Ayala Tournament
Saturday, July 16
Pool play: 8:30 a.m.
Red pool: Ayala, Douglas, Glendale, Highland, San Juan Hills, Santa Margarita
Black pool: Bonita, Don Lugo, Jurupa Valley, Orange, Santa Ana Valley, Tustin
White pool: Crescenta Valley, Diamond Ranch, Eisenhower, Garfield, Paloma Valley, Santa Fe
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Cesar Carrillo, last year’s starting QB at Diamond Ranch, hasn’t been with the team the entire summer and is expected to concentrate on baseball, which is what he’s doing right now.
That’s forced D-Ranch coach Roddy Layton to turn to 6-foot-3 senior Isiah Locke, who may have won the job anyway. Locke led the Panthers to the consolation championship of the L.A. Valley Tournament this past weekend.
Layton says that Carrillo is welcome to rejoin the team at any point, but there will be a competition heading into the fall if that happens.
Follow me on Twitter @ChemicalAT
Follow me on Twitter @ChemicalAT
June 24-25: Bonita Air Assault (Charter Oak WINS)
June 24: Hall of Fame All-Star Game at West Covina HS (East WINS)
June 25: West Covina Linemen Competition (Villa Park WINS)
July 9: SGV Shootout (@Arroyo) Passing Tournament (Diamond Bar WINS)
July 9: Tournament of Champions @Santa Fe and Linemen Tournament (Pass: Narbonne (WINS), Line: Chino Hills (WINS))
July 15-16: Claremont Passing Tournament
July 16: Ayala Passing Tournament
July 16: Los Osos Linemen compeition
July 16: Arroyo Linemen Competition (Azusa, Covina, Gladstone, West Covina (3 teams), Villa Park, Los Altos (2 teams), Monrovia, Baldwin Park, La Salle, Temple City … I probably missed a few.
July 23: Ayala Linemen competition
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Chino Hills won the Santa Fe Tournament of Champions linemen competition on Saturday. The Huskies also won the competition last year.
Aram’s take: I spoke to Huskies coach Derek Bub two weeks ago and he said this year’s line is the best in school history. And that’s where you have to be worried if you’re Charter Oak and South Hills. All the skill in the world ain’t gonna matter if you’re being pushed around. Chino Hills has four of five starters returning on its O-line. The Huskies also have QB Andrew Chavez back. I hear their skill guys are above average, but not like last year. Couple CO’s outstanding skill guys with Chino Hills’ dominant line and you can see the Sierra League has something for everyone.
PHOTOS from Santa Fe Tournament
UPDATE: Sorry about that, D-Ranch did not win the L.A.Valley Tournament. It won the L.A. Valley Tournament CONSOLATION BRACKET. There was some confusion because the Panthers got t-shirts that say champions. Still a nice day.
Diamond Bar beat Azusa in a thrilling championship game to win the SGV Shootout at Arroyo High School.
The Brahmas beat Monrovia in the semifinals while Azusa beat Buena Park. The Aztecs won last year’s SGV Shootout.
Elsewhere, St. Francis lost in the semis of the L.A. Valley Tournament and Arcadia lost in the semis of the Santa Fe Tournament to Narbonne, which went on to win the tournament.
And now … for what you’ve all been waiting for … Aram’s takes …
SGV Shootout: Arroyo coach Jim Singiser puts on one helluva event. It isn’t easy. He has to still coach his team, too. But getting to see all these Valley teams in one spot, man, it’s just a media member’s dream. It’s an enjoyable, well-run day. And kudos to the guys Singiser has refereeing the game or Coach Rios and his crew running the snack bar, they take a lot of crap, but do a GREAT JOB!
Diamond Bar: What can you say? The Brahmas played with some serious edge. And that edge combined with the skill talent they have means big things. Coach Ryan Maine continues to impress. The guy is pouring his heart into that program and his passion is rubbing off on the kids. Yes, it’s only passing league, but this is a program that badly needed a notch in its belt.
Azusa: So much for me hearing from SEVERAL PEOPLE that Azusa didn’t look. Thanks for that. I stand by my opinion of a few weeks when I saw the Aztecs throw on a Tuesday at Arroyo; they’re reloaded and good.
Monrovia: Passing game is coming along nicely. G5 didn’t look as much like an LB playing QB today. He looked like a QB. I spoke to an M-Town coach who said that the passing game improves every day. Talent-wise, Monrovia is impressive as hell. Also, I got word on Saturday that De’Shawn Ramirez has been cleared by CIF and will be with the team starting Monday.
West Covina: I think the Valley is smart enough by now to not put any stock in WestCo’s passing tournament shortcomings. Happens every summer and every fall the Bulldogs are one of the best teams around. Am I concerned about the QB situation? Hell yes. The passing game needs A LOT OF WORK. Also, Trib Player of the Year Chris Solomon wasn’t out there. Nor was cornerback Lonzell Barnett, who has been injured for most of summer.
Coach K and Rosemead: I’m not listening to anyone tell me anymore that Rosemead is no bueno. Like West Covina or Covina, Coach Koffler has won enough to look so-so in passing games and not have everybody call for his program’s demise. Yes, they looked shaky on offense at times today, but this is a running team. And guess what, their players looked like typical Rosemead kids and that means good defense and run game WHEN THE PADS COME ON. And another season of challenging Arroyo for the MVL and making the playoffs. … Biggest thing that concerned me about Rosemead was that Coach K was wearing a SWEATSHIRT on Saturday.
San Dimas: The Saints ran a running play in their game vs. Diamond Bar. They were down 36-12 and CALLED A DIVE! Absolutely baffling. They ran A RUNNING PLAY! I talked to several people who said they had never seen that before in a passing tournament.
Maranatha: Andrew Elffers. Wow. Three-step drop and it’s out … and it’s humming … and it’s on target. This guy is excellent. I also liked what I saw from the skill guys. Solid team.
Arroyo’s Steven Rivera: This guy is just unreal. Enough can’t be said about him. He threads it as well as anybody and he truly is one of the best safeties around. I just wish he’d stop hitting people. It was funny, against West Covina, Rivera hit Bulldogs RB Aaron Salgado very hard to break up a pass. Salgado is a mini-tank and not somebody you want to hit with or without pads. Anyway, Rivera came up wincing afterward and I looked over at the El Monte coaching staff who was watching the game and they were just shaking their heads. He’s got to stop doing that. Not worth it to get hurt in July, especially when it could be a shoulder. I know the kid is a player and can’t turn it off and on, but man.
That’s Mister Singiser to all of you.
Mister Singiser: Arroyo coach Jim Singiser’s dad, who will be referred to here as Mister Singiser, has always been one of my favorite people to watch at games. He was out there on Saturday and not holding back. He was all over the officials for letting Arroyo’s opponents have too much time to throw. It’s just classic. There’s not a more intense fan in the area. The guy’s a true football man and it’s classic to hear Knights coach Jim Singiser just shake his head sometimes and say “I can’t control him.”
Rough play: It’s funny. You hear coaches complain about it when it happens to them, but you also hear them like to see it out of their teams (sometimes) because it shows they’re not soft. Personally, I like it. These guys are football players. There needs to be some badasses on each team or that team probably isn’t going to be very good. I remember Coach DT of Covina telling me once that “If you have a team of mostly 4.0 students, you’re probably not going to make the playoffs.” IT’S FOOTBALL, you need some tough guys. Now cheap-shot artists, that’s another story.