Twenty-seven area media specialists selected Helix as the top team in the the North County Times’ first weekly San Diego Section football poll, according to Times writer John Maffei.
Helix received thirteen first place votes and 245 points overall, ahead of second-place Oceanside, which had 5 first-place votes and 229 points.
“The panel is comprised of prep football experts from throughout the County,” said Maffei. “They will vote each week throughout the season.”
The North County, annually the area producing most of the best teams in the San Diego Section, placed six in the Top 10: Mission Hills, No. 4; Poway, 5; Vista, 6; La Costa Canyon, 8, and Valley Center, 9.
Cathedral Catholic, No. 3, is considered North County with a location in Del Mar but draws its students from a county-wide area and has a San Diego address and plays in the city’s Eastern League.
The rest of the first 10 is concentrated in the East (Helix and No. 10 Steele Canyon) and South (No. 7 Eastlake).
“With a diverse and sizable panel the goal is to eliminate possible geographic bias,” said Maffei.
After a 2011, opening-game, 21-14 loss to Eastlake, coach Troy Starr’s Helix Highlanders stormed through the Grossmont League and San Diego Section playoffs, concluding a 13-1 season in which they averaged 46 points a game with a 35-24 victory over Loomis Del Oro in the State Division II championship game at the Home Depot Center in Carson.
First-place votes in parenthesis
Points awarded on 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis
+Last Year Record + Points +Last Week (2011)
1. Helix (13) 13-1-0 245 1
2. Oceanside (5) 9-3-1 229 5
3. Cathedral Catholic (1) 12-1-0 186 3
4. Mission Hills (5) 8-4-1 163 7
5. Poway 12-0-1 145 2
6. Vista (3) 7-6-0 126 8
7. Eastlake 8-4-0 104 —-
8. La Costa Canyon 9-3-0 102 6
9. Valley Center 12-1-0 38 4
10. Steele Canyon 8-4-0 37 —-
Others receiving votes: Lincoln (31), St. Augustine (19), Mira Mesa (13), Westview (10), Chula Vista (8), Olympian (7), Madison (6), San Pasqual (4), Grossmont (3), Carlsbad (2), Santa Fe Christian (2), Christian (1).
27 sportswriters, sportscasters and CIF representatives from throughout the county vote in the weekly poll. This year’s panel includes: John Maffei, Terry Monahan, Tom Sheridan, Rick Hoff and Tom Saxe (North County Times), Steve Brand and John Shacklett (Hall of Champions), Nick Pellegrino (East County Sports.com), Steve Dolan and Rick Hill (East County), Rick Willis and Brandon Stone (KUSI-TV), John Kentera. Mark Chlebowski, Ted Mendenhall, Bob Petinak, Jordan Carruth, Jack Cronin, Bobby Wooldridge (XX Sports Radio 1090), Bruce Ward, (San Diego City Schools), Jeff Kurtz (playonsports), Craig Elsten (619sports.net), Dave Axelson (Coronado Eagle & Journal ), Anthony Gentile (sandiegoreader.com), Jerry Schniepp and John LaBeta (CIF San Diego Section office), Rick Smith (Partletonsports.com).
