In these days of high school football teams that seem more like college football programs, Valencia is like a rotary telephone.
Old fashioned.
It is a community football team. Valencia’s players grew up together. They’ve never thought about transferring.
Year after year, and decade after decade, really, Valencia plays the same tough, gritty style. The Tigers run the ball a lot, they have a hard-hitting defense, they throw the ball just to spice it up, and they win.
Valencia’s 27-7 win over Tustin in an Empire League game Friday was typical Tigers ball. Valencia rushed for 253 yards, scored all four of its touchdowns on running plays, completed 4 of 7 passes for 57 yards and the Tigers defense suffocated Tustin’s offense, holding the Tillers to 148 yards of total offense as they improved to 2-0 in league in their pursuit of a fifth straight league championship.
And it was done by a bunch of neighborhood kids.
“We’ve all known each other since middle school,” said senior running back Nathan Sandoval who rushed for 187 yards and three touchdowns Friday. “For some of us it goes back to preschool.”
Eight of the 12 coaches in the Valencia football program are Valencia alums, including head coach Jason Gray.
“We just have to coach whoever shows up here,” Gray said. “Sometimes guys are going to be starters only a year or two here. They work their way into a role and they get to have fun playing football.”
Luis Garcia was one of those players who found his role as a safety and kicker at Valencia in the 1990s. He now is the Tigers defensive coordinator.
“I started coming to Valencia games when I was a kid,” Garcia said. “I’d tell myself, ‘One day, I’m going to be a Tiger.’ ”
“It’s family around here,” said junior defensive lineman Carson Elmasry. “Our motto is ‘Pride, Tradition, Excellence.’ We tend to stick by that.”
Valencia’s football community was created and maintained by Mike Marrujo. He coached the Tigers for 35 years before resigning after the 2015 season.
“Valencia’s always been a very community-oriented school,” Marrujo said. “Many kids go there because their parents went there.”
Tustin coach Myron Miller was impressed by Valencia on Friday. Again.
“Nothing’s changed,” said Miller, 75, who has coached against Valencia for many years. “They’re the same gritty, tough kids who’ll never give in. Twenty-five years I’ve played them and 25 years I’ve known what to expect.”
It’s a mixture of kids in Valencia football. The surrounding area has upper-middle class and lower-middle class and everything in between. The roster has long been one of ethnic diversity.
“We get kids from all walks of life,” Garcia said. “It’s a big mix of kids. They take pride in that.”
Some of the players come from Placentia’s more affluent streets. Others have jobs to contribute to their family’s finances.
“You see kids walking in here from all over the place, from different neighborhoods,” Gray said. “It doesn’t matter where they come from, they all have things they need to work through. It doesn’t matter what neighborhood you’re from.”
Valencia senior defensive end Anthony Moran, who had three sacks Friday, understands. That’s why he never considered transferring to another school.
“Everybody here respects each other,” Moran said. “I would never want to leave that.”
THAT WAS CLOSE
If Mission Viejo was going to find a way to beat Capistrano Valley on Friday night, it would be up to Akili Arnold to find it. He has made big plays for the Diablos all season and did so again in Mission Viejo’s 31-24 win over the Cougars.
Arnold, a senior receiver/defensive back, had an interception in the fourth quarter to set up the winning touchdown, Joey Yellen’s 11-yard scoring pass to tight end TJ Roelen. Arnold also had 164 receiving yards on seven receptions.
Mater Dei linebacker/receiver Bru McCoy might be Orange County’s best two-way player. Arnold is not far behind in that category.
CAN HE COACH, TOO?
In San Juan Hills’ 38-0 win over Aliso Niguel, junior Joey Hobert scored a touchdown on a shovel pass, blocked a field-goal attempt and picked up the ball to return it 57 yards for another touchdown, kicked a field goal and had 78 receiving yards on seven receptions.
GARBERS’GAME
Corona del Mar quarterback Ethan Garbers threw for school records of 472 yards and six touchdowns in a 49-21 win over Fountain Valley.
Corona del Mar’s next opponent is Los Alamitos on Friday, Oct. 12 at Cerritos College. Both teams are 2-0 in the Sunset League.
That will be a good challenge for Garbers and the Sea Kings. Los Alamitos has defeated its two league opponents by a combined score of 111-7.
IT’S ON
Mater Dei and St. John Bosco are the only 2-0 teams in the Trinity League. In the CIF-Southern Section Division 1 and CalHiSports.com state rankings Mater Dei is No. 1 and Bosco is No. 2.
They play each other Friday, Oct. 12 at Santa Ana Stadium. The game will be televised live by Prime Ticket.
So was the Mater Dei-IMG Academy game at Santa Ana Stadium a couple of weeks ago, and everyone who was at Mater Dei-IMG is glad they were there instead of at home watching it on TV.
LA HABRA, STILL
La Habra went into Freeway League play with a 1-4 record. People who looked at 1-4 and thought La Habra would not continue to rule the league were very wrong.
La Habra beat the league’s second-best team, Sunny Hills, 56-14 on Friday. The Highlanders are going to go 5-0 again in league to take another league championship. They have won nine Freeway titles in the past 10 years.