The first full week of area football involving all of the NCS and CCS is finished and here are six things we learned from last weekend:
THE #WARBOYZ AS ADVERTISED: Prep2Prep writer Jack Duffy referred to the Valley Christian football team as the #WarBoyz in his story Saturday and I had to quiz him on it. Duffy texted back and confirmed the moniker is "a thing." Well OK then.
Valley Christian is also for real on the field, as shown by its 55-0 victory against Pioneer in which the Warriors scored touchdowns on their first six drives. Kirk Johnson had 220 yards on just 10 carries and younger brother Collin Johnson caught four passes for 90 yards and a score. So basically any time a Johnson touches the ball, the Texas commits are good for 20 yards.
Quarterback Michael Machado completed 6-of-9 for 146 yards and two TDs and Victor Lopez Jr. and Colby Laubach had four tackles apiece. This week Valley is at Oak Grove.
LOS GATOS WINS VS. WCAL NOT UPSETS: The outcomes might be upsetting to the parochials, but the Wildcats after successive wins against WCAL entries St. Francis (section DII title game last season) and Mitty (last week's opener) bow to nobody on the west side of the bay.
The good vibes from last year's win against St. Francis carried over.
"Our guys are riding a little bit of confidence from our win last year," Los Gatos coach Mark Krail told the San Jose Mercury. "That definitely helped them to feel that they belong on the field with these guys."
Joey Wood rushed for 165 yards and two touchdowns. Dru Brown was impressive in his debut at quarterback.
WINNING NOT EVERYTHING AT SEQUOIA: Until all the scoreboards are removed, every coach will yearn to win. Most take the losses gracefully and a minority don't. List Sequoia's Rob Poulos among the former.
Poulos, after Sequoia's tough 30-28 loss to Palo Alto which came on a late field goal, lauded his team for a nice comeback, credited Viking kicker Jose Patino and told how he used Patino's kick as a learning tool.
"It was an awesome, clutch kick," Poulos told two Prep2Prep reporters. "My hat's off to him. We actually used it as a teaching point for our team because what if he had missed the kick -- does that mean he lost the game? No game is won or lost on one play, it's all of the plays that came before too."
VEGAS-BOUND? TAKE PETE LAVORATO: Sacred Heart Prep is missing star linebacker Ben Burr-Kirven for at least half the season due to a calf injury. That puts a little more pressure on the offense.
Gator coach Pete Lavorato rolled the dice five times on fourth down and SHP converted each time en route to a 32-20 victory Saturday against Leland. Next stop for Lavorato ... Golden Gate Fields? Caesar's Palace?
"I'm a little crazy," Lavorato told the Mercury. "Maybe we'll get hurt by it some game. But the way we run our offense we should be able to make a first down if everybody executes."
MILPITAS HAS RE-LOADED NICELY: Milpitas' 2013 trio of stars aren't exactly yesterday's news, but they've moved on. So have the Trojans who rolled Riordan 27-0 Friday night.
While former Trojans Ronnie Reed, Tre Hartley and Squally Canada have gone on to bigger and better things, the holdover Milpitas stars have made for a seamless transition. Quarterback John Keller did his best Reed impression, throwing for 151 yards. Christian Rita had an 80-yard touchdown catch. And lineman Jason Scrempos had three sacks, while defensive backs James Santos and Don Macaulay each had an interception.
Riordan is not Valley Christian, but it was an impressive win for Milpitas over a team that is expected to be much improved.
O'DOWD NO PUSHOVER: Yeah, Terra Nova had 15 penalties and seven turnovers in a performance that must have had Pacificans rolling their eyes. And no, the Dragons are not De La Salle or anything close.
But Bishop O'Dowd was playing on the road against a team expected to vie for a league title and thought to be loaded with talent, despite having just a handful or returning starters. The Dragons took TN's best shot -- 453 yards passing and three TDs by quarterback Anthony Gordon -- and hung in there and won, helped in no small part by Tiger miscues.
It was a tremendous victory for new coach Napolean Kaufman (the ex-Raider) and the O'Dowd program. As for the coast-siders, no need to panic. First-year coach Tim Adams is the guy who brought the spread to Terra Nova years ago and the Tigers have known little but success since his arrival. One game does not a season make.
