Oilers' football participation on the upswing
A brief chat Wednesday morning with Montebello football coach Pete Gonzalez finds the Oilers' program in good order and progressing according to plan. Gonzalez said there
are 180 athletes at the varsity and junior varsity levels participating - 95 in the football class and another 85 who are competing in spring sports or did not play last year and are trying out. Gonzalez said they are adhering to the program's mandatory four-days of lifting and mandatory study halls, the same programs he pushed when he was at St. Paul. Grade checks also are mandatory and must show a maintenance or improvement.
And the beat goes on.
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About this blog
Roger Murray is the prep sports editor for the Whittier Daily News.
In regards to the SP and LH game, it will not happen and probably should not happen. The tribune blog constantly talks about how Charter Oak and Amat should play each other, but that one won't happen either.
The reason is because of the fact that it will have too much hype and St. Paul gets nothing out of winning. So if St. Paul wins, everyoe says "well they are able to have more areas to choose from since they are a private school so they should have won." Or they will say "Look at St. Paul's division. They should win this game."
It's a win/win situation for LH and a lose/lose situation for SP
Mr. I graduated from lausd - it's at least not atleast.
Well, I missed a key and made a mistake. Sorry. I graduated from an LAUSD high school with a 2.3 GPA, but I atleast I know the difference between their, they're and there.
You use the word "fool", you remind me of the "Hood-Rat, Ghetto" classmates I had back then.
Oh well, I think I'm done with this board. Wish the Swordsmen a successful season.
So” wow” you think your spelling is great hum : your spelling-puctuation- it’s punctuation !!! Fool. I graduated with honors from SPHS, thank you very much.
SP,
Wow, I hope you didn't graduate from SP. Your spelling, puctuation and grammar are horrible. You continue to make SPHS look even worse.
Attention all ST Paul Fans:
La Habra is focucing on playing teams that are in Orange County-....That is why they schedule Los Alamitos and San Clemente and also participate in Mater Dei passing league -- but and this might sound confusing.. they do play(pre season) Downey because that was arranged awhile ago and my son told me that this will be the last year they play them.
St. Paul vs La Habra would be a great event- the entire community would come out ,,but I think La Habra would rather play Servite before St. Paul- because that would be a great challenge...
Listen blog reader I am not angry I just know better and if that comment was directed at me? La Habra can’t compete with St Paul; Murray just can’t stop his favoritism for La Habra. The result they think there are equal. Bull shxt that will never be. I keep hearing excuses why they won’t play us. The reality is their afraid of us. That I can buy and believe, it sound right.
Just a Fan - this is the same argument that was being made last year. St. Paul does not choose to play Loyola or Notre Dame, so you can't call them pre-season selections. They are on a rotation with another league. Only the first 5 games are 'picked' the way you are implying; without considering multi-year contracts, schedule openings, home:away ratios, offensive/defensive schemes, etc. La Habra competed with two solid Pac-10 programs, St. Paul got waxed by Servite and Bosco. Regardless, they won't be facing each other any time soon (and we've heard from both sides how they try to schedule each other, but 'they' back down), so the debate will never really be settled. Two well-coached, aggressive, hard-working teams that have very similar athletes on average. It would be a great match-up.
Let me put this in to perspective….
I’m a high school football fan in general and have been reading your comments for some time now. SPHS has a track record of scheduling thee top football programs in our area and maybe that’s their downfall. I really don’t see any other program scheduling 3 or 4 division 1 schools in their schedule. If your arguments had any facts, then the questions would need to be directed to the athletic director from La Habra. Why doesn’t he schedule any worthy opponents?
If your program is one of the elite teams in our area, then you should be taking on the so called, “BIG BOYS”. I would give La Habra credit if they even would schedule Charter Oak….
Here is a breakdown of the SWORDSMENS schedule from last year.
Servite (Anaheim, CA) Pac-5 (I)
Garfield (Los Angeles, CA) City Championship
Cantwell-Sacred Heart (Montebello, CA) Northwest (X)
St. John Bosco (Bellflower, CA) Pac-5 (I)
Pioneer (Whittier, CA) Southeast (VII)
Loyola (Los Angeles, CA) Pac-5 (I)
Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks, CA) Pac-5 (I)
Anyone know Karl Perez. Get him back to Cal where he can play football his senior year and come back to baseball with a new attitude. It will be good for him. Overcoming adversity is good. Better than running from it.
He may have a boss some day he does not like, just like the Nieto situation.
But, Cal Baseball goes on without him, don't they?
It's nice to see there is only 1 idiot from St. Paul who is trying to make some of the most idiotic statements in a long time regarding the La Habra football program. LH, hands down has been the best program around for the last 5-7 years in the area.
The majority of the SP fans (I believe) are smart enough to realize it. Your clueless comments are at least, entertaining.
to Anonymous
San Clemente and Los Alamitos would beat St. Paul, year in and year out, by greater scores than 28 to 21. La Habra has better coaching and smarter players.
It is great to see a public school that is better than the local Catholic school.
I think you just cannot "differentiate" that one season from all of the others.
Let's see what happen this year. Maybe you will be correct, but I doubt it.
Wow, anonymous, Don't be so angry. Seems like you may have taken big chug of 'Hatorade'.
Why don't you try posting some of the positives going on at St. Paul or your kids Pop-Warner league.
Wish both La Habra and St. Paul a lot of luck on their next season. May they represent the area well.
Anonymous,
How many players are getting looked at by college teams over at "the Great" St. Paul?? What's their names? Is it La Habra's turn in the *St. Paul bashes other local programs to feel better about themselves time?" Usually, you're bashing on DRL teams and their weak schedules. Now it's L.H.'s turn. Sounds like insecurity and envy BIG TIME to me!! Calling people names,(SPORT IDIOT). We're supposed to respect that? Personally, I thought you were a kid responding to this blog, until you mentioned you have a son. No one is bashing on St. Paul, RELAX!!!
Hey sport idiot
they won 4 champ so what...look at there schedule ,my son flag football team would rank in their div.
La Habra great at their div yes , but who cares.
Its like when I use to beat up my litte brother
I was 12 and he was 8
Everytime I won....who care....
Samething w/ La Habra
IF Sp played the same teams, How many CIF champs would they win, Excatly my Point.
12/08 TBA @ Downey (Downey, CA) 40-15 (W)
9/19/08 TBA @ South Hills (West Covina, CA) (Covina District Stadium) 22-13 (W)
9/26/08 TBA vs. Westminster (Westminster, CA) 52-7 (W)
10/03/08 TBA vs. Los Alamitos (Los Alamitos, CA) 21-28 (L)
10/10/08 TBA @ San Clemente (San Clemente, CA) 21-28 (L)
10/17/08 TBA vs. Sonora (La Habra, CA) * 62-0 (W)
10/24/08 TBA @ Troy (Fullerton, CA) * (Fullerton) 45-0 (W)
10/31/08 TBA vs. Sunny Hills (Fullerton, CA) * 41-7 (W)
11/07/08 TBA vs. Fullerton (Fullerton, CA) * 24-7 (W)
11/13/08 TBA @ Buena Park (Buena Park, CA) * 49-7 (W)
11/21/08 TBA vs. Anaheim (Anaheim, CA) *** 83-0 (W)
11/28/08 TBA @ El Dorado (Placentia, CA) *** (Valencia) 23-14 (W)
12/06/08 TBA vs. Trabuco Hills (Mission Viejo, CA) *** 27-22 (W)
12/13/08 2:00 PM vs. Tustin (Tustin, CA) *** (Angel Stadium)
Yo Murray! For your information, if you were to ask Daily News readers from the local surrounding schools (that you "claim" to cover). I would bet that many agree that you do NOT cover them equally. You do, in fact, seem to be attracted to Mr. Pete Gonzalez (who I consider a friend). I just countinue to be amazed at how much publicity you give him. Let him do his thing at Montebello. He will do well, it's his nature. When was the last time you covered MHS this much? Or how about Whittier Christian, Pioneer or Schurr? How about La Mirada? Moschetti is doing some great things with those kids over there. Just curious....what schools do you actually "cover"?
to Anonymous:
It really is a very simple conclusion!! A conclusion based on facts, not wishes. Simply put: La Habra has won about 4 CIF championships in the last 8 or 9 years. St. Paul has won 1.
La Habra plays with the best, every year. An example is a 1 point loss to Los Alamitos.
NO !!!
Anonymous,
You post that there is no comparison between La Habra’s football program and that of St. Paul. I’m sure that you can elaborate a bit more on how you have come to your opinion. Does St. Paul have better athletes, do they have better coaches, do they train harder, what is it in your opinion that makes the two programs so different.
IMO and that of a few other area coaches I have had this discussion with; one could make an argument that La Habra’s football program has become very much like that of St. Paul. Frank Mazzotta (St. Paul grad) has brought to La Habra many of the traditions and expectations that made St Paul’s football program the envy of our area. However, as I mentioned in a previous post many of my friends are St. Paul grads who agree that St. Paul’s football program is not what it use to be. Everyone knows that enrollment is down and St. Paul does not attract as many high caliper athletes as it once did.
Now, before you take this discussion the wrong way, I am not putting St. Paul down in any way. St. Paul I’m sure is still a good school to attend, I am just stating some facts that everyone in our area are aware of. I know that Swordsmen football is still alive and St. Paul can still play some hard nosed football but, over the last ten years IMO St. Paul’s program has been in decline and La Habra’s program has been on the rise. The statistics and 4 C.I.F championships speak for themselves.
As for the two schools playing against one another, scheduling a game against another school can sometimes be a bit difficult. Mutual openings from both schools have to be available in order to sign a contract for a contest. The timing has to be right and many times schedules made far in advance can keep schools from ever playing one another. According to La Habra’s Athletic Department neither school has made an attempt to schedule a game against the other in the past 10 years. So I do not believe that either school is trying to avoid a game against the other. Maybe someday the timing will be right and the two schools will get a chance to settle the argument.
On a side note, I got a chance to see Josh Quezada in action at last Thursdays La Habra vs Fullerton track meet. Mr. Quezada ran an 11.5 100m race and he has also ran a laser timed 4.55 40 posted by a Sparq certified trainer. Oh! And as of Friday you can add Cal and Oregon State to the list of schools that are showing interest in Mr. Quezada Not bad for a too slow athlete, would you agree.
Who has joined Pete's coaching staff? Did he retain anyone from the former staff?
Anonymous and X-vega,
Stop, please you both are embarassing yourselves!
Mr. sport fan original what has given you the idea or nerve to say no contest? I know without a doubt there will be some kicking-----------out of weak la habra, now yes they won a title and that’s cool, but you cant compare the two schools football programs. I ask why they have refused to play us almost every year. And that goes back more than 10 years? So you get the true idea or ask la habra to get some nerve. Lets put it on the line.
Wow...Josh too slow to run with SPHS, huh?
X Vega, Josh may not be fast enough for SP, but recruiters from Hawaii, Fresno State and New Mexico State think he can run with them. So, who's opinion matters?
Check out his web-site....
http://www.athletesquest.com/josh/
It's people like x-vega that give the St. Paul folks a bad name. Low class. Enough said.
I know Montebello will turn around because Coach G brought us a CIF title after two decades of waiting. Coach G made me highschool years well worth the hard work. Good luck Montebello from a Swordsmen.
Sounds like a football camp to me... instead of spring football.
to X Vega:
Get some idea!! La Habra will kick the _____ out of you!!
No Contest!
You have some nerve and no idea.
Why should anyone care about coach he ruin my prep days.
Hes too slow to run against the Swordsmen. Josh Q. is ok for that level, but give everyone a break. The name superman is over the top. Hey la serna who gonna run the ball for the lancers? I think your school should schedule us or maybe they think they cant compete. I can understand because la habra feels the same way. Not to many area schools want to schedule us. Pioneer was not afraid and fought the real beast’!!
I do hope coach G can turn it around because what happen at St Paul should not be repeated. We all should hope for good things at MHS. I am sure he learned a big lesson. Things at SP are coming along slowly but surely. We are gonna be tough this year.
Regarding area football players to watch in the fall:
There is only ONE: Josh Quezada, La Habra High.
I think they call him "Superman". What a 'beast'!!
I kind of agree that we have seen enough blogging about Coach Gonzalez but on the other hand I drove by last week for the night practice and couldn't beleive what I saw. I live around the corner from MHS and haven't seen that many kids on the field in years. I truly wouldn't beleive it if I didn't see it for myself. I'm glad to see all the kids coming out and trying to represent their school.
Good luck Coach Gonzalez. Having so many kids out for a team sport is to be commended. Have a productive summer and a successful season.
"Yo, Give it a rest already:" Montebello is one of the schools we cover. The Oilers have a new coach and there is interest in how the program is progressing. He actually called me just to talk, but the post wasn't about Pete Gonzalez, it was about the Oilers. It would seem you might be a bit overly-sensitive where he is concerned.
Damn Roger! You continue to bring up Pete Gonzalez on these blogs. Don't get me wrong, I like Pete and he did well as a coach, but you need to get off his "sack". His name began to dwindle away from these blogs but you have referenced back to him in your "cheap shot" blog and now two more after that. It's obvious it is only a couple of people who choose to be negative towards him but it was dying down. You definately need to seek psychiatric help to control your infatuation with Pete. Just curious.....are you married? Just teasing you but man, Roger, "tone it down"! (am I the only one who is noticing this?)