FOOTBALL: Finchamp the perfect leader

By Scott Galetti, Staff Writer

During homecoming night, the field at Rio Hondo Prep had logos of Batman and Superman.
These drawings were intended as a prop for the halftime festivities, but they could've been there as a tribute to Kares running back Trevor Finchamp.
A humble and selfless athlete, Finchamp has been the team's superhero all season long.
Finchamp runs the football with full force and isn't afraid to take a hit.
As a defensive back, he covers opponents' receivers and can apply a hard hit, and he also kicks extra points and field goals.
About the only thing Finchamp doesn't do on a regular basis is play quarterback and drive the team bus.
"He's been doing everything for us, plus he's just a team player," Rio Hondo Prep coach Ken Drain said. "He doesn't care who gets the credit or glory, he just does his thing and helps everybody else do their thing, so it's great."
Added Finchamp: "It's not really for me on trying to accomplish something, it's really just for my teammates. I have a passion for football for everyone else to see what it can do for us as a group."
Finchamp has been the workhorse all season long as the Kares overcame an 0-4 start to finish 5-4 and win the Prep League championship.
The senior leads the Kares in just about every offensive category. He has rushed for 830 yards with nine touchdowns, caught nine passes for 58 yards, and is tops on the team in scoring with 96 points (including 21 extra points and seven field goals).
Defensively, his contributions are equally as impressive - Finchamp is No. 3 on the team with 27 tackles, and has deflected six passes and recovered one fumble.
You'll never see Finchamp running around on the field bringing attention to himself after a big play, though. In fact, he'd be equally as happy if a teammate got all of the yardage instead of himself.
"His willingness to sacrifice himself for the betterment of the team and those around him," Drain said when asked to describe Finchamp's greatest attribute. "He's a vocal leader and leads by example."
When it comes to kicking, Finchamp has become a natural. This season he is 7-of-8 on field goals with a long of 48 yards.
Drain has no doubt that Finchamp has what it takes to make it as a kicker at the next level, at perhaps a small university.
"He has the work ethic to get out and prove himself so I think that's what it takes," Drain said. "He has a good leg, but the work ethic is the thing that I think you need at the next level and I think he has that so if he wanted to do that, he could do it."
A first-team Prep League selection a year ago, Finchamp began playing football in the Kare Youth League when he was in sixth grade. He actually turned down the opportunity to play prior to that time in order to play AYSO soccer.
"I used to be really into soccer since first grade and was never majorly interested in football," Finchamp said. "Then in sixth grade I decided to play football with the guys and immediately enjoyed it."
As a sophomore, Finchamp experienced his greatest moment in his high school career when the Kares won the Division XIII championship.
"There's been so many memories through the years, but it's tough to compete with a CIF championship," Finchamp said. "It was nothing I'd felt before and, as a sophomore, I was almost fairly naive about it."
"To end up winning it was just awesome for me and to see how much it meant to the seniors just showed me how big of a deal it really was."
That season, Finchamp showed glimpses of how big of a deal he'd be to the team, as he led the Kares in scoring with 99 points and tied for the team lead in sacks with CIF Player of the Year and teammate Curt Coulter with eight.
Still, Drain had no idea what kind of player Finchamp was going to become.
"I knew he was a steady player and was a guy we could count on not to drop the ball and go where he was supposed to, so we knew, in that way, that he was going to be a good player, but not necessarily what he got to now," Drain said.