Early Tribune Top 10 (UPDATED) ...

The 1995 Covina Colt CIF champion team that went undefeated would have beat any team that year. I remember how amat was so upset that they were not ranked NO 1 that year in sgv poll that they tried to organize charity game to settle the score. They are lucky that game never happened. The colts led by QB Michael Ulrich shawn malcolm,freddy knight,Barnett,nick covarubius,etc.etc. were skilled at all positions,fast, well coached by future coach DT as the d coordinator,a ferocious defense,stingy and mean and one of the finest head coaches the valley has ever seen,Northview principal Dick Sheehan. I agree however that a team like this is very rare that could hang or beat amat. The talent level is very different at d1 however covina that year had all the horses at all the positions.

Are you sure about the Damian victory over Amat Aram? I thought it was 14-9 with Amat winning.
If it was Damian winning then props to them, as it seems that no one else in the valley has done it lately.

I can't blame the Damien fans for not bringing it up. To mention a win from three or four years ago only re-enforces who the top tog in the SGV is. Also, the Amat teams during the past several years are nowhere close to where they were 10 years ago. I know I keep mentioning that, but they used to be a premier program that was always ranked in the state's top 10 and regularly received national attention. Amat owned Loyola back then. I remember the epic battle against the mighty Mater Dei team in 1994. MD won, but both teams looked awesome. I don't think either of those two programs have the depth of talent they used to.

I suppose the power bases change. Fontana and Eisenhower used to be dominant D-I programs as well. Now it is all about LB Poly, Loyola, Mater Dei, soon to be Mission Viejo, Los Alamitos, Edison, etc. Heck, the traditional San Bernardino powers don't even go that deep in the playoffs anymore. Hopefully we will see Amat back at the top. It's always nice to have the SGV represented well at all levels.

Whatever happened to Coach Salter from Amat? He had a heck of run there, didn't he? I know he coaches at Culver City now.

Damien fans should be ashamed. I waited long enough to post this. Damien beat Amat, 14-9, in 2002.

I don't think anyone in the SGV has beaten Amat
in this decade [if by decade you mean since the year 2000]. Damien & Glendora came close at least one time each though. If by decade you mean in the last 10 years then I'm not sure if it happened.
I'm with you about the 2003 Los Altos team, they would have beat Amat.

In the early and mid-1990's, Amat was right next to Mt. Sac as the best JC in the SGV. However, I think even Citrus can beat them now.

Thanks Aram for telling the TRUTH!

Truth,

I try to explain that point so many times per year and not many people understand. Amat and D-1 teams/programs are on a different level. It's not good or bad, it just is. Amat has players at all positions. They have size and speed where they need it. And in D-1, you just hope your size and speed kids are bigger and faster than Mater Dei's or LB Poly's or Loyola's. It's not like that for other SGV teams. They only have a few size and speed kids where they need them and they build around them.
I am not so sure any Amat fans should be grandstanding about being the best team in the SGV. That's not where success at Amat is judged. It's judged in league and the playoffs against comparable programs. And we all know there hasn't been anything to crow about recently.
Having said that, it's not completely insane to think other SGV teams, in certain years, would beat Amat. Los Altos in 2003 would have beaten that Amat team senseless. Damien, I believe, beat Amat once this decade. Perhaps it was even that 2003 season. It could happen.

The Truth hurts sometimes! Truth of the matter is that there is not a team in this valley that will ever be able to take on Bishop Amat! With all due respect, Glendora and Charter Oak, to name a few are witnesses to that. South Hills would not be any different. The Truth of the matter is Div 1 Football is on a whole different playing field then any school, league, or division in the SGV.You can put whatever team you would like as the #1 team in the valley, but when it comes down to who will beat who head up, Amat will continue to dominate all SGV Challengers.

Dan,

The QB Andrew Carreon was a soph and handled with kid gloves. Running back Johnnie Crespo was a transfer from Amat and got time as a sophomore behind Hunter, the senior RB. Crespo and Carreon are going to have very good careers. Johnson is an amazing receiver. The Thompson Twins are beasts on the line. AJ Pasalo and David Altimirano are two very good defenders and they're back. Altimirano being another one of those stud sophomores and Pasalo a junior.
Kanaan Snowden is yet another good soph, the brother of former St. Francis/CO DB Kymm Snowden, he's going to be an option at RB and probably a good DB. Ben Counce, another freak athlete playing WR/DB, is going to be a stud. This team is just totally loaded. When I saw CO play, they mixed a lot of guys in. This program is poised for a fantastic two year run.

I don't know about the rest of the season but when Charter Oak played West Covina this past season they were mostly playing seniors that game and the guy's that started played till the end because it was a tight game. I have a dvd of the game so I compared that with the program roster & on "D" they played 9 seniors most of the game & on "O" they played 7 senior most of the game, if that was their regular team them it
looks to be a rebuilding year for them. But it's
possible that through the rest of the year many of their underclassmen saw a lot of playing time.

This Top 10 is a guideline heaing into Spring practice. Things are definitely subject to change between May and August (when the Tribune football preview hits driveways).
I will do the Rowland and San Dimas schedules + analysis this week. Things have been busy and I do like to give them some research i.e. get info about the opponents, talk to the coaches and do some research on returners.
About CO. This team had I believe it was 16 sophs up on varsity last season. Not sure of the exact number, but it was something crazy like that. I will do a CO schedule + analysis in a couple of weeks. All I can tell you all is to watch out for wide receiver Michael Johnson.

AT

You have to put West Covina #1, Damien #2, COAK #3, then Chino hIlls at #4 then BAAmat at 5. West Covina is loaded. Damien is is way better then everyone thinks with Mendrun,Eschardies, Harper and Hile and a great sophomore class coming up. Charter Oak is very young and unexperienced. Chino Hills is a real darkhorse to win league their QB Roenicke comes back, 2 top RBS, 2nd WR Harkey. Their really good. BAAMAT only has their RB Gaisle other than than nothin! Damien will finish 1st or 2nd in sierra league. Just WAtch and Wait!!!

Aram if I'm not mistaken, Charter Oak seems to only return a couple of starters on defense and
about 4 on offense, I'm wondering why you have them as the Tribune's top team? Seems like Amat would be the top team by default until a local
team can beat them. That is if your ranking's are based on who would win in a head to head matchup.

The San Antonio has only been around since
2002, and for the first two years the Miramonte
was superior to the San Antonio [The years with Brigam Harwell], but the last two years I would say that the San Antonio has caught up to the Miramonte and the leagues are close in caliber.
In 2004 West Covina beat a talented Charter Oak team, and South Hills lost to Los Altos. This year South Hills easily beat Los Altos and Charter Oak came from behind with a minute & a half left on the clock, in a see-saw game vs West Covina. Didn't Rowland also beat Wilson this last season? These two leagues are both good and they belong in the same division together. Can you imagine if CIF combined the top three from each league together?

Hi Aram!

Can you do a prediction for the 2006 San Dmas Saints?

Week 0 Gladstone
Week 1 South El Monte
Week 2 Montclair
Week 3 Carter
week 4 Bye
Week 5 Bonita
Week 6 Baldwin Park
Week 7 Northview
Week 8 Ganesha
Week 9 Covina
Week 10 Pomona

Did you think they will be better than last year? Mybe in playoffs
Thanks for looking at this I really value your insight.

Thanks,
Clint

los altos ie another one of those recruiting schools like mant others.

i tell you why he did not get the rock a few more times against covina..it is because they were down by a score of 42-7 i believe..aram help me out on that...and as to the rowland people sounded off..let me let you in a bit of information..covina returns 8 of 11 starters on defense..a defense that gave up around 12 points a game...and on offense they return something like 7 of 11 starters..also i believe they were real young on both sides of the line last year...so that means they all return...it is good to haved cofidence in your school...but dont get ahead of yourself talking about the san antonio league as the valleys best...there is a league called the miramonte that has won every cif title in the last 9 years for the exception of two...last san antonio have fun playing with the likes of mayfair, bellflower, charter oak, los altos among others....no more south el montes(nothing against south el monte they had a monster year last seaon)

Gano isn't sweating James Davis leaving because LA got in a kid named Ira Thomas, who played at Chino Hills last season and Garey before that. He's supposedly good-sized and a solid runner. Also, I hear some receivers might (emphasis on might) be coming in. LA remains talented no matter what.

5 yds is a pretty good average, especially against those 2 teams. yeah he should of gotten the rock a few more times, but when teams are loaded up in the box, you have to try and throw something else at them. factor in a sophomore QB, who was learning on the job. look out for B.P. this coming year. it was a real young team last year at the skill positions. real good matchup in week 2 vs West Covina.

My coach is probably going to kill me for this but I had to speak up it is going to be my senior year. Rowland behind West Covina,Bishop Amat, Damien, and Covina? First off we beat West Covina. Yeah they didn't have Will Wallace but we didnt have Rene Small who I gaurantee you is going to be the best running back in the Valley this year. Just watch!!!Then Bishop Amat who was the most inconsistent team in the valley last year and has about 10 or 11 players that I've been playing with my whole life.And Damien, are you serious? Much respect to their tradition and history, but I'm a realist and they are going to be doing some major rebuilding this year. Plus they lost my boy Tyler Thompson who wolud've been their best player this year to Monrovia. And last but not least Covina, who lost their (other) best player in Art Combest and a host of recievers. No other league in the valley can really match their top three teams with the San Antonio League's top three teams with the exception of the Sierra League. We bring back everybody except the twins (Gorb & Reagan Seui) who are irreplaceable and Mark Burgos who is tearing it up in track right now. Basically all I'm saying is West Covina knows we have their number and South Hills knows we're coming.And I'm telling you the 2006 Rowland fottball team smells blood and is ready to make history next year.

why is gano not sweatin the transfer of james davis??

Still pretty solid games. 5 yards a carry against Rosemead and Covina. Weren't those teams supposed to have had pretty good defenses? He should have had more than 15 and 18 carries, respectively.

Since when is 125 yards a bad game?????
and covina and rosemead defenses were probably 2 of the better defenses in the valley last year.

This is kind of funny, it's not like they gave him the rock an obscene amount of times in his huge games. Check this out:

342 yards vs. Sierra Vista on 15 carries
255 yards vs. Pioneer on 15 carries
263 yards vs. Mountain View on 11 carries

93 yards vs. Rosemead on 18 carries
74 yards vs. Covina on 15 carries
136 yards vs. Northview on 25 carries

He averaged close to 11 yards per carry last season.
He averaged 190 yards per game.

By the way, BP o-lineman Anthony Palumbo was on our All-Area Team.

Aram,

How many carries did he have during the Rosemead and Covina games? What were his yards per carry?

yea aram i see the pattern two ,he kicks but when he plays easy teams and struggles with the tuff teams its pretty common for backs in sgv when they only play sgv.

Hello, i was just wondering when covina would be able to get there own preview for the upcoming season..there schedule looks like this

Glendora
Ontario Christian
Walnut
Montain View
Sonora
Pomona
Northview
B.P
San Dimas
Ganesha

thank you

Aaron Harris does deserve mention. Is this kid putting BP back on the map all by himself?
Here's why he didn't make Trib All-Area ... I have no clue what Valle Vista League coaches are thinking when they do their all-league stuff, so I won't even attempt to gauge that.

342 yards vs. Sierra Vista
255 yards vs. Pioneer
263 yards vs. Mountain View

93 yards vs. Rosemead
74 yards vs. Covina
136 yards vs. Northview

See a pattern? Please don't get me wrong, I really like this kid. I really respect what he's done as the program claws its way back up the ladder. There has to be pressure on him knowing that the team goes as far as he'll take them.
By the way, Heggins is doing a great job over there. He might be the guy to bring BP all the way back. I know they kind of backdoored their way into the playoffs last season, but their record was technically 7-3 and that's pretty darn good for a program that was struggling.

all this talk about who's the mvp of leagues and the valley! 1 huge person is missing. what about Baldwin Parks Aaron Harris.This kid rushed for nearly 2,000 yards and thats not good enough to make the 1st team all valley. thats ridiculous. i dont care what league or school your from, if you put up 2,000 yds you are pretty darn good. what about some love for Aaron and B.P.

Rowland Raiders Football Schedule 2006

California
Sonora
Montebello
Don Lugo
Glendora
Nogales
South Hills
Walnut
Wilson
West Covina

Joe,

I need somebody to send me Rowland's schedule and then I'll see what I come up with.

good choices but move rowland upto #2