Sport: Basketball Position: Center Height: 6’4″ Class: 2011School: La Costa Canyon High School Carlsbad, CA
Madisen Irwin scored an amazing 42 points in the Mavericks 90-43 win over Torrey Pines this past week. Irwin also scored the game winning free throw in the last 1.7 seconds of the game in her squad’s tough win over Poway. Irwin chipped in for the win with 13 points and13 rebounds. She is committed to the University of San Francisco.
Sport: Football Position: Runningback/ Linebacker Height: 5’9″ Class: 2011 School: Oceanside High School Oceanside, CA
Oceanside senior, Noah Tarrant scored six touchdowns in the Pirates win over Mission Hills helping them to their seventh straight San Diego CIF Division II Title. Noah scored on a 19 yard pass from quarterback Tofi Paopao and on runs of 2, 12, 1, 18 and 2. Noah rushed for 134 yards overall on 24 carries. To view Noah’s complete SportsForce profile click here –http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/noah-tarrant-football-2011
Scouting report courtesy of SportsForce – Home for college Sports Recruiting Videos, Tips, Tools and Premium Services – www.sportsforceonline.com
SportsForce athlete, Dylan Trent recently signed with the University of Richmond. We were able to catch up with his dad, Mike Trent to get the ins and outs of his recruiting journey as well as some advice for others just beginning. Below is Mike Trent’s take on the recruiting process for Dylan. Also be sure to see Dylan’s highlight video and visit his SportsForce profile here.
The recruiting process for Dylan was a two year work experience for all of us. As a nationally ranked tennis player Dylan has been traveling the national junior tennis circuit for the past five years. Primarily on the west coast. He began researching colleges (and teams) about two years ago. Sending his resume and inquiries to a list of potential colleges. He was actively recruited by Gonzaga, Fresno State, Marquette, Denver, Duquesne, East Carolina State and The University of Richmond this past year.
Dylan selected Richmond based on their academic program (business) and he loved the campus, coach and team, which we found out is very important. Dylan loved playing high school tennis because of the team atmosphere in an individual sport and is looking forward to play at a higher level of tennis for the University of Richmond and competing against players he’s never played before.
My advice to any high school athlete looking to play college sports is to start the process early (sophomore year) and let as many college coached as possible of your interest. Never stop working harder than the last guy a college coach just heard from. Remember that for every available spot on a college team there are at least 50 people trying to secure that spot.
The most beneficial thing we did was the recruiting video with SportsForce. Not every coach has the resources to see all the recruits play in person. By developing the video for Dylan it open a world of opportunity for him.
Sport: Football Position: Kicker/Punter Height: 6’0″ Class: 2011 School: Scripps Ranch San Diego, CA
Falcons kicker, Nick Sloan is an extremely talented and passionate player. He told SportsForce that as a player, “my job is to make your job as the coach easier.” Nick delivered on his promise once again in a 30-0 win over Morse High School in the Division II first playoff round. Nick nailed three field goals from 44, 37 and 29 yards, the 44 yarder just 2 yards shy of his personal best. Nick also sent seven kicks deep into the end zone, holding Morse from any big return runs. Nick rounded out a great night by contributing three extra points. To view Nick’s complete SportsForce profile and video click here – http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/nsloan
Video and scouting report courtesy of SportsForce – Home for college Sports Recruiting Videos, Tips, Tools and Premium Services – www.sportsforceonline.com
The only thing constant in life is change. Or maybe just the fact that things may never change for the San Diego State football team.
Stop if you’ve heard this one before: the Aztecs play their hearts out in a game in which they have a chance to make a huge leap forward in their program’s history. They run up and down the field, make magical, highlight-reel plays, set records, scare the daylights out of a top team, and…well, you’ve heard this one before.
So you know how it ends. They lose.
On a rainy Saturday night at Qualcomm Stadium, SDSU (once again) did everything but beat the Utah Utes, a team that just a couple of weeks ago was the undefeated fifth-ranked team in the country.
A win, and the Aztecs themselves may have been ranked come Monday morning for the first time in 15 years. Instead they fell, 38-34, the result leaving the Red and Black faithful wondering what they usually are forced to wonder after games like these…What if? How come? When are we ever? Why us?
So SDSU is 7-4 with one regular season game remaining in a season in which so may strides have been made, but also a season that — put simply — could have been so much more astonishingly remarkable and amazing.
They lost to Utah despite sweeping down the field on their opening possession of the game and scoring for a 7-0 lead just 1:59 into the contest. They lost despite scoring on three more possessions in the first half, breezing downfield with ease on drives that covered 98, 79 and 84 yards. They led, 20-3, and then again by 17 points, 27-10.
They lost despite quarterback Ryan Lindley passing for a career-high 528 yards, the fourth-most ever in Aztec history. Their two spectacular wide receivers, Vincent Brown and DeMarco Sampson, combined for 20 catches, 338 yards and three touchdowns, yet it wasn’t enough.
Brown’s third TD of the game was one of the best plays you’d ever see a receiver make. Lindley, scrambling out of the pocket at his own 10-yard-line, threw the ball up for grabs towards Brown at the SDSU 40. Two Utah defenders were there to intercept, but Brown leaped above both of them, tipped the ball over their heads to himself and raced toward the end zone, out-running three pursuers to the goal line to complete a 90-yard touchdown that gave the Aztecs a 34-24 lead in the third quarter.
Yet, they still lost.
“In the end, we didn’t do enough for the full 60 minutes,” said Coach Brady Hoke, who has done so much to awaken this previously moribund football program yet is still searching for a way to get his team over the hump.
They won’t get there until a whole bunch of the following stuff stops happening. Utah scored on a 57-yard TD pass, beating a broken coverage, and it scored on a hail-mary 47-yard TD pass on the final play of the first half when five Aztec defenders couldn’t keep the ball from finding its way into the hands of Utes tight end Kendrick Moeai.
DeMarco Sampson reaches out to try and reel in a one-handed catch (619 Sports photo/Danny Heilprin)
In the fourth quarter, SDSU punter Brian Stahovich dropped a perfectly good snap from center, picked it up and then had his kick blocked, with Utah recovering at the 3-yard-line. Four plays later, running back Eddie Wide swept into the end zone to give the Utes their first lead of the game, 38-34, with 10:25 remaining.
Winging downfield twice on Lindley’s arm, the Aztecs still had chances to win, but both drives ended in Utah interceptions. The three SDSU turnovers in the game — plus the blocked punt — were ultimately the difference. As well as the Aztecs played, they still made key mistakes. Utah, which improved to 9-2 with the win, did not turnover the ball once.
One tough loss like this would be hard enough. But all of the Aztecs’ losses this season have been like this. They lost, 27-24, at Missouri when they allowed a 68-yard, game-winning TD pass in the final minute — the play only occurring because officials missed a blatant block-in-the-back that wiped out two Aztec defenders and cleared the way for the Tigers’ T.J. Moe to race down the sidelines.
They lost, 24-21, at BYU in part because a clear Cougars’ fumble was not called on the field nor overturned by a replay-booth full of BYU officials (supporters). They lost, 40-35, at third-ranked TCU despite jumping to a 14-0 lead and then, later, rallying for three late TD’s in the fourth-quarter.
Now this one. Four losses this season by a total of 15 points. And, just for good measure, there was a bit of controversy to deal with here as well. On the final, fateful Lindley interception — with Brown open in the end zone to perhaps win it, Utah’s Derrick Shelby delivered a forearm shiv to the face of Lindley as he let the pass go.
The illegal blow, called in football games every Saturday and Sunday of every season, sent Lindley’s throw wobbling off target, allowing Utah’s Brian Blecken to pick if off. Of course, no call was made.
For SDSU, considering where it has been, there is nothing wrong with 7-4, and perhaps an 8-4 finish if the Aztecs can beat UNLV — which they should — next weekend. One more chance for glory would await after that, in the Poinsettia Bowl on Dec. 23 against Navy.
Frustratingly, though, this season could have been so much more. But, at least for now, they’re still the Aztecs.
LA MESA–The balance of the Helix offense makes the Highlanders an exciting team to watch. The dominance of the Helix defense makes the “Scotties” the top team in the county.
Forcing four Steele Canyon turnovers, 2nd ranked Helix throttled the #7 Cougars 26-7 at Jim Arnaiz Field on the Helix Charter High School campus, clinching a perfect 10-0 regular season and the Grossmont Hills League championship. Dynamic junior quarterback Brandon Lewis threw for a pair of touchdowns, his 24th and 25th of the season, and the Helix (10-0, 5-0) defense took it from there to shut down one of the section’s most physical teams in the 619 Preps Game of the Week.
“We can go far with our defense,” said Lewis, “We don’t want to rely on our defense but sometimes we have to and they help us out a lot.”
The Cougars (8-2, 4-1), who came into the night averaging close to 200 yards rushing per game, were held to 52 yards on the ground in 26 attempts.
“The Helix defense, you can tell why they’ve only given up six touchdowns all year,” said Steele Canyon head coach Ron Boehmke, “They play really hard, they’re quick and fast, can’t say enough about them.”
While the Cougars were able to slow down the Highlanders on the ground for the most part, Steele Canyon’s defense was put in a bad position multiple times thanks to turnovers. Senior quarterback Brad Boehmke completed 16-of-34 passes for 196 yards and a touchdown, but his three interceptions doomed the Cougars to defeat.
Steele Canyon star running back Jake Wragg had a forgettable game with 18 rushes for 37 yards. An 1,100+ yard rusher in the Cougars’ first nine games, Wragg lost an early fumble which led to Lewis’ 24 yard touchdown pass to Cameron Lee and a 7-0 Helix lead.
“We put our defense’s back against the wall a few times,” said Coach Boehmke, “I told our guys, we hadn’t see a fast-flowing, aggressive defense like that in a long time. This is the kind of game that gets you ready for the playoffs.”
The Highlanders were forced to adjust to an injury mid-game but didn’t lose their stride offensively. Junior tailback Darien Hancock, a 1,000+ yard rusher, carried 15 times for 59 yards, including a 23-yard scoring run on an inside draw midway through the second quarter which made it 14-0 Helix. Hancock left the game after taking a hard hit early in the third quarter, and senior Raymont Nailon stepped in for his final regular season home game.
Nailon crashed the line for 85 yards in 17 carries, helping Helix grind out their perfect regular season.
“When our team plays together and with one heartbeat, this is what you see,” said Nailon.
Vann Sabin kicked a pair of field goals late in the second quarter to give Helix a 20-0 halftime lead. In the third, Steele Canyon fought back for their lone touchdown of the night, as a shanked punt set up the Cougars on a 41 yard field. Seven plays later, Boehmke hit Chanceller James on a 14 yard scoring pass, making it 20-7 Highlanders.
When the Cougars stopped Helix on a fourth and inches for a turnover on downs one possession later, it looked like Steele Canyon was going to claw its way back into the game. That’s when Kenny Keys took over. The 6′3″ senior defensive back stepped underneath a deep pass from Boehmke to wide receiver Britten Wright for his first of two second-half interceptions.
“I had been out with injury the last couple of weeks and wanted to come out tonight with a bang,” said Keys.
Seemingly dispirited by their offense’s mistakes, Steele Canyon gave ground on the next drive for the first time all game, as Nailon carried four straight times for a total of 51 yards. Lewis then arced a gorgeous square out to senior wide receiver Austin Gonzalez in the end zone for a 14 yard touchdown and a 26-7 lead.
Helix stopped Steele Canyon twice on downs from there, and Keys’ second interception of the game snuffed out a last gasp drive. The Cougars wound up with 248 yards of total offense but could never sustain a drive.
With Oceanside losing 24-14 at El Camino, the path to the #1 seed in Division-II looks good for Helix. They will undoubtedly earn a bye and wait for their opponent in two weeks back home in La Mesa.
“It’s our first Super Bowl game, but there’s many to go,” said Nailon.
Steele Canyon, despite the loss, will likely remain a top-four seed in the stacked D-II playoff field. Their only two losses have come to the top two teams in the county, #1 Eastlake and #2 Helix, two 10-0 programs.
The dates to sign a national letter of intent for the early period are coming upon us very quickly. If you are offered to sign a national letter of intent, it is important to know what exactly you are signing and all the rules that come along with signing it. For this reason, I have listed below some of the basics about national letters of intent.
What exactly is a National Letter of Intent?
A national letter of intent is a binding contract between a player and a school. Once you have signed a letter of intent, you must attend school there for at least one year. It is basically a way to establish that you are done being recruited and have chosen the program you want to be a part of.
Verbal Scholarships and National Letters of Intent are NOT the Same
It is important to not confuse national letters of intent with verbal scholarships. Unlike a letter of intent, verbal scholarships are not binding. With verbal scholarships, you can tell a school you are committing to them, but still be actively recruited by other schools. A verbal scholarship basically states that if you decide to enroll at the given school, the school will give you a scholarship to play there. Also unlike letters of intent, verbal scholarships can be agreed to at any time.
What if you have a Change of Heart?
One important thing to know about national letters of intent is the penalty you receive if you ultimately decide to opt out and attend a different school instead. When you sign a letter of intent, you are contractually obligated to attend the given school for one year. If you break this agreement, you are penalized by not being allowed to participate in any sports for one season. Also, you must attend at least one year at your new school, no exceptions. This is why it is so important that you are one hundred percent positive on what school you want to attend before signing a national letter of intent.
What Else you Need to Know
Other than these basic facts about letters of intent, there are still plenty of important features about them you need to know. Different sports have different signing dates. Some sports, like soccer and field hockey, give you a six-month period to sign a national letter of intent. Others, like basketball, give you as little as one week to sign. Also, letters of intent are only given out by NCAA division I and II schools. But, some schools, like the Ivy Leagues, cannot give these out. It’s important that you do your research on schools and sports you are interested in when it comes time to start committing to schools. See the table below for this year’s dates.
Sports
Initial Signing Date
Final Signing Date
Basketball and all other sports not listed (early period)
November 10, 2010
November 17, 2010
Football
December 15, 2010
January 15, 2011
Football Mid-Year JC Transfer
February 2, 2011
April 1, 2011
Field Hockey, Soccer, Track and Field, Cross Country, Men’s Water Polo
February 2, 2011
August 1, 2011
Basketball (regular period)
April 13, 2011
May 18, 2011
All other sports not listed (regular period)
April 13, 2011
August 1, 2011
For more important information about National Letters of Intent, including next year’s date, visit nationalletter.org
Senior running back, Diego Rodriguez has had a stellar season after coming off of reconstructive knee surgery for a season ending injury during his junior year. So far this season Rodriguez has rushed for more than 1,000 yards. Rodriguez had a standout performance against Mar Vista which included two TDs. Rodriguez had an 88-yard touchdown off a kickoff return as well as a 50-yard touchdown in his team’s win.
LA MESA–Realigned, renamed and redesigned this year, the Grossmont Hills league is one of the toughest in the CIF-San Diego Section. For the front-runners Helix and Steele Canyon, the path to the league title just got a little bit tougher.
Behind a rugged defense which sacked quarterback Frank Foster nine times, the Grossmont Foothillers gutted out a 13-7 win over the rival Valhalla Norsemen from El Cajon in the 619 Preps Game of the Week, getting a leg up as the brutal league schedule begins.
“We’ve got the only league in San Diego county with three Top-25 teams,” said head coach Ron Murphy of the ‘Hillers, “We’re chasing Helix and Steele Canyon. Tonight we were chasing Valhalla and we caught them.”
Postgame video interviews: Grossmont senior LB Michael Davis-Tucker and head coach Ron Murphy:
In a contest featuring contrasting styles, Grossmont (6-0, 1-0) won with a patient zone-read ground game and a defense which repeatedly disrupted Valhalla’s precision passing attack. While Foster finished 15-for-24 for 187 yards and a touchdown, he was constantly under pressure and took six of his nine sacks in the second half.
“Our defensive coordinator Brad Burton believes in bringing the pressure, “said Murphy, “we felt our best approach was not to sit back, but to try and attack them.”
Offensively, the Hillers were carried as usual by East County rushing leader Desean Waters. The senior running back-turned-QB delivered his most balanced performance of the season, rushing 27 times for 125 yards and a touchdown, while completing 7-of-13 passes for 125 yards.
Waters closed out the game with five straight carries for 46 yards, freezing out the Valhalla offense for the final 2:48 of the game.
“The orders were: only Desean touches the ball at the end of the game,” said Murphy, “Desean does not turn the ball over, he carries our offense, and leads us to victory.”
Both defenses could point to goal line stands which helped define the slugfest under misty skies on the Grossmont High campus. The Hillers were turned aside on their first drive after a ten play march, with Waters stuffed on fourth and goal from the 3 yard line.
After a scoreless first quarter, Valhalla (3-3, 0-1) finally punctured the scoreboard with 4:20 left in the opening half, as Foster’s rainbow pass into double coverage was hauled down by star junior receiver Devon Haston (7 receptions, 118 yards) in the end zone for a 30 yard touchdown.
The Hillers found their rhythm on an 11-play drive to close out the half, with the big play a Waters pass to junior wideout Lawson Medeiros (3 receptions, 82 yards). Standout kicker Jordan Reece booted a 32 yard field goal to end the drive and send Grossmont into halftime trailing 7-3.
Michael Davis-Tucker’s sack in the opening drive of the third quarter set the tone for a second half in which Foster was constantly under duress. The Hillers blitzed early and often, sending multiple linebackers and sometimes a safety or cornerback to take advantage of Valhalla’s five and seven-step QB drops.
“We’ve been putting in extra time at practice and just did our thing,” said the senior linebacker.
Facing a fourth-and-ten from the Grossmont 44 yard line early in the third quarter, Norsemen head coach Steve Sutton gambled on a fake punt only to see Brandon Steed’s pass knocked down incomplete. The Hillers answered with Reece’s second field goal of the game, this one from 43 yards away to make it a 7-6 game.
Special teams then helped turn the game in Grossmont’s favor. On Valhalla’s next possession, a third-down sack by Michael’s brother Ryan Davis-Tucker forced the Norsemen to punt from their own 22. Steed’s punt was shanked and only traveled 24 yards, giving the Hillers a short field to work with.
Waters capitalized with the help of senior tailback Tony Abuka, who took advantage of the Valhalla defense overplaying Waters, taking a pitch to the left for a 22-yard gain which set up the Hillers on the 2-yard line. Waters took it in from there with 3:35 left in the third quarter to post the final score of 13-7.
The Hillers would be tested one more time defensively before taking control. The third quarter ended with Foster hooking up with Haston again, this time on a 48 yard gainer all the way to the Grossmont seven yard line.
Valhalla got down to the one-yard line on fourth down and elected to go for it. The Norsemen tried an option run to the left, but sophomore reserve tailback Martin Mokou was stuffed for a three yard loss to cap the goal line stand.
From there, the Norsemen were playing the rest of the game “behind the sticks”, as the Hillers sacked Foster on three of his final eight pass attempts and forced an intentional grounding penalty on another.
While Valhalla’s playoff hopes are still very much alive at 3-3, their league dreams appear to be dashed against the rocks, particularly with Helix and Steele Canyon yet to come on the schedule. Both East County powers are waiting for the Hillers as well, but with six straight wins under their belt, Grossmont might be up for the challenge.
Recently, it seems like anytime you turn on the television or internet you hear that another college student-athlete is in trouble for violating some sort of NCAA rule. These violations can result in consequences that not only greatly affect the player, but can also do serious harm to the team as a whole. For this reason, it is important to know what is expected of student-athletes when they reach the college-level playing field.
Two scandals that are currently in the college sports realm are those of Georgia wide receiver A.J. Green and former USC running back Reggie Bush. Both of these incidents have gained a vast amount of media coverage, but while both of these athletes violated NCAA rules, they have very different consequences.
A.J. Green and the selling of his own jersey
At first glance, this violation seems pretty harmless. A.J. Green, who is considered one of the top receivers in college football, sold the jersey he wore in the Independence Bowl last year to an agent for $1,000. After investigating into this, the NCAA suspended Green for four games. Green was not suspended, seemingly, for trying to make a profit. Rather, he was suspended for his communication with the agent, which is a major violation.
Reggie Bush and the receiving of benefits
Rewind back to 2005: Reggie Bush was an all-star running back for one of the nation’s elite football programs and ended up winning the Heisman Trophy for his talents. Now in present day, Bush has forfeited his award and his former school is dealing with an immense amount of consequences for his actions.
After a four-year long NCAA investigation, it was found that Bush had received money, gifts and benefits from agents. Bush forfeited his Heisman Trophy after talks that the Heisman Trust would eventually take it away from him anyway. But Bush is not the only one having to deal with the consequences of his actions; USC was hit hard with numerous sanctions, including a four year probation, a two year ban from bowl games, and a loss of 30 scholarships over a three year span.
What to learn from these incidents
These two incidents are just two of many current investigations being made by the NCAA for rule violations. The newly appointed NCAA president, Mark Emmert, has come out saying that he is going to continue being tough on rule-breakers so future student-athletes will not make the same mistakes.
It’s so crucial for aspiring college players to pay close attention to the violations and subsequent consequences of these current scandals. Upon reaching the college playing field, student-athletes are held to a much higher standard and are under so much more scrutiny. Anything done that violates NCAA rules will eventually be caught, and it’s never too late to pay the price for such actions. For this reason, student-athletes need to be aware of NCAA rules so they don’t make the same mistakes when they reach the college level.
Sport: Football Position: Runningback/ Linebacker Height: 5’9″ Class: 2011 School: Oceanside High School Oceanside, CA
