HS FOOTBALL: Banged-up players carry on

As high school football teams try to qualify for a section title game by winning a semifinal this Friday, depth is a key issue as injuries continue to build. Nine Valley-area teams are still alive, and just about all of them have starters who are either out because of an injury, or in most cases, hurting but refusing to quit on their teammates and the prospect of winning a championship.

Or, as Westlake coach Jim Benkert put it: "If you've got a linebacker at this stage who isn't at least a little banged up, then he probably isn't worth much."

Tal Dardashti, a linebacker for Chaminade, separated his shoulder in the season opener, but he has not missed a game.

"He's the toughest kid around," Chaminade coach Ed Croson said. "He's dislocated it five or six times, and by now it's at a point where his shoulder just comes out sometimes."

Chaminade is expecting a physical game at Arroyo Grande, where temperatures have been dipping into the upper 30s this week.

Arroyo Grande eliminated Chaminade on the same field in the same round a year ago, and most of the Central Coast program's key players from last year's team have returned including star linebacker Seth Jacobs, who has 14 major offers including UCLA, Oregon, Cal and Washington.

"Arroyo Grande's only loss this season was an opening loss to a still-undefeated team. They have talent, and they're legit," Croson said. "The reason you don't hear much about them is because they're such a long way away with their own newspapers, and they don't stray too far from home. I would say we're the underdog."

Arroyo Grande is seeded No. 2, and Chaminade is No. 3. Top-seeded defending champion Serra was eliminated in the first round.

"I think we're going to have to play our best game to win," Croson said.