Call Joe T. “Mr. Met”.
Oscar Lopez–Two Sport Star
By Joe Torosian
“There’s just something about youth and comedy that go together. Maybe it’s that foolishness, that silliness that you can get away with when you’re younger, that you can’t get away with when you’re older.”—Joe Flaherty
Kick it!
Right off the Top: Do you know who Eduardo Rivero and Emilio Macias are?
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I reiterate my columns from January and recent pieces by Tim “World B.” Peterson, about schools that should really consider dropping football.
If accountability and player safety is paramount…then, you can’t be looking at a walk-on (with the exception of a very special few) as a long term solution for your program.
Football is the lifeblood of this website…but there’s no shame for a school to drop the sport. Districts and schools should give players the opportunity to go someplace else. Especially if you’re in the same district, why can’t you play for one school and attend another?
Last Add Coaching Chaos: Take another look at El Monte’s position…—Spare us the argument of MacIntyre, Sanchez & Tabatabai all being antichrists—and look at what has happened at the end of the Santa Fe Trail.
In the spring of 2015—There was the madness surrounding the dismissal of Offensive Coordinator Tabatabai.
In the spring of 2016—There was the departure of Coach Sanchez.
In the spring of 2017—Coach MacIntyre was either fired or quit—I’m glad I’m out of the loop on this because it is exhausting—and the guy the school had lined up to replace him turned it down.
That means the seniors in the El Monte football program have had to endure three major political dramas…They’ve never had a season where it was just about football…Instead, it’s been three years of, “Who’s going to be my coach?”
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Fox 5 News—San Diego
POSTED 6:15 AM, JANUARY 26, 2017
2 Passengers Killed in Suspected DUI Crash
CAMPO, Calif. — A 24-year-old Campo man was behind bars Thursday on suspicion of murder, felony DUI and a license violation following a crash in Campo that killed his two passengers.
Ryan Gary Renz of Campo was allegedly behind the wheel of a speeding 2014 Volkswagen Jetta that slammed into a large oak tree alongside southbound Buckman Springs Road near Lake Morena Drive and overturned shortly before 7 p.m. Wednesday, according to the California Highway Patrol. His back seat passenger was ejected in the crash and the other man was trapped inside the car.
CHP officials said in a statement that the driver had veered off the curving roadway “due to his level of intoxication.”
Both passengers were fatally injured. Neither man’s name was immediately available, but authorities said they were 23 and 26 and both had lived in Campo.
Renz sustained only minor injuries in the crash. He was arrested and was subsequently booked into jail on suspicion of murder, gross vehicular manslaughter, felony DUI, driving with a license suspended or revoked due to a prior DUI conviction, and disobeying a court order, according to the CHP and jail records.
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I know who Arroyo assistant football coach Oscar Lopez is…I’ve just never seen him anywhere but on a football field until this morning…This morning Coach Lopez was schooling fellas in a pick-up basketball game at Live Oak Park.
I saw him make a dish inside the key to a teammate who immediately dribbled away from the basket into a corner…Ugh!
Later I saw him deal a little French pastry with the basketball between the legs before connecting for two from the top of the key.
Then he asked me if I wanted some…I pretended like I didn’t hear …No coach should be shown up by a sportswriter.
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Follow Up Fox 5:
The final report on late Miami Marlins pitcher, Jose Fernandez’s boating accident in the early morning of September 26, 2016:…After a nearly six-month investigation, The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s report concluded that Fernandez was driving the speedboat when it crashed…The crash killed Fernandez, Eduardo Rivero and Emilio Macias…Fernandez’s blood alcohol level was .147, and there was “noted presence of cocaine,” according to the Miami-Dade Medical Examiner’s toxicology report.
Question:
Is it ethical, responsible and right for the Miami Marlins, or anyone, to honor Jose Fernandez in light of these revelations?
Consider this…If he had survived Fernandez would be facing homicide charges and serious prison time.
Does he deserve a statue in his honor—which the Marlins are planning—or does he need to be made the official/unofficial poster boy for selfishness?
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Midbits (same as ‘Tidbits’)
Midbits: Gonzaga freshman Zach Collins has declared for the NBA Draft…What a disaster basketball has become…
Midbits: The Oakland Raiders have made some great moves in recent years…But I don’t think acquiring Marshawn Lynch will be one of them…He was great…but…there’s just too much tread on his tires.
Midbits: On Jackie Robinson getting a statue at Dodger Stadium? Hallelujah!
What that man went through, the toll it took on him emotionally and physically…that is a tragedy.
A plane going down because an engine conks out…that is a tragedy.
If you’re ever spent any time on the Fourth Floor at Children’s Hospital-Los Angeles or the City Hope…that is a tragedy.
Jose Fernandez…that is not a tragedy.
Midbits: So if Aaron Hernandez is not guilty…Seeing how his professional career was destroyed…Does he have an open door for a major lawsuit?
Midbits: With Scott Van Slyke healthy and Trayce Thompson in Triple-A, why are the Dodgers bothering with Franklin Gutierrez again?
The Dude abides…
662
Job 4:17
Contact Joe at joe@midvalleysports.com
Author of “Tangent Dreams: A High School Football Novel” available through amazon.com
Follow Joe on Twitter @joet13b
F Arroyo they stand for everything wrong in high school football.
From T. Peterson: And they won the CIF Championship! What’s wrong with those guys! How dare they!
That ain’t spider homie. That’s chuey from vatos locos Ese. Just kidding I know Lopez he’s a good dude giving up a lot of his time to these boys. There are a lot of things wrong at Arroyo but Lopez isn’t one of them. I think the administrators should clean house some of the rumors are both sad and sadistic. No amount of wins could ever mask that problem. There are a few bad apples at Arroyo both on staff and kids as well clean it up asap. This the great quality people like a coach Lopez can be appreciated for the awesome job they do.
Is that Spider from Tres Puntos?
@annonymous even as he is sending the peace sign . it is upright one hand, not 2 and sideways chest high, and he might not be making a gang sign but his pose is,
IT DOESN’T LOOK GOOD.PERIOD.
You can coach without the street taught attitude,
I don’t see a “carnal” having the words “honor” or “strength” tattooed on his forearms. Give the guy a break! He’s out there doing what you won’t or can’t can’t do! Grow the f up!!!
At the minimum coach is mimicking gang culture. The sideways V’s could rightly be assumed to be a hidden signal known to his click. The fact that a coach thinks it’s cool to ape gang behavior in the sgv is embarrassing.
Blood in blood out favorite quote
“You get nothing in here for free, give me some choncho” lmfao Popeye to Miklo
Chale Rooster! lol
@Blue HorseShoe Your comment just proves me right. You base your knowledge of gangs from movies like Blood In Blood out? And not once in the movie did I ever see them swim in a canal…hahaha
Peace sign? Watch Blood in Blood out homie than come talk! Looks like Vatos Locos to me Canal!!
@Blue HorseShoe I didn’t realize throwing up peace signs were gang signs…What neighborhood did you grow up in?
Class act posting a pic of a “coach” with gang affiliated tattoos throwing up gang signs! I guess the coaching pickins’ are slim these days!!
Although transfers and high end athletes get all the attention, The vast majority of high school football players simply go to school, decide they want to be on a football team, make great friendships, and learn a lot of life lessons from their coaches as well as have a heck of a time. That is what high school football means to most of its participants, even those who are starters in very good programs( not how nice the uniforms are, how cool the stadium looks, or how many champions are being won. Folding football programs would be doing a disservice for many young men.
The sacred men I mentioned all did things far worse than driving drunk. We all drove while intoxicated in our wild youth but fortunately most of us did not kill ourselves or anyone else. These men were fully matured if you read their bios and have been fully vetted verifying their dirty deeds. If you can overlook their abuses of people why not Jose? For sure it will be controversial but he is dead and so are his pals. There are statues and plaques of idiots off the field at stadiums everywhere. If Marlins want one for Jose…..A lot of folks loved this kid.
Joe, I think you maybe onto something. I say forget about school districts. Student-Athletes should be able to attend the school they like. Some schools are good in football, some in baseball, others in basketball, etc. This way, the schools that suck in certain sports can just fold up those programs. While a school that may not be good in football will lose those student-athletes, they will gain back the ones that wants to play on a good basketball andor baseball team.
Not sure what you meant by Aaron Hernandez. Yes, he was found not guilty in the recent double murder trial but he was already in jail serving a 100+ years sentence without the possibility of parole for the murder of Odin Lloyd, and that was what ruined his career.
In regards to Jose Fernandez, it just shows how little the Marlins has to hang onto. It could also be a marketing ploy to show the Hispanic community how much they care.
Great job of putting things into their proper perspective, National Mall.
By the way, most, if not all, of the laws that Martin Luther King, Jr. violated were segregationist and discriminatory laws which were superseded by federal legislation or found by the courts to be unconstitutional.
MLK, JFK, and General Patton all fought for freedom on a larger scale, and each did so in his own way.
On the other hand, athletes primarily serve to entertain us, although many have used their time in the spotlight to promote charitable or humanitarian causes.
Jackie Robinson was a notable exception, as he put his personal safety on the line to become the first African-American major league baseball player in decades. Robinson’s (and Branch Rickey’s) courage, and President Harry Truman’s executive order integrating the U.S. military, were important early steps for the civil rights movement.
Jose Fernandez shouldn’t be mentioned in the same paragraph with any of these men.
Good for Hernandez to be able to put this behind him. His football career may be ruined, but at least now he can move on with his life –
– sentence for murdering Odin Lloyd.
Do you think Jose Fernandez’s statue should be in a place of honor near the Washington Monument, or down by the Jefferson Memorial where no one ever goes? MLK, JFK, and Patton did great things and made the world a better place. Fernandez threw a baseball real good.
MLK did illegal and immoral things. As did JFK and General Patton. They all have statues. Their actions may have led to deaths. All men, even revered and worshiped men have feet of clay. If statues to bad men enrage you better just stay in your recliner.
From Joe T.: Did any of those guys get hammered and willingly get behind the wheel of a boat or vehicle? No…they…did…not…