By MVS Staff
On October 24th, after a 38-21 loss to El Monte, South El Monte was 6-4. The Eagles were sitting in third place in the Mission Valley League with a record of 4-2, which was the same as Gabrielino but they had lost to Gabrielino three weeks earlier. Yes, South El Monte was firmly entrenched in third.
The Eagles and head coach Frank Gallardo had no idea what their future held. Would they make the CIF playoffs? If so where would they land? They had to wait a week to find out but they landed in Division 14 and then went on a run that turned out to be historical.
South El Monte beat Channel Islands 45-7 at home in the first round and then survived the rain and a tough Indian Springs team the following week for a 14-7 victory. The Eagles were at The Swamp again in the semi-finals and the defense stood up in a 13-7 victory over AB Miller.
South finally had to hit the road and it was for the all the marbles. The Eagles first road game of the playoffs and the CIF title was at stake. Of course it was. Pioneer was the opponent and after three quarters the South El Monte found itself down 6-0.
But in the fourth quarter South El Monte took advantage of a short field to tie it at six and then put together a 76-yard touchdown drive to score with 21 seconds left to secure a 14-6 victory. History was made with the victory as the Eagles captured their first ever CIF championship in football.
South El Monte went on to win the CIF Division 7-A State Regional Bowl over Santee as well before finally falling to Balboa in the State Final.
But in this case the job was finished. The work was done. The Eagles were CIF Champions for the first time ever under the guidance of Gallardo. At 6-4, with the regular season over, the future of the season was cloudy. But when they found out their future was a trip to the playoffs, Gallardo guided them through the clouds, and as a unit they cleared the way to the CIF championship.
“It’s great for the school, great for the community. Small town, Love it, love it!” Gallardo said after the championship game.
And the 2025 South El Monte Eagles will now be remembered forever.
Frank Gallardo is our 2025 Mid Valley Sports Coach of the Year.
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As I hoist my plaque in D23 of the MVS commenter playoffs, I join coach Gallardo as a proud bearer of all the glory this site can bestow. I’d like to thank my brain, my fingers, and the manufacturer of my keyboard for never letting me down, even when it seemed the wisecracks were beyond reach.
Seriously though, well done Mr. Gallardo.
Well deserved! Congratulations Coach.