2018 Week 1: 269 No Magic Number for Helix

How decisive was top-ranked Helix’ shocking, 43-3 defeat at San Bernardino Cajon last week? Two-hundred, sixty-nine games decisive.

You have to go back to the third contest of the 1996 season, a 41-0 Highlanders loss to El Camino, to find a more conclusive result.

Only four others in the school’s storied, 68-season, 691-game history—41-0 to San Diego in 1951, 50-0 and 49-0 to Hoover and San Diego, respectively, in 1953, and 52-6 at Oxnard in 1957, when the Highlanders decided to go ahead and make the trip after several players had been sidelined during the world-wide Asian flu epidemic—surpassed last week’s stinker.

Week 1, nonleague losses are important in ratings, but not as important as setbacks in league play, so Helix and four other teams in the first Union-Tribune Top 10 can hit the reset button.

–Helix, which still has the respect of the voters, is third in this week’s poll, and gets a chance to even the slate with a home game against Arroyo Grande, a former Southern Section school now toiling in the Central Section, to its early pleasure.  The Eagles opened with a 56-21 victory over San Luis Obispo.

–Mission Hills, a 26-18 loser to a Paramount squad the Grizzlies defeated, 41-14, on the road last season, dropped from fourth to fifth and plays host to another Southern Section team, Westlake Village Westlake, which beat Chatsworth Sierra Canyon, 35-30.

–Cathedral, beaten by La Costa Canyon, 19-7, takes on El Camino, 17-16 winner over Point Loma.  Jerry Ralph, former head coach at El Camino, now is on the Cathedral coaching staff and his quarterback son is on the Dons’ roster.

–Eastlake, ninth last week and consigned to the “others” category after a 13-0 loss to now No. 1 Torrey Pines, gets a home game against Hilltop, 31-20 loser to visiting Escondido in the first game at the Lancers’ new stadium..

–Steele Canyon, 10th last week and the defending state Division III-AA champion, fell to Carlsbad, 41-13, and didn’t get a vote.  The Cougars could have begun a repeat of 2017, when they lost first-half games by scores of 41-10, 41-7, and 51-14 and then ran the table with a stunning, 8-0 finish.

Week 1 poll:

Rank Team 2018 Points Previous
1. Torrey Pines (22) 1-0 292 2
2. La Costa Canyon (4) 1-0 246 6
3. Madison (1) 1-0 232 5
4. Helix (3) 0-1 189 1
5. Mission Hills 0-1 143 4
6. San Marcos 1-0 141 7
7. Ramona 1-0 111 8
8. Cathedral 0-1 103 3
9 Carlsbad 1-0 75 NR
10. Lincoln 1-0 35 NR

NR–not ranked.

Others:  Valley Center (1-0, 25 points), St. Augustine (1-0, 23), Eastlake (0-1, 19), Grossmont (1-0, 4), Mira Mesa (1-0, 3), Oceanside (0-1, 3), Rancho Bernardo (0-1, 3), Granite Hills (1-0, 1), University City (1-0, 1).

Voting panel (30 sportswriters, sportscasters, various County football honchos):

  • John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune
  • Jim Lindgren, Rick Hoff, Terry Monahan, Don Norcross, Tom Saxe, Union-Tribune correspondents
  • Paul Rudy, Brandon Stone, KUSI Chl. 51
  • Adam Paul, ECpreps.com
  • Ramon Scott, EastCountySports.com
  • Bodie DeSilva, sandiegopreps.com
  • Ted Mendenhall, Tyler Quellman, The Mighty 1090
  • Steve Brand, San Diego Hall of Champions
  • Troy Hirsch, Fox 5, San Diego
  • Rick Smith, PartletonSports.com
  • Jerry Schniepp, John Labeta, Ron Marquez, Carlton Hoggard, CIF San Diego Section
  • Joe Heinz, Coordinator, Athletics, Sweetwater School District
  • Raymond Brown, sdfootball.net
  • Montell Allen, MBA Sports/San Diego Friday Night Lights Magazine
  • Bob Petinak, Fox 1360 Radio
  • John Kentera, Brandon Suprenant, 97.3 FM The Fan
  • Steve (Biff) Dolan, Mountain Country 107.9 FM
  • Jim Arnaiz, Mike Dolan, John Carroll, San Diego Section Tournament Directors.

QUICK KICKS
A 39-yard field goal by Jack Bosman gave Santa Fe Christian a 28-25, overtime win against Olympian, one season after the Eagles dropped an overtime, 28-25 game at Olympian…Torrey Pines rushed for 203 yards in the second half to squeeze Eastlake…Karson Lippett’s 46-yard touchdown run with 1:32 remaining in the game iced Cathedral for La Costa Canyon and showed that Lippert is recovered from the pulled muscle injury that shortcut his track season last spring…Rancho Bernardo’s Jonny Tanner intercepted a Madison pass, moved to offense on the resulting change of possession, took a reverse on the next play, and connected with Jackson Carpenter on a 50-yard touchdown pass play…Gunnar Gray of University City passed for 6 touchdowns and 400 yards in the Centurions’ 41-14 win over Valhalla…Lincoln (David Dunn) and Sweetwater (Bryan Wagner) are coached by ex-NFL players…Monte Vista led Mar Vista, 30-0, after one quarter, behind Jahmon McClendon’s 72 yards and two touchdowns and, by the end of the first half, the game was on a 44-0, running clock…Morse’s 39-0 win over Mount Miguel finished with a running clock…