La Salle HC Russell Gordon stepping down was just one of 21 head coaching changes on the local front.
By Tim Peterson
There have been no less than 21 head coaching changes since the 2017 season came to an end. And that’s just on the local front. All but four have been filled.
Here’s what we have so far as we head into spring:
Cantwell: Out – Travis Brown, In – TBD
Nogales: Out-Richard Salazar, In – TBD
Bassett: Out- Chris Long, In- TBD
Baldwin Park: Out- Joe Fuller, In- Joshua Knight
Monrovia: Out-Jerry Chou, In- Chris Williams
Valley Christian: Out- Woodie Grayson, In- Stephen Kelley
Glendora: Out- Jerry Lewallen, In- Brandon Rohrer
Buena Park: Out- Davis Lowery, In- Dustin Sober
La Salle: Out – Russell Gordon, In – Andrew Pankow
Burroughs: Out- Mike Reily, In- Rand Holdren
Whittier Christian: Out- Sergio Gradilla, In- Brett Esslinger
Maranatha: Out – Steve Bogan, In -LaVar Arrington
Steve Bogan left Maranatha for Bonita.
Rancho Cucamonga: Out- Nick Baiz, In- Mark Verti
Cathedral: Out- Kevin Pearson, In- Anthony Jefferson
Mt. View: Out- Victor Romero, In-Aaron Sepulveda
Glendale: Out- George Maiale, In- Cary Harris
Diamond Bar: Out- Kevin Argumosa, In- Jeff Reitz
Bonita: Out – Ibis Aguilar, In -Steve Bogan
Pomona: Out – Keith Richardson, In – TBD
Bellflower: Out- Mike Fitch, In- Woodie Grayson
Viewpoint: Out-Brent Huff, In-Patrick Skahan
*If we missed any feel free to let us know.
Here’s a head scratcher…
Everyone is always talking about the great staff at El Rancho, but what what they won? Pico Rivera is loaded with a lot of football talent and is the lone high public school in the city. so my question is what gives? Medrano is installing an offense that you see on Saturdays for sure but maybe that doesn’t fit the personnel. Maybe he should evaluate his team instead of being married to a system or to be “modern” His kids are tough and physical so it makes sense to play that way. Instead of a finesse system anyway.
Hey Medrano, when and if that call ever comes to coach on Saturdays then you can run this crazy offense with a 1,000 different options. We get it “YOU” can scheme against anyone lol. For now take advantage of the fact that you have a toughness advantage and remember the KISS method? You’re out coaching yourself! Count me as one who just doesn’t get what people see in mediocrity. And sorry but ER has been mediocre for a long time and that hasn’t changed the couple of years either.
Covina lost their defensive coordinator, so yes, it should be interesting.
LOL !!! six-NINE!!! lol…. yea right!
i dont think we will have the most talent in the area… BUT i can def argue that we have one of the best staff in the area… Medrano and staff have to really coach up kids!
You probably mean diamond ranch… lol
The Ranch better be a decent passing team with that 6’9” kid from Cajon transferring in. The passion game has always been their Achilles heel.
DON’T SLEEP ON THE RANCH
Pr faithful@ pr-I agree with you. It has been an interesting 2 seasons. There are some kids returning that will see the field immediately. Doing our best to get back one more of our kids who didn’t play with is the last 2 seasons. Talking to his dad, he would be a great addition to complete our linebacking core and backs. We shall see?
Los Altos will find out early where they are at… The scrimmage Colony this year, last time these to squared off it wasn’t good for LA.
@SH glad to hear teams already looking down on Los Altos they will surprise everyone. Your right they did lose many seniors however the young sophomores this year are more talented. Wait till people see their new running back and speedy WR and new additions to the defence. And yes the QB position is shakey but still Time to fix it
LA Conqs have some solid, young talent returning. Granted, the QB situation is a big question mark, but I like them at WR, RB, DB and DL. Huge need at LB and OL. Like I’ve said before, they always play tough and make things interesting. The Hacienda is CO and DR right now.
We all know there are no RBs transferring to El Monte.
It wasn’t on the coaching staff, ER didn’t have the horses, Put the Roddy Hiatt 2015 staff in its place and that’s probably 0-10 or 1-9, ER’s QB was pitiful and cost them at least 3 games.
@SH, yea you’re 100%. Don’t worry about LA! You guys focus elsewhere
Los Altos plays Covina in their first game!!!! Should be very interesting!!!!!
LoL, everyone of these ER coaches were on the staff last season except for Ray Medina and he was at a very underachieving Bonita program. I don’t think this staff sends shivers down the spines of the coaches in the Del Rio League.
I looked at LA roster. They lose over 20 seniors at key spots. QB, OL, LB, RB, and DB. I don’t think we anything to worry about. If they compete next year it with the JV team.
MUSD is in big trouble financially, its about to hit the fan, you heard it here first.
Did I read that correctly? Does not have a solid staff around him?
Adrian Medrano
Greg Setlich
Ray Medina
Joe Ledesma
Pete Carrion
Tony Gonzalez
Jonathan Ruiz
Josh Perea
Edgar Rodriguez
Might be one of the more seasoned staffs out there.
Anonymous, I think we are saying the same thing for most of the Del Rio League schools. We disagree about La Serna and there is nothing wrong with disagreeing! I will say this though, Beltran didn’t take the El Rancho job because of salary. El Rancho district does not pay close to Whittier or Montebello districts. And questioning his leadership after what he built at La Serna is questionable. I just want to see one of these schools become relevant again; Santa Fe in the early 2000s and La Serna 2008-2015.
Los Altos has a lot of young talent, coming back should be a special year
this is medrano 3rd year, this is supposed to be the year when usually new coaches break out….. i was a huge improvement in last years JV from there freshman year… so hes doing something right!!! we just need the kids from PICO to STAY in PICO!!!! its a shame to know we have much more talent in our city that never gets used.
that freshman whittier RB was fast… but i also heard hes leaving … either way it dont matter … we still have the best freshman class last year… diff coach at freshman level and we would have been undefeated all year!!!!!!!
DONT SLEEP ON THE RANCH!
@Long Time Del Rio Leaguer
I appreciate your analysis but it sounds like you long for the “good ol’ days” or something, lol. Here’s my take (not that you probably care haha)
1. LS – I’m glad Beltran is gone. Him taking a leave of absence during Spring of his dismissal year was a huge red flag that no one ever talks about/acknowledges. He himself had a lack of leadership and was more a master manipulator as opposed to a leader.. but I’m sure the indoctrinated fans will say differently. LS lost to Saint Francis by a close margin in the 1st round – by contrast LS got pummeled by said team earlier in preseason. Would agree they are in a way tougher division since its D-3! They won the championship in D-7! Big difference. Plus, their earlier round exits (2nd round in 2016 and 1st round 2017) have been to La Mirada and Saint Francis respectively, and both of those games were competitively close. They need to be in a lower division though as D-3 proves to be too much for them and its showing! Especially with a loss to Santa Fe in a very uncharacteristic manner. Yikes.
2. SF – In years past (Mahlstede, 105 Fwy connection) SF had some major talent coming in and were the dominant force in the DRL. Now, with Pearson at the helm, they have been hit or miss in recent years. Last year though they were able to win league with a 5-0 record. They beat LS, not soundly, but a tough defense and a persistent offense got them the win and they just kept the momentum going. El Rancho gave them a scare but SF wound up winning league hands down. Question is, do they have any worthwhile players coming up to keep it going? Their coaching isn’t always the best or most established (seeing as some of their wins were closer than they should have been) but give them credit where credit is due. They could possibly build on this and make it to deeper into the playoffs… or not. All depends on how they build in the off-season. For a while they seemed more preoccupied with recruiting and their Twitter page as opposed to football – perhaps it was best for them to get rid of that problem coach so they can focus on more important matters.
3. ER – Of course they should improve.. they went 3-7! Medrano is trying to build a worthy program but does not have a solid staff surrounding him. I hope, for his sake, that they are more successful in 2018 as I truly believe he is there for the kids.. but he needs to get his program rolling and soon. As for the Beltran comment, he is where he wanted to be. He very well could have gone the revenge route to take on his past admin that went after him and ram him out but he didn’t. That is more telling to me than anything else.
4. Whittier – Whittier has a head coach that over-analyzes/coaches and seems to do nothing with the information he records. How are you going to jot down every single yardage of the opposing kicker in warm-ups before the game and use it to beat your opponent? I’d imagine you could use that time for other purposes… In any case, he sticks with these traditional St. Paul tricks and techniques (putting up pics of the opposing players in the locker room, manipulating film, etc.) I think it would be best for him to try something new because whatever he keeps doing ain’t working.
5. Cal – Is simply a mess. They have all these big linemen and comparable athletes to other neighboring schools and yet they can’t seem to put it all together. When you play pop song artists like Miley Cyrus during your practices, you’re doing it wrong.
Santa Fe lost everyone and the lower levels have been abysmal..
2018 Finish
1. La Serna – Doesn’t matter because they will lose in the 1st Round. No more mental toughness, no more chip on their shoulders, no more wanting to take on the world
2. Santa Fe – Should finish first but won’t. Coaching is questionable. Loses in the 1st Round every year.
3. El Rancho – Should improve from last years finish. If not, the principal (now in La Mirada district) who is now married to the ER head coach should’ve made a better offer to Beltran!
4. Whittier – Under achieves every year, doesn’t matter who the head coach is. Ancich makes the playoffs every two to three years and that isn’t good enough.
5. Cal – Need to make a coaching change. The program has fallen and fallen fast. No reason why Cal is not in the playoffs every year. Program has become a joke! Not the kids fault…its the coaching staff
Only two are automatic playoff teams and it doesn’t matter because none of them get out of the 1st Round! The league is lacking leadership; Mahlstede, Beltran, Patricio, D. Ancich, and Patricio just to name a few.
Spot on… they are good for a 3rd place varsity finish every 3-4 years…
The RB was ok… I heard he was transferring to bosco… in any case he’s wasting his time at Whittier… he still couldn’t beat la Serna last year… the MLB tomalchoff is a solid player.
Whittier’s freshmen go 7-3 or better every year and do nothing at varsity.
Whittier actually has a rb who was a frosh last season who is very good. Also the middle backer tomochov (sp) is solid. Both those guys could play at any high school.
Damn, who let El rancho in here!
👀
🙄🙄🙄
Correction to last post… meant to say 2017…
I can’t deny that athlete for athlete ER probably has been less talented than the athletes from the rest of the Del Rio league teams, however in 2016 3/4 losses in the Del Rio were 1 possession games where ER didn’t close the game, Cal, Whittier and Santa Fe all came down to a final minute red zone failure. This year ER has returned a handful of studs that chose to not play last season amongst a good amount of returning starters. Are there any guarantees? Nope, but I foresee a huge bounce back from the Dons in 2018.
@jon f.b your right, I stand corrected. It was the quarter finals in 2008. Sorry about that.
NORTHVIEW DIDNT PLAY PARACLETE IN THE SEMIS IN 09, IT WAS THE 2ND ROUND IN 08 AND TEMPLE CITY PLAYED PARACLETE IN THE SEMIS. IN 09 NORTHVIEW WENT 1-9, THAT YEAR SAN DIMAS WON CIF WHEN MTOWN CHOKED IN RAIN.
@pick
El Rancho’s problem is that they are not that fast nor big. The school does have athletes and good football players but La Serna’s and Santa Fe’s are better. For that matter Whitter and Cal’s where better than ER. Where they can best their league opponents is in the toughness aspect of the game. We shall see how 2018 plays out.
Just a prediction. I think that SH winning mentality is back
The board makes them look bad? In what way? why can’t you just be honest about why you hate the ranch.. no one has talked on here or bragged about anything ranch in years… the only time was after the 35-7 win over Montebello. They are bad because of the board…. but can’t give one football reason on why they are bad lol…
La Serna should be the team to beat but they have lost some of their mystique. Many people thought El Rancho would be the team to dethrone La Serna but they took a huge step backward this past season going 1-4 in league. Santa Fe is intriguing, athletically they are probably the best but coaching will always be a problem for them (can’t get out of the 1st Round no matter what division they are in). Cal High needs needs a change at the top, don’t know their head coach but it is obvious they have fallen from where they were with Coach Arnold and Coach Ancich. Whittier is Whitteir…
Yes, Downey is going to Hawaii. Those kids must be happy as heck, memories of a lifetime. Enjoy boys.
Santa Fe lost everyone… LS will continue to be good, ER returns a solid offensive and defensive line, Cal returns their QB… Whittier is Whittier…
Nobody is tripping on your team it’s the board that makes them look bad and has people wanting them to do bad. They’re an average to a below average team should be in division 11.
Will La Serna drop off a bit?? It has already happene3d, 6-5 lost to Santa Fe and in the 1st Round, they’ve fallen.
Del Rio will be business as usual. LS will dominate with the core of their team returning. SF will land transfers like always but the HC will know nothing about it. Whittier, Cal, and ER are left to fight for third which will no longer equal a playoff birth due to the league losing powerhouse Pioneer.
Any word on how the deal rio league will look this year? Sleeper team on the rise? Will la serna finally drop off a bit?
@SGV coach another thing. After that 2009 year, when they lost to Paraclete in the semis. Name some players up until Comstock got to Northview? That’s what I thought we were talking about. But you went old school on me, but that was good. I liked it, you know your stuff. Marquis was amazing, but how about the whole team around him? And hooper from what your saying. Remember it’s not just one guy, it’s a whole team. One guy won’t get you anywhere, ask Marquis
@SVG coach. So your taking way back. Let’s take it back than. 2000 -2002 Division 9 had South Hills which was stacked and dominating. When Bogan was there, if i remember correctly they had at least 4 D-1 guys on that team. Oh yea, La Habra was also in that division. Through 2003-2007 look at those teams in the division during that time with all those guys you just named. La Habra, Tesoro, Oaks Christian, Harvard west lake. Those are just to name a few. You can’t say Northview underachieved by not winning a CIF championship during that time. Jesus! Look at the playoff teams they were going up against. But out of all those guys you just named Damien James was the best. That kid was special.
I’ll chime in. Northview has always had the athletes. These are some of the studs I can remember. These are also all Covina kids, not from Lakewood or Pasadena or whatever. If they would have gone to other places, all would have been stars. Damian James might have been the best of the bunch. We all know why guys don’t play in college so I will refrain from that comment. But here is the list.
Oscar Robles/Danny Bonilla (both coaching now)
Christeon Blackmon
Andres Hooper (wrestling and FB, Playing FB at Cal Luth)
Kevin Jones
Anthony Farmer
Kameron Germany
Marquis Thomas
Old School Studs:
Will Davis (played baseball and FB)
Remington Hawkins
Shawn Houston (Star, coaching now, was great wrestler too)
James Overstreet
Antwan Thorton
Damian James – Was a Comstock type. Might have been the best athlete of all time here.
I heard Downey is playing a team in Hawaii this year. Any truth to that?
Ok yes 3-7 last season but give some info on this years team otherwise quit being a baby about 35-7…
Haven’t heard of any transfers yet at El Monte but maybe it’ll make the MVL fun
You’re right it happen at Chino 9-3 one year and a 4-7 next year two playoff appearances. Those kids at chino aren’t like our Norwalk kids they think they knew the game and wanted to do what everyone else does, that’s okay and it helped Lugo. EM has kids similar to Ceniceros first few years in Norwalk when he went deep in the playoffs. Sure miss the hard work he installed in our kids.