2023 Week 2: How About Helix? Next 3 Games Should Tell

After a 45-21 win at Mountain View St. Francis of the Central Coast Section the question this week is Helix back? The question last week was whether Cathedral was back.  Not quite, after a 40-30 loss at L.A. Mission Hills Chaminade.

The Honor Bowl, a Sean Doyle favorite, will provide another opportunity for Doyle’s Dons this week against Phoenix Brophy Prep, Arizona’s No. 18-ranked team.

Helix also is on the Honor Bowl schedule. The Highlanders take on the Mesa Red Mountain Mountain Lions, Arizona’s No. 15.

Helix which has won 16 Grossmont South or Hills titles and tied for another since 2000, was second to Granite Hills in the Grossmont Hills loop last season. After a 2-4-1 in the pandemic 2020, it was 9-4 (outscoring opponents only 343-337) in 2021, and 7-4 in 2022. Not bad, but not quite up to Highlanders standards.

The Scots will face Madison and Cathedral after the honor bowl and then open Grossmont Hills play against league newcomer West Hills, which moved over from the Grossmont Valley.

Points awarded on  10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.
*First-place votes.  NR–Not ranked. Last entries in columns are previous rankings.                                                                             OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
San Marcos (2-0, 23 points), El Capitan (2-0, 10), Mater Dei (0-2, 7), Ramona (1-0, 2), La Jolla (2-0, 1), Mount Miguel (1-0, 1).

VOTING PANEL

29 sportswriters, sportscasters, administrators from San Diego County, plus Max Preps.com.

  • John Maffei (San Diego Union-Tribune).
  • Don Norcross, Steve Brand, Rick Hoff, Eric Williams, Thomas Gutierrez , Freelance contributors.
  • Brandon Stone, Allison Edmonds, John Carroll (KUSI, Channel 51).
  • Rick Smith (partletonsports.com).
  • Adam Paul (EastCountySports.com).
  • Bodie DeSilva (ScorebookLive.com). 
  • John Kentera, Braden Suprenant (97.3-FM The Fan).
  • Steve (Biff) Dolan (Mountain Country 107.9-FM). 
  • Christian Pedersen (San Diego Sports Association).
  • Troy Hirsch, Nic Pollino (Fox 5 San Diego). 
  • Joe Heinz, Todd Cassen, Ron Marquez (CIF San Diego Section).
  • Mike Dolan, Rex Johnson, Bruce Ward (CIF Advisory Committee).
  • Joe Evangelist (San Diego Coaching Legends Committee).
  • Will Torrez (Valley Sports Network).
  • Tom Ronco  (Imperial Valley Press).
  • Raymond Brown  (SDfootball.net).
  • Tom Helmantoler (Southern Conference Advisor).
  • Max Preps.

ROSSOVICH REMEMBERED

Helix’ win in the Bay Area last week was against the frequent No. 2 team in the Central Coast, behind San Mateo Serra.

Ten Mountain View graduates have made NFL teams since the school opened in 1955, led by Tim Rossovich, an all-America linebacker at USC and 1968 No. 1 draft choice of the Philadelphia Eagles. “Rosso” played for the San Diego Chargers in 1972.

Rossovich had a post-football career in television and movies after he gained dubious fame for being known along the way to chew glass, eat spiders, or dive into a whirlpool tub naked, among other pranks.

Through a secure trick Rossovich also once set himself on fire, noting only that his moustache was singed.

TRUE GRID

St. Augustine’s Brady Palmer has interesting lineage…his uncle is former NFL  quarterback great Carson Palmer…Brady completed 13×16 passes for 200 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 107 yards and two touchdowns in the Saints’ 31-7 win over Poway…Army-Navy was 17-35 from 2015-’19 and is 18-8 since ’20…Carlsbad is 44-9 since 2018…win this week and San Diego Southwest will be 3-0 for the first time since 1991, when Cal Parrick’s Raiders enjoyed a 9-2 season, best in the school’s 48-season history….Top 10 biggie this week, 8 St. Augustine versus 3 Granite Hills at Mesa College…Helix’ opponent in the Honor Bowl, Mesa Red Mountain, is 1-0 and opened with a 41-7 win over Mesa…Brophy Prep, Cathedral’s Honor Bowl opponent, is 0-1 following a 35-34 defeat to Gilbert Williams Fields…Madison fills out the Honor Bowl  against El Dorado Hills Oak Ridge of the Sac-Joaquin Section…Oak Ridge is 2-0 after a 55-0 win over Spanish Springs of Sparks, Nevada, and 21-18 against Sacramento Grant…Section No. 1 Lincoln will be in Ventura to take on Cal-Hi‘s 39th-ranked St. Bonaventure in a rematch of the Hornets’ 27-24 win at Lincoln last season….



2023 Week 1: Cathedral Takes Big Step Forward

Is Cathedral back?

The Dons, uncharacteristically uneven in 2022 despite their even 6-6 record, blasted Mater Dei, Cal-Hi Preps’ preseason state No. 34 and San Diego Section’s No. 3, 55-14, in the season opener and look for more success this week at Los Angeles West Hills Chaminade, a team coach Sean Doyle’s state Division I championship club clobbered, 50-17, in 2021.

Doyle, who annually opts for a challenging intersectional schedule that this year includes Phoenix Brophy Prep, Henderson Liberty of Nevada, and San Francisco St. Ignatius (Dan Fouts’ alma mater), plus Helix and the loaded rivalry teams of the Western League, rolled with quarterback Jack Stevens to knock out the state defending Division II-AA champion Crusaders.

Stevens completed 8 of 13 passes for 209 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 83 yards in seven carries for the San Diego Section preseason No. 7 Dons.

Doyle compared Stevens to Carlsbad’s heralded Julian Sayin and Stevens enthusiastically agreed. “I think Julian’s a helluva player,” the 6-foot, 1 inch senior said to Don Norcross of the Union-Tribune, “but I think I’m just as good.”

TRUE GRID

Six former NFL players are active head coaches:  Eric Weddle made his debut at Rancho Bernardo, losing to Poway, 14-6;  Bryan Wagner, in his fourth season at Hilltop, was a 27-21 winner at Valhalla;  Maranatha’s Rick Novak began his third season with a 42-7 loss to Temecula Linfield; David Dunn’s 13th season at Lincoln started with a 41-0 victory at Honolulu Wai’anae; Shane Walton’s fourth season at The Bishop’s began with a 41-21 loss to La Jolla, and Nick Barnett is the first-year head coach at Del Norte and a 23-14 winner over Torrey Pines…

…Bonita Vista follows Lincoln in continuing San Diego’s Hawaii connection this week at Honolulu Kalani, 2-0 after wins of 20-9 over Waialua and 20-9 over William McKinley…the Barons’ 34-12 triumph over Castle Park was their first in the opening game since 2015…San Diego Section teams are 32-20 all time in visits to the islands…Sweetwater was the first, winning, 34-3, at Maui Wailuka Baldwin in 1984…Westview is 77-139-1 since its debut in 2003 but 15-4-1 in openers after a 34-14 decision against Olympian…

…Brandt Barker of El Capitan tied a school record of 7 touchdown passes and was 21×30 for 308 yards in the Vaqueros’ 47-18 blowout of Valley Center…Tanner Rust also threw for 7 TD’s in a 46-14 win over Santana in 2007…Julian Sayin of Carlsbad completed 24 of 34 passes for 185 yards and a touchdown as Carlsbad won a rematch at Inglewood, 30-6…Lincoln’s Akili Smith, Jr., son of the former Hornet and NFL No. 1 draft choice, was 9×17 for 167 yards and two touchdowns…La Jolla’s Jackson Diehl passed for 289 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 174 yards and three touchdowns  in the Vikings’ 41-19 win over The Bishop’s…

…Brawley apparently didn’t want to test expected dangerous, stormy weather over the Laguna Mountains and passed on the trip to Scripps Ranch… doubtful the game will be rescheduled….

Points awarded on  10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.
OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
El Camino (0-1, 18 points), El Capitan (1-0, 11), Poway (1-0, 10 points), Del Norte (1-0, 7), San Marcos (1-0, 5), Chula Vista (1-0, 1). Mira Mesa (0-1, 1).

VOTING PANEL

29 sportswriters, sportscasters, administrators from San Diego County, plus Max Preps.com.

  • John Maffei (San Diego Union-Tribune).
  • Don Norcross, Steve Brand, Rick Hoff, Eric Williams, Thomas Gutierrez , Freelance contributors.
  • Brandon Stone, Allison Edmonds, John Carroll (KUSI, Channel 51).
  • Rick Smith (partletonsports.com).
  • Adam Paul (EastCountySports.com).
  • Bodie DeSilva (ScorebookLive.com). 
  • John Kentera, Braden Suprenant (97.3-FM The Fan).
  • Steve (Biff) Dolan (Mountain Country 107.9-FM). 
  • Christian Pedersen (San Diego Sports Association).
  • Troy Hirsch, Nic Pollino (Fox 5 San Diego). 
  • Joe Heinz, Todd Cassen, Ron Marquez (CIF San Diego Section).
  • Mike Dolan, Rex Johnson, Bruce Ward (CIF Advisory Committee).
  • Joe Evangelist (San Diego Coaching Legends Committee).
  • Will Torrez (Valley Sports Network).
  • Tom Ronco  (Imperial Valley Press).
  • Raymond Brown  (SDfootball.net).
  • Tom Helmantoler (Southern Conference Advisor).

AS TIME GOES BY

Grossmont waited until the millennium to avenge an almost century of punishment by a variety of San Diego High teams.

The Foothillers are 4-0 against the Cavers since 2010, including this season’s 34-14 opener. They had steered clear of the Cavers for 56 years, following losses of 67-0 in 1953 and 41-19 in ’54.

The win in Week 1 left San Diego with a 15-6-1 edge in a series that began in 1921, the year after Grossmont opened.

New coach Anthony Lawrence was a winner and Grossmont, 5-18 since Tom Karlo retired after the 2020 season, snapped an 11-game losing streak to 2021.

A Foothiller view of the infrequent rivalry:

YEAR OPPONENT SCORE
1921 San Diego Reserves 0-40
1922 San Diego 7-40
1927 San Diego B 13-0
6-19
1942 San Diego Hillers 9-7
San Diego Cavemen 13-13
1943 San Diego 0-14
1944 0-34
1945 0-53
1948 7-13
1949 0-14
1950 7-20
1951 0-25
1952 0-32
1953 0-67
1954 19-41
2010 *20-14
2012 42-12
2013 61-6
2023 34-14

*Playoff game.

 



2023 Football Week 0: Lincoln and Carlsbad are 1-2 Again

The San Diego Section, 63 years young, is back for its 64th season.

Lincoln and Carlsbad, which played for the Division I championship in 2022, begin play this week ranked 1 and 2 in John Maffei’s preseason Union-Tribune poll and they are close in the other major polls, Max Preps and CalPreps and Cal-Hi Sports.

Lincoln will open in Hawaii, 40 miles west of Honolulu, playing Waianae, the state’s No. 12 team, and Helix is home to Huntington Beach Edison in two of several intersectionals.

Game of the week is take-your-choice, Carlsbad at Inglewood or Mater Dei at Cathedral.

Carlsbad will attempt to reverse a home, 35-18 loss to the Inglewood Sentinels, 13-1 in 2022 but ranked 33rd in Cal-Hi Sports’ Top 50 this season, compared to the Lancers’ No. 12 ranking.  The game will be a show-time opportunity for Lancers quarterback Julian Sayin, the reported five-star recruit who has committed to Alabama.

Mater Dei and Cathedral complete the second half of a home-and-home series with a rematch of their 2022 opener, won by Cathedral, 28-14. The Crusaders went on to lose another three in a row before 11 straight victories, including a 14-9 playoff victory over the Dons, and a state Division II-AA championship.  Cathedral flattened out to 6-6.

Cathedral and Mater Dei will be meeting for only the fourth time.  Cathedral won, 49-0, in 2007,

Lincoln’s opponent already has played a game, a 49-0 loss to Kahuku, Hawaii’s No. 1 team.  Coach David Dunn’s Hornets begin living life without superstar and now University of Georgia freshman Hot Roderick Robinson.

Huntington Beach Edison, longtime Southern Section power, was 9-2 in 2022. Helix is coming off a 7-4 campaign and looking up at the new Grossmont Hills power, Granite Hills.

PULLS PIN

Missing from the sidelines will be Rob Gilster, the  all-San Diego Section lineman from Escondido who went on to a legendary coaching career at Orange Glen and Valley Center.

Gilster retired after 34 seasons and 243 victories, third most in County history to Herb Meyer’s 339 and John Carroll’s 248.

Union-Tribune and other, major preseason polls:

RANK TEAM 2022 RECORD *MAX PREPS CALPREPS *CAL-HI SPORTS
1. Lincoln 13-1 8 51.9 11
2. Carlsbad 10-2 11 50.1 12
3. Mater Dei 11-4 36 27.3 34
4. Granite Hills 13-2 23 32.6 29
5. Madison 9-4 39 26.7 22
6. Mission Hills 9-4 47 24.1 NR
7. Cathedral 6-6 80 15.1 49
8. Helix 7-4 86 13.7 NR
9. La Costa Canyon 7-5 96 11.7 NR
10. El Camino 9-4 91 12.6 NR

*State ranking.

COACHING CAROUSEL

SCHOOL IN OUT
Brawley Rick Rubio & Ray Van Diver John Self
Canyon Hills Marcus Cook Brandon Harris
Clairemont Eduardo Gonzalez Desmond Rose
Del Norte Nick Barnett Leigh Cole
El Centro Southwest Pete Blincoe Dan Jungers
Escondido Stephen Dixon Aron Gideon
Grossmont Anthony Lawrence Chris Holmes
Oceanside Fale Poumele Dave Rodriguez
Olympian Brad Carter Jimmy Clark
Rancho Bernardo Eric Weddle Tristan McCoy
Valley Center Sidaron Wilson Rob Gilster
Vista Vika Sa’atuiese David Bottom

 CHANGING LEAGUES

SCHOOL NEW OLD
Army-Navy Coastal Sunset
Calvin Christian Ocean Surf
Canyon Hills Central City
Classical Coastal Pacific
Coastal Ocean Surf
Coronado City Central
Crawford City Central
Escondido Charter Coastal Pacific
Fallbrook Palomar Valley
Francis Parker Coastal Pacific
Mabel O’Farrell Pacific Sunset
Maranatha Pacific Sunset
Morse Eastern City
Ocean View Manzanita Ocean
Oceanside Valley Avocado
Orange Glen Pacific Coastal
Patrick Henry City Eastern
Point Loma Eastern City
Poway Avocado Palomar
Ramona Palomar Valley
San Diego Central Eastern
San Marcos Palomar Avocado
Santana Grossmont Hills Grossmont Valley


2022 Week 17: Robinson Leads, Plus Annual Scoring Leaders/2022 Leading Individual Performances

Roderick Robinson, already enrolled at the University of Georgia, became the third Lincoln athlete to win Cal-Hi Sports’ Mr. Football award after leading the Hornets to the state Division I championship and the San Diego Section in scoring.

Robinson had the academic credits and graduated early from high school not long after the Hornets’ 33-28 win in the championship game against Concord De La Salle. His 39 touchdowns and 234 points in the 13-1 season gave Robinson a comfortable edge over Francis Parker’s runner-up, Chris Williams, who had 204 points.

Lincoln’s Wally Henry also won the Mr. Football award in 1972 and Marcus Allen earned the honor in 1977.

Allen played quarterback and safety and was the star on a 12-0-1 team, culminating with a five-touchdown performance in a 34-6 championship win over Kearny.  Henry scored 132 points for a 9-3 Hornets squad, which lost to Sweetwater, 22-12, in the title game.

The leading individual scorers for 2022 and past years are listed on the Football/Top Performances/Annual Individual Scorers page. The Alltime Top Scorers list is here.



2022: Doyle and Hauser Move Up; Burner, McNair, Starr Move In.

Eleven wins in 2023 could elevate Sean Doyle to as high as a fourth-place tie with Bennie Edens on the list of San Diego County coaches’ all-time victories.

Eleven wins in 2023 would move Chris Hauser into the club of eight who have won 200 games.

The late Bennie Edens of Point Loma is fourth with 238 victories and Ron Hamamoto, active at Monte Vista, fifth with 233.

Doyle has won at least 11 games nine times in his 27 seasons (1996-2022) at Cathedral and Hauser has reached that figure on four occasions at Vista and Mission Hills (2000-22).

Doyle, who annually puts together a schedule that is as difficult as any in the state, has a 227-102 (.690) record, seventh in wins.

Hauser, who started at Vista and inaugurated the Mission Hills program in 2003, is 189-82-2 (.696), tied for 12th with Carl Parrick, who was 189-131-8 (.588) in 30 seasons at San Diego Southwest and Bonita Vista.

Madison’s Rick Jackson advanced from 16th to 15th with 162 victories.  Damon Baldwin and Joel Allen also made gains.

Three new members joined the Coach 100 Club this season; El Capitan’s Ron Burner, Morse’s Tracy McNair, and Mount Miguel’s Troy Starr.

The Club total now is 47, with Mater Dei’s Jon Joyner (96 wins), Brawley’s John Self, Jr. (94) and San Pasqual’s Tony Curlee (91) closing in.

 



2022 Week 16: San Diego Section is 4-0 in State Bowls.

The final act for 98 teams and the 561** games they played was a quaternary of success, 4 games, 4 victories in the state bowl championships.

San Diego Section teams enjoyed their most successful year since the inaugural Southern California and state bowl championship series in 2006.

Lincoln (13-1) went on a 21-0 blitz in the third quarter to take a 27-14 lead and held on to defeat Concord De La Salle of the North Coast Section, 33-28, in the Division I-AA final.  The outburst was similar to the 27-0 explosion the previous week third quarter in the 37-14 win over favored Chatsworth Sierra Canyon.

Granite Hills  (13-2) was named State Medium Schools Team of the Year after posting a 31-24, overtime victory against Danville San Ramon Valley of the North Coast Section for the state II-A championship.

Mater Dei (11-4) completed a remarkable comeback after four straight losses at the start of the season, topping Oakland McClymonds of the Oakland Athletic League (the only league of the Oakland Section), 26-18, and defending its state II-AA title.

Classical (11-3) joined the fray, outlasting the Central Coast’s San Jose Santa Teresa, 7-0, for the VI-AA championship in a game that necessitated an 884-mile roundtrip bus ride, the 442-mile jaunt back ensuring a lifetime of memories for the Caimans.

**The figure is for two teams playing one game.

The Union-Tribune’s last Top 10 with updated records and extended-season rankings of the three state-wide contributors:

FINAL RANKINGS

The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Week 16 Wrapup
First-place votes in parenthesis.
Points on 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.
*First-place votes. NR—Not ranked.
Last entries in columns indicate previous rank.
Cal-Hi Sports’ and Max Preps’ represent state rankings.

RANK TEAM/RECORD POINTS MAX PREPS.COM CAL-PREPS.COM CAL-HI SPORTS
1 Lincoln (13-1) 30*/300/1 3/9 66.6/60 8/9
2 Carlsbad (10-2) 269/2 13/17 55.3/53.3 16/17
3 Mater Dei (11-4) 209/8 24/34 47.4/43.6
 23/33
4 Madison (9-2) 207/3 38/30 42.739.8 32/29
5 Granite Hills (13-2) 164/5 45/56 44.1/39.4
 31/48
6 Poway (10-1) 141/4 70/78 34.1/33 30/47
7 Mission Hills (9-4) 137/9 46/58 38.6/37.6 45/48
8 Cathedral (6-6) 98/6 48/62 38.3/36.6 50/On the bubble
9 El Camino (9-4) 62/10 78/88 28.6/32 NR/NR
10 Helix (7-4) 26/7 93/104 27.8/34.3 NR/NR

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
University City (11-2, 19 points), Blythe Palo Verde Valley (13-1, 3), Ramona (8-5, 3), Classical (11-3, 1), La Costa Canyon (7-5, 1).