Rejuvenated field helps Oceanside get back to winning ways

After a disappointing 2-2 start, perennial state power Oceanside dedicated a new field with a 48-28 victory over No. 10-ranked Mission Hills. Pirates sophomore quarterback Tofi Pao Pao threw five touchdown passes, completing 12 of 18 passes for 297 yards, and senior Noah Tarrant rushed for 201 yards and a score as the third-ranked Pirates christened renovated Simcox Field.

Keep in mind now, the Pirates had six players from last year's SDS-CIF state championship team sign Division I scholarship offers. That – and a rugged schedule – helps explain Oceanside’s 3-2 start. Such obstacles only slow yet never stop John Carroll, the highly successful Oceanside coach.

"Obviously, we love our home," Carroll told the North County Times. "And we loved the old Simcox Field. New Simcox Field is really a work of art. It's something beautiful, it's something special, and we appreciate it. And it was a great way to start the new traditions of the new field."

Helix retrieves coveted Claymore Sword after one-year hiatus
The setting Friday night definitely had playoff overtones. Host Mount Miguel (Spring Valley) and visiting Helix (La Mesa) both came in undefeated, and nearly all the seats in the Matadors' 4,000 seat stadium were filled.

"This is the kind of rivalry we want this to be – a big deal," said Mount Miguel coach Tom Karlo. "Two ranked teams with coverage from TV, newspapers, radio and Internet."

All of that came true.

What disappointed Karlo was how the game played out, as the No. 6-ranked Highlanders rolled to a 37-7 victory. For all intents and purposes this game was over by the close of the third quarter as No. 3 ranked Helix (5-0) led 30-0 with 2:20 remaining in the period.

"We wanted to win this game for a lot of reasons," said Helix coach Troy Starr. "I think what drove us the most was the fact that we've practiced so hard in the last two weeks right through our bye. We just hammered the fundamentals, so to come out and play as well as we did tonight was kind of a reward. It proved to our kids that what we did in practice the last two weeks was worthwhile. I guess you could call it a reward."

Junior quarterback Brandon Lewis directed the offensive end of things for the Highlanders as he completed 13 of 17 passes for 186 yards, including touchdown strikes to Sam Meredith, Jimmy Pruitt, Darien Hancock and Cameron Lee.

The Highlanders, who lost the symbolic Claymore Sword for the first time in 20 meetings the year before, retrieved the neighborhood blade while hiking their overall record to 5-0. Mount Miguel, the favorite in the Grossmont Valley League lost for the first time in six starts.

Grossmont return specialist sparkles in near-record romp
Joey Acosta, a 5-foot-9, 170-pound defensive back, chalked up 230 all-purpose yards — 191 on seven punts for a 27.3 average and 39 on an interception return — in a 61-7 near-record romp for Grossmont (El Cajon) over Monte Vista (Spring Valley). He scored on a 71-yard punt return for the undefeated Foothillers (5-0).

Grossmont is off to its best start since beginning 8-0 in 2004, and it might have broken a school record for points (65 vs. West Hills, 1989) had it not been for a fumble at the 5-yard line — the Foothillers' first turnover of the season.

Vista's Panthers 'Paint It Black'
Traditionally known for their "Black Shirt Defense," the No. 1-ranked Vista Panthers smothered El Camino 55-9 for their fifth win in as many games.

The Panthers suffocated the Wildcats (2-3), limiting them to 181 total yards, 67 of which came on a first-quarter touchdown pass from El Camino (Oceanside) quarterback Josef Ferrick to Ryan Ena that tied the game 7-7 late in the opening quarter. After that Vista pulled down the shades, pouring on 48 consecutive points and leaving the Wildcats in the dark.

Valley Center's Bernard is all bite and no bark
Senior Travis Bernard of Valley Center scored five touchdowns in a 51-7 blowout of Escondido. He logged 21 carries for 212 yards. That's nothing new for the Jaguars' big dog that is always hot on the trail. The 5-foot-9, 185-pound Bernard has scored 16 touchdowns while rushing for 1,203 yards on 149 carries. As a receiver he's reeled in eight passes for 121 yards and one score while returning an 85-yard punt to return for a touchdown. Overall he has 19 touchdowns for the 6-0 Jaguars.

Other top performances
— Senior Jaime Reyes returned kickoffs 92 and 90 yards for touchdowns in a 57-6 Morse (San Diego) rout of Crawford (San Diego).

— Valley Center senior kicker David Last booted field goals of 28, 51 and 46 yards against Escondido. That gives him a CIF-SDS high of 11 field goals as well as 24 PATs.

— Senior wide receiver Gilbert Perez of Granite Hills (El Cajon) has made the most of 15 receptions with a 25.5 average per catch and five touchdowns. Perez has also contributed 35 kicking points, including five field goals.

— Horizon (San Diego) sophomore quarterback Markel Byrd delivered five touchdown passes in the Panthers' 42-8 win over Temecula Linfield Christian.

— Carlsbad (3-2) collected 646 yards of total offense in a 48-21 triumph over Fallbrook.

— Santana (Santee) junior quarterback Kyle Gasner completed 19 of 43 passes for 253 yards and three scores against Madison.

Coming Attractions
There are several interesting football matchups this week. Granite Hills (El Cajon) (4-1) opens the Grossmont Hills League season at Steele Canyon (Spring Valley) (4-1), while Brawley (4-1) tackles Imperial (3-1-1) in an Imperial Valley League opener. Other games worthy of mention include Ramona (4-1) at Poway (3-2) and Bishop's (La Jolla) (5-0) at Santa Fe Christian (Solana Beach) (4-2).

Dickens Dealings
Seems to me there are too many five-team leagues in the CIF-SDS. Bottom line is that members of these so-called circuits can gain a playoff berth by posting wins in 40 percent of their regular season 10-game schedule.

Eight leagues are comprised of five teams or fewer.

Thus, six games on these teams' schedules have limited value. Something is wrong here where the majority of games played have no bearing on a league championship, which should have much more magnitude than they currently carry.

Due to the constant shuffle of league alignments it is hard to build rivalries and legitimate playoff competition. Closer evaluation of why league officials are willing to operate in five-team circuits is sadly for the possibility of landing more playoff berths.

To be blunt, it's all about money. And that, in most cases, is understandable. In today's economy, nobility is no longer as impacting as cold, hard cash.