By Alex A. Gonzalez
At last, the best time of the year is underway. Football is back, which means that for the next seven months, four days out of the week, my life will be consumed with football at all levels. Let the games begin, and the popcorn fly.
Week Zero just wrapped up last Saturday at the high school level, and yes, not all the teams we cover played last week, but for those who did play, it is never too late to analyze how they did and where they stand for the rest of the season.
When looking at the final scores from some games, I do not take them seriously because I know that most of these non-league match-ups are measuring sticks for both schools to see how their team looks to start the season and what improvements need to be made.
One example is West Covina, which hosted Bishop Amat last Thursday night. Despite losing 49-6, the Bulldogs are still one of the best teams in the San Gabriel Valley, and of course, head coach Mike Maggiore is going to have his team ready for a deep run in league play and into the postseason.
Also, for those who should have paid more attention over the summer, the Valle Vista league got some updates when they added both the Bulldogs and Baldwin Park, making the league one of the toughest in the SGV. A match-up between West Covina and Northview on October 24 will most certainly shut the city of Covina down when those two play.
Another eye-opener for me was seeing Temple City drop 41 points on Whittier. Last season, the Rams made some noise in the preseason when they started 3-0 but then lost the remaining seven games of their season. Last season was Riley Saxon’s first season back as head coach, and since it was his first year, the Rams get a pass in my book.
The Rams are led by Judah Douglas again this season, and when he has Jake Leones at quarterback, the offense is moving the ball better than what they did last year. Do I expect them to travel to Monrovia and upset the Wildcats? No. I don’t expect them to challenge San Marino, who won it all last year? Most certainly not. I expect the Rams to win at least two league games this year, maybe three. Then again, when TC went winless last season, I did have some faith that they would win at least one game in the Rio Hondo.
Unlike the Rams, who I hope will win more than one game in conference play, I expect the Charter Oak Chargers to push for a perfect season and contend for a CIF title when it’s all said and done.
I got to see them up close and personal last Friday. Despite playing a Canyon team that lost key seniors from last year’s team, Charter Oak has four Division One commits who should be seeing the field on Saturdays next Fall.
Junior quarterback Corin Berry, who committed to Boston College, scored four touchdowns in the first half of the contest, and when compared to last season, his timing and anticipation when in the pocket have made massive strides. It also helps that he has another D1 commit to throw to in Legend Lyons. The combo between the two will account for a lot of touchdowns for the Chargers, and when they have a defense led by LaVar Arrington Jr., who committed to Penn State, Charter Oak is in prime position for a Sierra League championship.
Only time will tell for the Chargers, however, when it comes to league play. I know for a fact that Bonita, Colony, and Glendora will want nothing more than to prevent them from winning a league title.
The 2024 season will be littered with upsets and Cinderella stories for the next ten weeks. There will be breakout performances by seniors who want to make their final high school football season memorable, and I can’t wait for that. Will an outlier be thrown in to make the staff at Mid Valley scratch their head? Undoubtably.
Whatever happens this season, get ready because before we know it, the season will turn into the playoffs, and once that is over, we’re left with another year of twiddling our thumbs, waiting for the next season to start.
That’s where I’m going.
Leave a Reply