No. 1 in the SGV Tribune ... unranked in the Inland Division ....

Looks like Damien could be the dark horse. They went to CIF as a wild card last year and want to go as #1 representing the Sierra league. A win over Chio and Chino Hills will do just that. They had two tuff losses over St. John Bosco and Los Altos which should have never been, but that's the way the ref called it and you can win or lose to a team but you can't beat the refs. All schools have had some pretty bad ref calls this season and am wondering if they're getting too old to be wearing the stripes. Anyone know a good optician?

Yes, maybe this is the year of the Spartan. It would be nice to get to the Championship game. This has be a long time coming, the fall of 1985 being the last appearance. If this team has the heart that that one did, they'll be there.

SGV football and Damien Fans...

Nick Davila is a backup QB at the University of Cincinnati. Looks like he went to Chaffey College and then transferred...For more info on this former Damien standout go to...

http://gobearcats.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/davila_nick00.html

As far as Damien winning a CIF Division...Damien has 2 CIF championship trophies in football. The first one was in 1977 and the last one was 1982. So, its been 24 years since Damien has worn a football crown....

24 YEARS!!! ARE YA HUNGRY FOR A TITLE SPARTAN FANS?!?!?!?

I haven't followed Damien football since Davila was the QB in 2001/2002 but I am certainly rooting for them to make a strong run for CIF this year. When was the last time Damien won CIF?
I hear Davila is the starting QB for some DI college football in the East Coast?

Who wants to be put on the radar screen prematurely?

Damien's advantage is that they play well, yet the pundits are unaware of their ability.

Games aren't played against sportwriters, they're played against other high schools.

As long as Damien is overlooked, teams facing Damien will not expect much--that is until they're across the sidelines, wondering "Where did these guys come from?"

Have seen Damien, Chino Hills, Corona, Upland, Rancho Cuc. play. IMO Damien is the best team in this group. Some of the others such as Rancho and Upland have great talent, but have not put it all together yet. Chino Hills is a team that peaks late and they will give Damien all they can handle. I think the current Inland standings are pretty accurate, but I would adjust it to:
Inland Division
1T. Norco
1T. Centennial
3. Vista Murrieta
4. Redlands
5. Corona
6. Chaparral
7. Temescal Canyon
8. Damien
9. Upland
10.Chino Hills

Who wants to be put on the radar screen prematurely?

Damien's advantage is that they play well, yet the pundits are unaware of their ability.

Games aren't played against sportwriters, they're played against other high schools.

As long as Damien is overlooked, teams facing Damien will not expect much--that is until they're across the sidelines, wondering "Where did these guys come from?"

main reasons, suspect past, 6-1 last year failing miserably at the end. suspect coaching, better this year but.....? and a little inconsistency still shows no domination YET. i know bosco, glendora, but they really do not have a solid QB at either. 06 spartans are a blast to watch though, seriously the best $6 friday nite anywhere.

As long as Damien plays one game at a time, to the best of their ability, for 4 quarters I think the rest would take care of itself.

I think Damien would take either one of those teams, they are playing good ball right now, & I'm not a Damien fan.

dont worry about it

Sounds like Damien had better be hoping for a Baseline League opponent in the first round, as if that's any great shakes. My real issue with this is that I think Damien is on even terms, if not better than Chino Hills. This looks like a very very very deep division.

norco is a great team from what i hear and i give them credit, Damien should win league this year they have more talent and anything else would be a dissapointment. Chino Hills is a great team but does not have the talent they have had in the past few years. I believe Damien has a good shot at making it to the finals if they have a #1 sead in the playoffs. They should use these next few weeks to work on their discipline on the field and their chemestry. In response to the CIF poll, Damien has not gotten respect in a long time and after the huge dissapointment of last season they shouldnt. Chino Hills has earned the right after last year and this year so far to be where they were, the spartans should use this as motivation to make a statement. I believe that Damien's tough non-league schedule will prepare them for the playoffs. They lost to Bosco by two points and in my opinion Bosco is as good or better then Norco. Thanks for everybodys time listening to my rant

I think that the reason why Damien is not in the top ten is simply because they lost to Los Altos. These voters that make up these polls are not aware that Los Altos is a changed team. They only see a Los Altos team doing poorly. But even though this LA team has lost several games, they did in fact beat Damien. The only way Damien is ever going to make the top ten is if they beat Chino Hills. The way things are today, I would not rank Damien any higher than Upland. Here is a breakdown...

1. Norco is 7-0.
2. Corona Centennial is 8-0.
3. Vista Murrieta is 7-0.
4. Chino Hills is 6-1 (Lost only to Mission Viejo 44-7)
5. Redlands is 7-0.
6.Corona is 6-1 (Lost only to 7-0 Riv.North 55-41)
7. Chaparral is 6-1 (Lost only to 7-0 Riv.North 31-21).

8. Upland is 5-2(Lost to San Clemente 21-14 whose only losses are to Mission Viejo and Edison. Upland ALSO lost to 2-4 Etiwanda 28-27 who is not any good at all. This last loss puzzles me as well but Upland DID, however beat Rancho Cucamonga!).

9. Temescal Canyon is 5-2. (Lost only to #6 Corona 38-27 and to #3 Vista Murrieta 33-30)

10. Rancho Cucamonga is 5-2 (Lost only to Bishop Amat 27-17 and #8 Upland 31-24)

By Comparison..Damien is 5-2 (Lost only to 6-1 St.John Bosco...yep they lost to Mater Dei 28-7! MD's victory over SJB does not help the Spartan cause either. And also and more IMPORTANTLY, lost to 4-4 Los Altos 26-24...this is the one that is hurting Damien the most guys..)

I think those would be good games and there's no way to confidently say Damien loses them both. From what I hear from the Bulletin/Sun guys, Norco is really strong. It's starting to appear very obvious that every round of the Inland Division postseason will be a war. No free passes. Could be some surprises. Very excited to see those brackets.

Ill comment, Damien would lose to both teams hows that. rancho and upland are to big and strong.

The teams that are ranked deserve to be there. No slight on Damien, but there are other teams with good records in the Citrus Belt and Baseline leagues that are also legit but are not listed, but that is the value of the playoffs. It will separate the weak from the strong.

Just wondering.

If anyone has seen Upland and Rancho Cucamonga , How would Damien match up against them?

Damien will play Chino Hills so that's going to happen. But just curious if anyone would like to comment on those match ups.

Both Chino Hills and Damien played against Glendora and if that game is any help maybe this could be Damien's year!

Any comments?

Damien needs to beat Chino Hills and win the Sierra League. The rest will take care of itself.