year starting quarterback Mike MacGillivray, who rushed for 471 yards and 13 scores and passed for 1,310 yards and eight more touchdowns, won't be expected to carry the load as much as one would expect.
Junior quarterback Blake Wayne (5-10, 170), a starter on the JV team last season, is a master at running head coach Bob Ladouceur's precise veer attack. He won't split time with MacGillivray, but he'll definitely get snaps, Eidson said.
Czyz, who averaged a remarkable 29.3 yards per his nine catches last year, is the top receiving threat.
"The thing that is very nice about the squad is we definitely have very good depth," Eidson said. "There's not much drop off right across the board."
That's more bad news for teams around the Bay.
NO AVERAGE JOES: As if De La Salle demand enough attention, how would you like to be Nate and Nick Montana, quarterbacks in the program and sons of Hall of Fame signal-caller Joe Montana?
Nick, a sophomore and starting quarterback on the De La Salle JV team, can stay clear of the limelight for now.
But Nate, a 6-3, 191-pounder, is a senior playing for the first time since the middle of his sophomore year when he got injured at Cardinal Newman-Santa Rosa.
The two brothers transferred to De La Salle last school year when the Montana family moved from the Santa Rosa area to Contra Costa County.
Nate Montana didn't play football last year and focused on basketball, where he played sparingly for the 28-3 Spartans.
Eidson said Nate simply has had to make up too much ground to be a starter on the football team.
"He just started to learn the offense in the spring and it's a hard one to pick up quickly," Eidson said. "We're tickled to death he's on the team. He's a great kid and works hard and is improving rapidly. He has great potential down the road."
SERRA-SPARTAN SHOWDOWN: Friday's game against Serra pits the two top ranked teams in the Bay Area so the Spartans have little time for seasoning. Serra opened with a 41-7 win (see gamer) at Buchanan-Clovis on Saturday.
The keys according to Eidson: is: "Stop their offense, especially their quarterback (junior Cody Jackson), who gave us fits last year."
Jackson, a shifty 6-foot, 185-pound junior southpaw, was effective through the air and on the ground in De La Salle's 40-28 victory.
"We also have to slow down (running back DeLeon Eskridge) and we can't turn over the ball like last year," Eidson said.
BIG HIT(TER): In 23 years of covering high school football, I've never seen a harder or cleaner hit than the one Serra's Tuike Tuipulotu laid on Buchanan senior receiver Sammy Donald.
Buchanan quarterback Jake Henderson avoided a big rush, then dumped the ball to the 5-10, 180-pound Donald along the right (Serra) sideline. Donald tip-toed along the sideline for a 4-yard gain before Tuipulotu, who we described here last week as "the hammer," came flying in from his safety spot.
The 2006 West Catholic Athletic League Junior of the Year collided so hard that Donald's helmet flew up in the air as did the Buchanan receiver who amazingly got right to his feet.
The collision happened so fast and violently, it appeared Donald's head popped off as well. It was almost cartoonish.
"His helmet came off?" Tuipulotu asked after the game. "I didn't even know that."
Was that his best hit ever? "No," he said. "I've had better. But it was pretty good."
The Padres, predictably, celebrated the hit, patting and hugging Tuipulotu. A referee thought it was excessive and whistled the Padres for a 15-yard penalty.
Since Donald was OK and the blow was clean (right at the chest level), I thought it was worth a mention as well.
CLASS ACT: Before Saturday's game, Serra players presented Buchanan players with small American flags in honor of five former Buchanan students who lost their life to the war in Iraq.
Following the coin toss, there was a touching bugle call of Taps played by a Buchanan band member and a moment of silence not only for the five but seven Clovis soldiers, ages 19 to 25, who have perished in the war.
Four died in the last seven months. Two of the five from Buchanan were brothers, Jared and Nathan Hubbard, ages 22 and 21.
A heart-wrenching story about the seven lost lives appeared on the front page of the San Francisco Chronicle
(see story) two days before the game written by Mark Fainaru-Wada, co-author of Game of Shadows which unleashed the major league steroid scandal.
That was the first time Walsh learned of the communities' on-going tragedy.
"We felt like we had to do something to honor these young men, this community, the school," Walsh said. "In the scheme of things, a football game is so minor."
Brent Etiz, a Buchanan starting linebacker and the team's leading tackler, was moved by Serra's gesture.
"It was real classy of them and respectful," Etiz said after the game. "They just showed a lot of class."
Etiz said football has been a good diversion for the school and community. Just before the kickoff, the Buchanan crowd broke into a chant of "USA! USA! USA!"
"It sure makes you think about things," Etiz said. "I mean I know it's not the same, but if those guys can sacrifice their life for our country, then how hard is it for me or us to sacrifice for the good of the team?"
WCAL WHIPPINGS: Serra was one of six teams to win in seven games from the vaunted West Catholic Athletic League.
Considered the best league in Northern California, the WCAL outscored foes 259-56, including a combined 109-0 by St. Ignatius-San Francisco and Valley Christian-San Jose over Verbum Dei-Los Angeles and San Lorenzo Valley-Felton, respectively.
Valley Christian's 53-0 win over San Lorenzo Valley, along with St. Francis' 31-15 upset over Oak Grove-San Jose, should be most disconcerting to the rest of the WCAL. San Lorenzo Valley is a perennial small-school power in the Central Coast Section.
"We just had way more speed than they did," said Valley Christian coach Mike Machado, whose team endured a painful 3-7 injury-plagued season in 2006 after winning four straight CCS crowns. "We took care of the ball, got some great play from our young offensive line and ran past them."
When asked to access the strength of the WCAL globally, Machado referred to a conversation he once had with Tom Lemming, CSTV recruiting expert who is been the top of his craft for three decades.
"He told me it was one of the five best leagues in the country," Machado said.
Lemming, by the way, told us last week he drives 60,000 miles a year to seek out the best talent in the country.
As far as the talent locally, Machado said: "Of the 25 top players in CCS, I have to believe 17 or 18 are from the WCAL."
THURSDAY SPECIAL: Valley Christian will experience a speed warp on Thursday when it hosts Pittsburg in a cross-sectional showdown televised live by Comcast..
Pittsburg is annually one of the fastest Bay Area teams so the Warriors will be shifting gears considerably.
They may be fast, but the Pirates won't be in top gear.
Pittsburg coach Vic Galli said 17 of his players, about half starters, will either miss all or some of Thursday's opener for discipline reasons.
"It's a mixed bag," Galli said. "Some will be out for missing summer workouts. Others for not participating fully in a car wash fundraiser. All sorts of things. It's unfortunate but it's better they learn now than later."
Galli wasn't at all pleased with his team's performance at the five-team scrimmage on Friday, that also included Berkley, Fairfield and Turlock.
"We're very young and we played like it," he said. "There was very little good that came out of it. The good news though is we will be good and maybe very good sometime this season. It might take awhile."
He's not particularly optimistic about the game Thursday.
Machado's reaction. "I give him credit to sticking to his guns and laying down the law with his players. That takes some guts. As far as the scrimmage, we saw a lot of things he should be happy about. We're going to have our hands full."
BERKELEY SHUFFLE: New Berkeley coach Alonzo Carter was pleased with his team's play, especially run defense, during the scrimmage.
The former McClymonds-Oakland coach, who turned around that dormant program, attempts to wake the sleeping giant that is Berkeley when it hosts Bay Valley Athletic League power Deer Valley Friday at 5 p.m. in both teams' opener.
The game was been changed from the original Saturday afternoon start.
"We're a young team with some talent. I'm just trying to turn some attitudes around more than anything," Carter said.
The Alameda Contra Costa Athletic League, which Berkeley plays in, traditionally is filled with lots of points and offense. Carter's goal is to slow opponents down with a rugged, physical defense and play smash mouth on offense.
"More than anything, I want these guys to take a more aggressive approach," he said. "I want them to get teams down early and then finish them off."
Carter brings over three former assistants from McClymonds, and is blessed with some top-end talent, including third-year starting tailback Jamar Smith (5-11, 175). Tackle Faraja Wright (6-4, 275) and defensive back Anastacio Zamba (5-8, 169) were named MVP at the Cal camp this summer at their respective positions.
Middle linebacker Justin Long (6-0, 220), defensive end Eddiong Essien (6-1, 225) and defensive tackle Marques Williams (6-1, 250) are proven commodities. Darryl Blackman (6-6, 265) and Kent Owens (6-2, 240), newcomers off the basketball team, give the Yellowjackets more size and depth on the defensive line.
Eight Berkeley players were in street clothes on Friday, waiting to get paperwork clearance to play. Those include a couple talented transfers, defensive back Joseph Gray (McClymonds) and Elliott Dorsey (Tennyson).
Carter didn't know if any or all would be eligible by Friday.
NEW TOP 25
Only a handful of teams played, but between those games and some "insider" information, we're changing things up. Note the numerous terrific Week 1 match-ups.
We'll be at De La Salle-Serra (Friday), Foothill-Novato (Saturday day), Cardinal Newman-Central Catholic (Saturday night). Look for write-ups here shortly after each game.
Also, check for analysis on Cal-Hi Sports Bay Area with Robert Braunstein that airs Sunday at 7 and 11 p.m. on KBWB 20 cable 13 and Tuesdays at 6 p.m. Comcast Sportsnet West.
1. De La Salle (0-0, last week No. 1) - Wouldn't it be fun if the Spartans played in the WCAL? Next game: Friday at home against Serra. Predicted computer score supplied by MaxPreps' Ned Freeman (the rest of scores here are from Freeman at calpreps.com). De La Salle 35-21.
2. Serra (1-0, No. 2) - The Padres need big game from QB Cody Jackson to stay close. Friday at De La Salle (0-0). De La Salle 35-21.
3. Vacaville (0-0, No. 3) - The team graduated 11 all-league players from last year's CCS title team, but Washington-bound RB Terrance Dailey and standout linebackers Joe Lopez and Josh Kaddu key the returners. Host Pioneer-Woodland (0-0) Friday. Vacaville 40-13.
4. Mitty (1-0, No. 5) - Matt Haniger's debut as coach a success, albeit a tighter win than most expected over Pioneer-San Jose 30-21. Friday at No. 24 Milpitas. Mitty 31-21.
5. Foothill-Pleasanton (0-0, No. 6) - Saturday's opening-game opponent Novato gave the Falcons their toughest regular-season game of the season last year. Saturday at Novato. Foothill 22-21.
6. Los Gatos (0-0, No. 7) - LB duo of Nick Kalpin and Kiko Alonso one of Northern California's best. Saturday at Aragon-San Mateo. Los Gatos 27-13.
7. Cardinal Newman-Santa Rosa (0-0, No. 8) - Duo of Jeff Badger and Joe Ferguson will try to make up for massive loss of workhorse RB Brian Hutton. Saturday at Central Catholic-Modesto. Last year's game, a 22-14 Newman win, decided the Northern California D-III state representative. Central Catholic 35-17.
8. Valley Christian-San Jose (1-0, No. 9) - Outgained normally stalwart San Lorenzo Valley squad 458-115 last week. Thursday host Pittsburg. Pittsburg 28-17.
9. St. Francis-Mountain View (1-0, NR) - Speedy WR/DB Ryan Van Amburg may have been best player left off last week's Top 25 Players to Watch list. Friday at home against South San Francisco. St. Francis 35-3.
10. Aragon (0-0, No. 10) - The Dons have won four straight PAL Bay titles. Saturday at home against Los Gatos. Los Gatos 27-13.
11. Palma-Salinas (0-0, No. 11) - Has won 10 CCS championships, the last coming in 2004. Saturday at home against Skyline-Oakland. Palma 40-13.
12. Novato (0-0, No. 12) - Tries to erase only 2006 blemish against Foothill. Saturday at home against Foothill. Foothill 22-21.
13. Pittsburg (0-0, No. 13) - We'll see who to believe come Thursday when they travel to Valley Christian. The computer says don't believe Galli: Pittsburg 28-17.
14. Monte Vista-Danville (0-0, No. 14) - Offensive line is young but has chance to be one of school's best ever. Tough opener Friday at James Logan-Union City. Monte Vista 31-21.
15. San Ramon Valley (0-0, No. 15) - Replace Chronicle's 2nd team All-Metro QB Corbin Louks with this similarly-named duo: senior Dan Smithwick and junior Joe Southwick. What are the odds? You think they might get confused in the paper a time or two? Friday the Wolves host 18th-ranked Alhambra-Martinez. San Ramon Valley 40-8.
16. Palo Alto (0-0, No. 16) - Vikings might not see speed like this all season. Friday at McClymonds-Oakland. Palo Alto 38-19.
17. Deer Valley-Antioch (0-0, No. 17) - A strong RB replacement for Taiwan Jones and transfer QB give the Wolverines much room for optimism. Friday at Berkeley. Deer Valley 34-13.
18. Alhambra-Martinez (0-0, No. 18) - Alhambra coach Dave Silveira is one of East Bay's best. Friday at San Ramon Valley. San Ramon Valley 40-8.
19. Pinole Valley (0-0, No. 19) - Must replace three-year QB Dylan Honacker. Friday at home against Hogan-Vallejo. Pinole Valley 38-26.
20. Casa Grande-Petaluma (0-0, No. 20) - Former Cal, NFL and now QB guru coach Roger Theder is very high on junior QB Matt O'Brien. Friday at San Rafael. Casa Grande 28-8.
21. Napa (0-0, No. 21) - One of the SJS's top athletes John Boyett makes starting debut at QB. Friday at home against Del Campo-Fair Oaks. Napa 41-21.
22. Oak Grove-San Jose (0-1, No. 4) - Expect rise up the rankings as health of star RB Nevin Gardiner improves. His backup Omari Carr is no slouch. The Eagles have a bye this week.
23. Bellarmine (1-0, NR) - Bellarmine gave new Clovis coach Jerry Campbell (a transplant from South Texas) a rough debut. Friday at San Jose City College against Piedmont Hills. Bellarmine 38-14.
24. Milpitas (1-0, No. 24) - Very impressive in 35-12 opening win at South CCS power San Benito. Friday host Mitty. Mitty 31-21.
25. Riordan (0-1, No. 22) - No shame in 21-14 opening-night overtime loss (WCAL's only defeat) to Washington-state power Murphy-Everett. Highly-touted DB Daniel Cannon had 11 tackles and touchdown reception. Saturday host Woodside. Riordan 21-13.
What do you think of the rankings? Have any news tips or human interest story ideas. Please e-mail Mitch Stephens at mstephens@maxpreps.com.
