PRESEASON: Top 10 running backs in the SGV ...

Ira Thomas Is going 2 be 1 of the best running backs in the SGV. He has been through so much in his life and been done dirty once already by Terry Roach from Chino Hills High School. So look out for this explosive big back...............

where are the top outside linebackers at in the valley

What the deal with Will Davis at Northview? I saw him play last year and it looks like he could be one of the best in the area. I've seen Northview a few times this summer at South Hills but he has been missing. Does he really think he has a career in beseball?

Keep the name Kendall Boggs in the back of your mind, a Monrovia High School Standout and just a sophmore.

Hey when are you going to do a top 10 linemen in the sgv????

Who is Monrovia's new D-Coordinator? What's his background?

It appears that Calpreps is defining the new Central Division as Divison-5. Throwing the Pacific League in there seems very random, b/c the entire division seems to be very deep San Bernardino/Riverside based, except the Pacific League. It also seems random that Colton is now in that division, having been removed from the Citrus Belt League. Kaiser is in the Sunkist League which is in the Eastern/D-8, but it appears to be much tougher than D-8.

The reason why the Burbank schools are in the Pacific are because they were consistently hammered by the rest of the Foothill league. Adding them doesn't make the league any stronger.

The notion of strength by league affiliation is a joke, hsfbfan - or do you think that Hoover, Glendale and Blair are legit?

hsfbfan

The Central division is the new D-5. Arcadia and the Pacific league no longer have to contend with Notre Dame SO, the Bay league, or Dominguez in the playoffs.

Colton and the rest of the San Andreas league are in the Central division, along with the weak Mt. Baldy, the pathetic Sunbelt, and the infant Inland Valley league. If the a Pacific entry doesn't win this division, they should be ashamed!

BTW - Kaiser is in the Sunkist league, in the Eastern (VIII) division.

For those of you that did not know, the pacific league added two teams (8 team league). Burbank & Burbank Burr. They played in the same league with Hart, Valencia, and Div. II champs Canyon Country.

Yeah New York, arcadia & TC use to have the big farm boys but most of the arcadia & TC families moved to the IE area & OC because of the boom of the asian popluation. That so called Div III "central" has some good teams. Correct me if I am wrong, isn't Kaiser & Colton in central div. III? Another reason why the arc & mon game will tremendous, Monrovia's new D-coordinator is an arcadia football alumni.

One thing to keep in mind about Crespi (the team who recently won back-to-back D-10 titles) is that they were part of the old Del Rey League with Amat, Loyola, etc. back in the mid and late 1990's. I have no idea how a team can bounce between D-1 and D-10, but we could sit here and question the CIF all night. Another laugh is Hart and the rest of the Foothill league going down to D-4. Covina and the rest of the Valle Vista league get to play against a now diluted Los Padres League: no Lompoc, no Paso Robles. Those teams are part of the newly modified Pac-7 conference in the old D-4 as well.

AT, you're the man for reaching out to the West and composing an M-Town analysis. I look forward to reading it.

Monrovia schedule + analysis coming soon ...

The first I heard of the Cpt transfers was by Mr Football on this blog. The only two transfers I know of are Davis from Los Altos and Tyler Thompson from Damien.

Crespi is now in the Serra league with Amat, Loyola, and Notre Dame SO in the new Pac-5 division - the new D1.

Monrovia has had a problem with "off" weeks (where the boys tend to take the week off) and that has hurt them against La Canada and So. Pasadena especially. The boys get up for TC, but the play calling in the past has relied to heavily on potential quick strike scores.

A new OC and the addition of Davis should promote a more consistent, relentless attack. If not, the Cats may continue their underachieving ways.

BigMLover
Do you or Aram know where that "2 transfers from Compton" rumor started? Maybe there are two transfers from somewhere else?

Has anyone heard about Crespi leaving Division X?

Coach Garrison will get it done this season. He is the man.

I too Love MoHi.

Go Wildcats

I think the Smokin comment should have been directed toward hsfbfan thinking that Arcadia is stepping down in class to play Monrovia. Although, I think hsbfan is onto something when he/she suggested that Monrovia finds ways to beat themselves. That certainly seems to be the case recently. I hope that trend is broken soon. Well over 90% of their losses over the years have not been due to a lack of natural talent vs. their opponents, especially in league play.

New York mentioned the schedule for the Cats in an earlier post. The addition of Arcadia and La Salle may not be a competitve upgrade from Rosemead and Charter Oak, but if the Cats can beat them it will help keep the homegrown talent from walking away.

Hey Reg, I didn't realize that credit for the post was below the line instead of above the text. Again, I apologize for the misdirected zing.

What you read as defensiveness and stupidity would be better defined as correction and truthfulness.

And, yes, there are NO transfers from Compton.

Yeah BigMLover can you communicate in educated dialect? First off . . . . .

1. Are you saying that there are no transfers from Compton?

2. If you were smarter, you'd be able to figure out that Aram nor I ever said that Monrovia "needed" transfers to be good. They ARE loaded with athletes that can produce Coach Garrison a great season.

I now know that defensiveness is a trait often associated with stupidity......

GO WILDCATS

Apologies to Aram and Reg. My smokin' line should have been directed at Mr Football.

Truth be told, TC has deserved their recent success. Monrovia has done a poor job finishing the past few seasons. With the Rio Hondo in a new division, the Cats should be in the hunt come Nov/Dec. And with a new offense, new defense, and new coordinators, the Cats should put an end to the Rams reign atop the league.

Monrovia's two transfers from Compton are phantoms, aparitions, ghosts... they don't exist! I'm not sure what Aram and Just Reg are smokin', but truth be told, Monrovia doesn't need more than the awesome homegrown talent coming out of their middle schools.

The Cats will be fine if they can stay healthy and get their athletes in positions to make plays.

I think if Joe Morales wasnt to move to St. Paul he would surely be on of the best Running Backs in the Valley

Monrovia used to be in the Pacific League and should be again. Yes, the Rio Hondo League is weak. No, Arcadia is not a good D-3 program. They are a D-3 program but certainly not one that ever makes noise in the playoffs. No team in the Pacific League has made much noise in the D-2 or D-3 playoffs since the early 90's, except Sultan's senior year. That's why the entire pacific league got dropped down to the newly formed Central Division to play against the lesser teams of San Bernardino.

Anyway, Coach Garrison has been trying to get Arcadia on the schedule for years. Arcadia does not want M-Town because they do not want to lose to a lower division school. Also, they try to say that the Monrovia fans are too rowdy. I think that says something right there. However, the Arcadia-Monrovia used to be a great rivalry and I hope it develops into one once again.

If Monrovia played in a tougher league then they would become a better team. That's just what happens. Teams as well as individuals typically play up or down to their level competition.

Pasadena has a lot of great athletes, but what does that have to do with Arcadia? Bedell was and is a beast. As an offensive lineman and Mt. Sac he was conference MVP. However, the days of guys like Brad walking around Arcadia's campus are no more. Brad's senior year Arcadia had a line that averaged about 6'4 and 265 pounds: Brad Bedell, Jeff Kuhlberg, Ryan Mitulski, Bryan Hubenger etc. However, they still got bounced by Muir and PHS.

What do you think of the Rams this year? That one kid - Braodnax- looks pretty good and it looks like they have another running back also that could make some noise. They have a new QB but I didn't think much of the one they had last year.

TC lost to Inglewood in the second round of the playoffs. The Rams led by a little at half, but self-destructed early in the third. Reed played probably the most ballsy game I've ever seen a high school player play. He flew in and made tackle after tackle as Inglewood ran its wing. It was unreal how he sacrificed his body. Remeber, he's not the biggest guy in the world, but Reed is the kind of player who sees no reason to make a tackle without laying a hit. So, he would fly in and completely sell out while making stops. Awesome! The only thing close I've seen is Mike McDonough in last year's loss to Tesoro.
Reed and McDonough are two players who were/are known for their offense, but both of them were/are capable of doing damage on defense.
Anyway, TC had no business playing Inglewood, which was way too good to be in the wasteland known as the former Division X. That Inglewood team had Keith Jackson (went to Arizona), his little brother Lawrence Jackson (starting DE at USC) and some other dude who went to Oregon State.

Aram, you are RIGHT, sorry TC fans. That TC Ram team that had Wagner & Reed was great. They were legit. Correct me if I am wrong, but did they lose to Inglewood in the CIF div. X semi-finals?

No dice! My Rams beat Arcadia in 2001, 24-14. I was there ... Desmond Reed did some damage. That was the TC team that went 10-0. It was the best team of the Reed era.
I haven't heard why TC-Arcadia don't play anymore. Used to be a cool rivalry.
Every win TC ever got over Arcadia, I always felt like we had no business beating them given the differences in schools. Maybe that's why Arcadia girls have always had a thing for TC boys. Beat them in football, take their women.
Did you know that every August I sit in my car and watch TC practice? Yep, sometimes I get out and talk to Coach Mooney, sometimes I don't. They're not one of the teams I cover, but I could watch the Rams practice all day, they make me so proud.

Mr. Football keep it real. The rio hondo league is awful. Do you remember La Canada beating Monrovia 55 to 0 in '04 ???? Then, LA Salle beat La Canada the next week. Mr. Football, did you know that Coach Mooney from Temple City called off the Arcadia Vs. TC game because TC had not beaten Arc since 1998? Even the 2002 team with Desmond Reed did not beat Arc. Arcadia won 42 to 17 in '02. You have to understand talented players give you the edge, but it comes down to coaching. LA Salle could have won the Rio Hondo league the past two year.

Pacific League produced many great NFL players in the last 10 years. For example:

Brad Bedell, Arcadia, Colorado, Houston Texas
Chris McAlister, Pasadena, Arizona, Ravens
Lester Towns, Pasadena, Washington, Panthers
Chidi Iwono, Pasadena, Cal, Steelers (superbowl)
Lashaun Ward, Muir, Cal, Chiefs
Sultan McCullough, Muir, USC, Redskins

Just to name a few... I can name more.
Mr. Football, when it comes to SGV prep sports, please do your research.

Lets face it, Arcadia doesn't even factor into this conversation. I think that Monrovia Would have won the Pacific Leage 8 of the last 10 years. Not taking anything away from any of the other teams, but talent for talent, I would give the nod to Monrovia. Maybe even TC would have won a couple of those league championships. But Arcadia stepping down in Class....Maybe if they keep Ardurius Bailey for a couple more years. Keep it real SGV critics.

aram,now its time to talk about the top 10 linebackers that are going to stop these big stud rb i know one forsure lol.

Last year as a sophomore Willie Youngblood of Muir averaged approximately 11 yards a carry, finishing the season with around 780 yards. Through the first 4-5 games of the year he carried the rock 1-3 times a game and the last half of the season he averaged about 8-10 carries a game, due to the spread offense that Muir ran. Trust me this dude is a beast, just ask Hockenhull himself (by the way T-Hock is an excellent player). Look for Muir to make some major noise this year, especially after moving to a weaker playoff division. Feel free to throw in all of your "lack of discipline" comments that always accompany discussions about Muir. Oh, and by the way Monrovia will actually be a pretty good team this year with a shot to finally make noise in the playoffs.

Aram, you must have saw Wallace play when he was a sophmore, I to was bummed about his injury last season, like you said I hope he has a monster season too.
D7fan that was Tyler Hockenhull that you saw on that play in the Arroyo tournament, he is also a key to West Covina's season.

coach p, are yu kidding me the only thing your right about is rene small, little ernest is good but i just dont think so. good luck little man.

James Davis transferred from Los Altos to M-town. Arcadia did not step up to monrovia, they are actually stepping down. Arcadia is a good Div III program that will handle M Town like the Div X team they are. Monrovia will find a way to mess things up. Every year on paper they are very impressive, but they always lack stability.

AT. While we're on the subject, how about an M-Town 2006 schedule analysis. And try to keep your East SGV bias out of it with regard to the WestCo. game. I'm glad Arcadia finally stepped up. Now Monrovia will finally play both of its neighbors.

Montclair
Duarte
Arcadia
West Covina
La Salle
La Canada
Blair
San Marino
Temple City
South Pasadena

r u kidding me? how can u have a top 10 without ernest quicho? the only guy on that list that will do anything this year is rene smalls, hes ligit, quicho is by far the best runnin back in the valley this year, hes the diamond in the dirt over at walnut high school. will davis and all of west covinas back field is over rated, quicho runs 4 at 1500 this year, n the SGV tribune will jump the band wagon, n have him on the all-area team.

Coach Steve Garrison is an excellent motivator who shoots it to you straight. I hope he molds this season's wildcats into a CIF Championship team. Go Wildcats, Go Coach G.

Coach G. deserves the illusive CIF title, and I think he will finally get it this year, especially since M-Town got dropped into a diluted division. Furthermore, he is now in competition with his long-time friend, Coach Moore (baseball coach) who finally picked up his first CIF title this spring.

Bottom Line: If Monrovia could teach their defensive tackles to play low with good technique they would have a lot more wins. Lifting weights year-round would also help.

Last time Monrovia played tough defense was probably during the 1998 season, when they handed Diamond Bar its only loss in two years. During the mid 1990's Coach Rycroft had the Cats playing some mean D. The tradition carried over when coach Brown took from over 1996 - 1998 as D-Coordinator when Rycroft left. However, ever since the coaching staff turned over (except Coach G.) after the 1998 season, Monrovia has not played as hard nosed as they used to.

Monrovia was embarrassingly bad for six years prior to Garrison taking over in 1993. He definitely deserves a lot of credit for awakening that sleeping giant. Now he needs to get them over the top and win it all, especially since they have been slumbering again since the 2002 season.

When was the last time Monrovia played any defense? That's the one thing that's stuck out to me recently is that the Cats have had big trouble stopping people.
About the coaching ... think about where Monrovia was before Garrison took over? When I was in high school, the Cats were the worst team around. They had some talent and couldn't do a thing. But I have to hand it to Garrison, he turned things around. They had some awesome teams and talent in the 90s. Even what they've done in recent seasons is still way better than they were during the early 90s and 80s.
Garrison is also a blast for the media to work with. He gives the best quotes and is always available. I hope they have a monster year for Coach G!

The Two Big guys are going to be added to the defense, along with Brooks who also stands 6'5. And despite the losses in the last two years to some of the SGV teams, I still think that the Cats showed more Potential to Win the Harder Games in the last 15 years than any team around. I think they will get that same spirit back. Now coaching, that's the more realistic question....Hmmmmm.

Monrovia is going to be one of the best teams in the Valley this season. I still don't think they're going to beat West Covina, but we shall see. That's going to be a game and a half.

M-Town never lacks athletes, especially in the skill positions.

MR. Football they also got 2 RBS in James Davis of Los altos who has collge offers and my boy Tyler Thompson a rb from Damien who runs a 4.4 and is built like a truck

How about Dominique Gaisie from Bishop Amat? If any of you guys got to see him play last year, wow, the guy can sneak his way into the secondary and juke you out of your shoes.But I must say, he is a little undersized and lacks the power and the break away speed of other backs. We will have to see what kind of improvement he has made from last season. If he has worked hard enough to develop the break away speed during the off season, watch out!

So are the two 6'5 transfers from Compton to MoHi recievers, lineman or what Mr. Football? Share any further information on 'em please.

If Monrovia High school could ever just keep runningbacks it would be the USC of the SGV. I think the Sophmore thats coming back is definately worth his weight in Gold. Plus the Two 6'5 transfers from Compton should bring the soul back to Monrovia High school.......which has kind of been lacking for the past couple of years.

start a thread on the top recievers AT.

NO ONE CAN TOUCH Charter Oak Chargers weapon Michael "Little Whisper" Johnson should the COHS coaching staff choose to utilize him.
other players to consider....

Cole Sanders - Bonita Bearcats
Travis Eschardies - Damien Spartans

Did anyone go to the tournament at Arroyo last Saturday? WC played Arroyo in the finals. It was a very good game with Arroyo pulling out a tough 20-14 win. Anyone that knows WC football... who was the kid towards the end of the game that nearly got knocked out by an Arroyo LB trying to run a crossing route into the endzone? It wasn't a cheapshot, or anything, just 2 kids ging for the ball in the same space & at the same time. He was one of their better players, I was just wondering if anyone knew who he was?

Dan,

As I recall, William Wallace's problem wasn't speed, it was that he couldn't cut back with the bad knee. This all started late in his sophomore year as a supposed ankle injury and it lingered into and ruined his junior season (and probably the team's too). It was discovered to be a knee injury, from what I understand, and he's had it taken care of. If Wallace can cut with no problems, then he's going to do damage. I am already ticked off that his career has been limited thus far. I hope he has a monster senior season. This kid can really play.

aram,i like your choices finally i agree with yu lol, but i have to say i agree with pc to,if and i mean a big if rene small stays healthy look out he well be something to watch.I had the chance to make him a highlight tape from last yr and all i can say is OMG.BUT i say goodluck to all rb this yr.

A healthy Wallace will be big for West Co. Aram, I heard that he is healthy at this time & looks fast so we'll keep our fingers crossed. With him and Hockenhull in the backfield it will
be one of the better backfields in the SGV if not the best especially when you add in Wallace's
younger brother who is about the same size as William and I heard has similar talents.

I also keep hearing great things about Marcus Williams. I have no doubt that Damien will always have somebody good carrying the ball. I am excited to see him play.

Watch out for 2 guys who arent on this list but will be at the end of the season their names are Marcus Williams a 200 rb who can block and a speedster Ryan Mcmahon a 180 pund rb who runs a 4.4 and he will proabbly start at SS. Watch out!!!

Can you do a schedule and analysis on Northview for the upcoming season?

Thanks for pumping up your boy, PC. You could be right. I've heard nothing but great things about Rene ... I hope he has a monster season.

sorry AT u got this 1 wrong. all the running backs on the list are good but rene is the best trust me just ask the Santa Fe coach cuz that was the only game he was healthy in the whole year and you know what he did. the guy is just a beast no one on the list even comes close to running as hard as him.just ask any linebacker or db in the valley who they'd rather tackle. I BET U my life he'll be the last one they say.