Football: All San Antonio League

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How about the kicker of the 07-08 season you look at him now at ayala hes kicking up to 60 yard field goals. Its a shame O'shields would let a kicker with that much potential go.

Michael Ball still got two more years. He has a quarterback rating of 118 which includes a perfect quarterback rating against Walnut. I'm pretty sure he will improve within these two years. I'm pretty sure Rowland will make it to the playoffs with South Hills and West Covina. I think Walnut will not make it with only one league win against Nogales. Nogales will go nowhere and get a 0-4 league record. Rowland and West Covina won more playoff games than Nogales did the whole season. South Hills would of done the same thing too if it wasn't of a bad PAT.

All I have to say is that Nogales was better than their record, and they'll be there to take a high ranking in the league next year. With a lot of Juniors having starting spots and getting experience this year, the future is good.

Walnut Insider

First of all I want to thank you for the updates on Walnut football during the offseason. I understand that you were not implying that the young QB was going to be a superstar I just thought that Walnut wanted or needed someone with experience. As an outsider I was under the impression that Walnut was building toward the 2009 campaign with a realistic chance of reaching the playoffs. With that being said I figured the team would want a QB with experience at the varsity level.

Has anyone noticed, that everytime South Hills is mentioned, mama Behr and papa Behr have to throw their props in for their son Dakota! He is an average player, thats it!

Raiders Parent,
I will totally agree with you when you say that Walnut is an academic school first than athlete second. It doesn't help when over 65% of you student body is Asian...and if you look at the break down of the football team it is very far from 65% Asian. Another huge problem at our school is that we have a lot of players that don't do two sports. They want to "focus" on baseball or basketball or whatever. We talked about Clarke already, but I can tell you that Eric Peterson was another guy that could of helped Walnut out the last two years had he not quit for baseball. I don't know when this mentality of "I'm a one sport guy" came to Walnut, but that is probably one of the top reason for the failure of a lot of the boys sports.

The boys programs at Walnut have a culture of losing right now and there is no sense of urgency to correct it on the students parts. If they win some games great and if they lose...no big deal because they always lose. That needs to change as well.

As for O'Shields, I will say his first year was more of a continuation of Coach Persons. The offense was the same, the stretching was the same, the practices were the same (summer and spring), and hell Jerry would even call some plays from the side line (or strongly suggest them I should say). I give Mike some credit by throwing everything he has known and learned out the window and embracing a whole new offense. It's no secret Jerry hates to throw the ball (which is why Walnut really hasn't produced a QB in such a long time), so for Mike to go a complete 180 is impressive. Hopefully, Mike can finally get some success in the coming seasons.

Stang Outsider,
I'm not saying that the freshmen QB was a superstar in the making, but if you need a QB who can manage the game, and we have talked about in this offense with Rhodes and King you don't need a superstar QB, then he might do the trick. And from a coaching stand point it might not be the worst move either. Think about it, you have an average QB as a sophomore who can develop under Coach Acosta's wing for 3 years. After Rhodes and King are gone, you will need a more athletic QB. I am sure that this idea is being tossed around a bit. Heck why not do to this freshman what they did with Acosta? As a sophomore Acosta played every now and then as a receiver and even some snaps behind Tommy Vasquez. I am sure that this helped him out a bit.

Walnut insider,
I appreciate your positive outlook on the 2009 football campaign, and I am also hopeful that we can sneak into the playoffs but I must say that your choices at quarterback will be limited to Tommy, and Austin. I went to many of the freshman football games this year and honestly as good as both quarterbacks are neither are ready to be the starting varsity quarterback.

Bowden was man handled by Diamond Ranch all night. That's the facts. how does Bowden make second team ALL LAEGUE when he doesn't play in league games enpough?

Past history?

When he came back he played Defensive Line! And at THAT position he was manhandled. Too big, ie FAT, not qiuck anymore at that position.

Courageous maybe but after alll thos ecomments about late hitting over the years maybe it was karma that got him.

Behr will make an awesome addition to next years offense. Deen, although a great QB had one big draw back. He had his favorite recievers and would lazer lock on thim from out of the huddle. Watch the films they dont lie. If the play wasnt designed to go to a particular reciever, the others were just running pass routes.

As for Barrera he was a nice young man and may have and put up good numbers. But, we was like 5th or 6th on the depth chart. The reason he didnt start the first 3 weeks of the season was he was behind Bowden,Goss, Burrel,Schnider and I think Behr. Barrera although tenacious, lacked size and the abilty to read. He is quick footed but gets run over way to often. The only reason he led the team in tackles was that Bowden was enjured and when he was healthy the coaches moved him around due to his athletisizem placing him on the D-line.

Valley Fan. you ask how can Bowden and Goss make second team with their injurys. Easy. The best are still the best. When healthy they held Rhodes of walnut to 1 td and just over 100 yds. Same with Sumler who was averaging 5 TD's and 250 plus yds agame. They held him to 1 td and 126 yards on the night. Same with Northview. They put the brakes on A-Rod. Ricky Johnson in victory over SH said it was alot more fun with out Bowden in the middle.

I guarantee you as parents and sideline spectators we see one thing; but, the truth is on the field. The young men who made 1st team LB are deserving because of their hard work. But, they are far from the best and they know it.

The loss of Bowden and Goss in the middle kept SH out of the championship. They will be missed

W.I.,

The truth of the matter over at Walnut(and this is why I enrolled my son at Rowland) is the coaching. O'shields has not done a thing with the football program since taking over from Persons. It actually got worse. Weight Lifting training is like you said going thru the motions. At Rowland we push the kids to get bigger and stronger the way say a program like Amat and Mater Dei does with it's boy's. It lies in the upper echelon of the school starting with the principal, who can give a cra- about your sports programs. Look at your varsity baseball program ,that coach whats his name Huff??He has been there forever the teams loses year in and year out but no change is made (he has kid with the talent), again it is not the schools biggest concern,sports. Classroom scores are huge and it should be with a 80% Asian influx in Walnut. American Pastime sports such as Football and Baseball are not a high priority over in Walnut, hence the kids know this so they dont give it all they have nor do they show up to tryout. So to have mediocre coaching is fine with the principal as long as his test scores make Walnut HS one of top schools in the SGV. Student first Athlete second as the saying goes. W.I. Tell me how many kids that are good players do not come out for football or baseball?, how many have transferred?, and how many have quit?. Well as you can see I was one who transferred my kid and our football team just missed the championship game this year, he will be a senior next year. I am glad I made the choice because he plays and he has a above 3.0 GPA...Both can be achieved but it is one or the other over in Walnut if you play baseball or fooball. Good Luck next year that Running back Rhodes should take you places. Merry Christmas.

Roddy? Please.

The Behr kid looked a lot more dangerous, and underused to me. Converting half of his catches for TD's, you'd think it would occur to someone over there on Cameron to toss him the ball more often.

Bigger, faster, and stronger than the other guys, (check that, I think Umodu may be an inch taller), all he was missing was a dad on the coaching staff.

Raiders Parent,

I am curious as to why you feel that coaching is a problem at Walnut?

I will agree with you about the line being a question and about WC & SH. I'm not sure why but it seems like they try to beat Rowland and Nogalas and hope for the best. I do think there is some mental block there.

As for the extra time, back in the late 80's early 90's Walnut was a successful program and there really wasn't an off season after 6th period. I do know the school make up has changed, but with all the time they spend after school we should see some results. I think the players aren't focused enough on what it takes and are going through the motions so to speak.

Roddy got all-cif because all the coaches that were in attendance knew of the great season he had, I was one of them and voted for him. It's to bad your league only allows a coach to nominate 2 players at each position, it just so happens he was not nominated because of that by-law. I am sure, he would have easily made the team had he been nominated.
Taking nothing away from the other receivers, #3 from South Hills is the one we felt could hurt you the most, just ask Diamond Ranch!

way to go cam. you deserve all the acalades you get! you will be the man at the next level you play at! now stopping you now! kick butt and show 'em who's boss. i love you son! dad

To Walnut insider, walnut outsider, Walnut topsider. Doesn't matter your Walnut team is a basement team and will be there for years because you are right they do not put in the extra work and they are good with fielding a team only so you can show case your All Asian Band and drill team. The football team already knows going into every year that WC and SH are going to beat them. Well maybe your season will change next year as you have the superstar Running Back, back as a senior. Question is your O and D lines. Coaching seems to be the biggest problem in Walnut these days.

oh yeah, as far as Cooper is concerned. I don't see him as a PSY, simply because I was at the DB game and saw him lower his shoulder to go give a hit instead of walking out of bounds. I know parents see one thing and coaches see these kids daily for years on end. And my information did come from the coaches. Combine that information with how he got hurt... I wouldn't call him a PSY.

Walnut Outsider,

First off, Garcia never played a down at any level for Walnut. Steve and his dad were always telling everyone what a football player he was going to be, but then he never came out.

As for Clark, that's one I can't put my finger on. He had a really good chance of being a two year starter, but gave it up for baseball. Either means he really likes baseball or that he was tired of football. I will say that Clark was the most athletic of the three. And some solid size as well. Losing him really hurt.

Being the insider that I am, I do know that some of these kids are quitting because they are tired of staying at school until 4 - 4:30 or so during the off season.

I will say the amount of dedication to the program has gone down (like at other schools) and you should always be working hard to get better and schools that do go deep into the playoffs or winning it all are putting in the extra time. With all of that said, what are they doing all that time? Walnut hasn't gotten stronger or faster through the years, so what are they doing?

Roddy got second team all cif because of the person (South Hills James) went to the All-CIF meeting and does what he does every year, serves his Huskies first and the rest of the league second.

NOT A BIG DEAL -- BUT -- RYAN MCLAURIN IS AT WEST COVINA AND NOT AT ROWLAND, UNDER 1ST. TEAM DEFENSE.

Walnut Insider,

Weird you say that because the Rap on Cooper is the opposite, he does not like to get hit and Players and players parents think of him as a big PSY. From what I am told the best player did not play QB. Ryan Clark and a kid that does not play football Steven Garcia were the real men that should have been under center. Peralta and Cooper next year same results Unecessary losses for Walnut, but Rhodes will keep them in every game. Too bad Clake and Garcia graduate this year.

How does Chris Bowden and Wayne Goss make second team all league without playing a league game. Bowden may have play one league game but Goss missed the entire league season.

where can you find the all cif selections?

Stang 84,
I will concede some of the mistakes at DB were most likely first game gitters, but if you are going to play football you have got to be able to work through them. He went into the game early enough to get over them, but never did.

As for the WC game, WC played very sloppy. Very reminiscent of the 2004 or 2005 game where WC should have blown us away, but lost. Then they played us in the playoffs with no mistakes and killed us. We had our chances that night to beat WC, but for whatever reason we didn't and bottom line is that Tommy's interception ended the game.

Austin, from what I have been told by some coaches, is a solid QB and kid, but likes to hit (not good for a QB) and this led to him getting hurt at DB. Obviously, he showed the staff something that Tommy didn't have during last summer to get the start week 1.

I totally agree with you about the O-Line though. They were all seniors, so it will be interesting to see how they play (but they have Coach Warren so everything should be ok, right Walnut Dad? :))

Rhodes & King make a great 1, 2 combination. If they can get an average Oline to even just position block and not even blow people off the line, they should be ok up front. And if they get a QB (Austin or Tommy or someone new [the freshmen QB looked good last year]) then I do expect Walnut to be better offensively.

how does roddy from south hills get second team all cif but doesnt make league??

Not sure how Omar Alvarez-DB was only selected for 2nd team??? Along with Louis Valdez(overlooked) and Pedro Lara(1st team), the three were tackling machines for Rowland this year.

just found out geoffrey vaughns farther is taking him out of south hill. 'WOW' that hurts

Walnut Insider. First game jitters for Tommy vs D-BAR. He settled down from there. Th last pass to end the season vs WC Poor coaching and time management at the end of that great drive. Walnut beats WC that nite which they should have and they are in CIF. They were taking it to WC that nite. Peralta is not a bad QB and will get better going into next year. He is the starter next year again. Cooper had his chance and unless get more through training he will sit behind Tommy again next year. Oline is a big question for Walnut next year. If Walnut gets a line in front of Rhodes Walnut is in the top two of the San Antonio along with WC. Rowland Nogales and get this SH will battle for that third spot.

How did the starting LB Barrera #34 from South Hills get overlooked? He lead his team with the most tackles, and if I remember correctly that was also him missing the first 3 games of the season. He was also one of the top 5 leading players in tackels in league. So how can you overlook a good player like that? He should have made First Team Defense.

Walnut Insider,

The bottom line is Cooper is not very good and Tommy is really all they have as far as QB's. Hopefully Tommy grows as a player for next season because next season is a breakout season with Rhodes running over everyone. Cooper should think about punting or something. He is not a QB.

Louie Valdez - 42 for Rowland was A BEAST.. ask the QBs, OLs and RBs he hit!!! I'm sure they are mending still!! He definitely was overlooked...

As for Michael Ball, QB, the unsung hero for Rowland this year, he loves the game and aspires to succeed like his older brother Todd Ball, Jr., RB (1996-99)did at Rowland. He made his dad, mom and family proud and that's what counted for him!!

michael ball should have been offensive mvp, he had more total yards than anyone by far. he also had a better passing percentage, and scored more touchdowns than deen.

Chris, I never said Cooper should have been there. I was thinking about West Covina's QB? But their stats aren't on Maxpreps, so I can't say, but WC had a better year so I would think of starting there.

As for Tommy carrying the team, it's laughable even as I type it. He cost them a few games, starting with DB. He couldn't hit the side of a barn that night. Should we talk about WC's game...how was that interception at the end of the game?

The offense moved because of Rhodes and King, not the QB. Walnut needs to find a QB that can manage the game, maybe that's Tommy or Austin. Nothing special...just don't make mistakes.

Walnut insider you need stats?...sounds like you dont like the nomination of Peralta?..let me guess you think Cooper should be there?...give it a rest, If not for Peralta that offense is even worse off. Leonard Rhodes, Chima Ike and Milan King carried that team with Peralta at the helm. He deserves to be there. Now get off his nuts and be glad another Walnut player made it. FN CRY BABIE.

Fred,

I know you and Miguel are both working on All-Area Teams..

Are all of the MNG papers, (Whittier Daily New, IV Daily bulletin, Sun, etc.), putting one out?

nice to see only 2 MVP's unlike that other league...geeze.

Also nice to see some Walnut kids on the list. Although, I need to see some stats as to why Peralta made 2nd team.

Albert Cid plays for West Covina... not South Hills...right?