• THE ACORN NEWSPAPERS PRESENTS • 2018 PIGSKIN PREVIEW A LOOK AT THE AREA’S BEST RETURNING PLAYERS GGREATREAT EEXPECTATIONSXPECTATIONS 60 Years of Service Las Virgenes Municipal Water District ! PAGE 2 PIGSKIN PREVIEW FROM THE EDITOR LET US LIGHT THE WAY nder the glow of the Friday night lights, tales of greatness are written. We’ve witnessed them ourselves. Still, let’s never forget these are just kids playing a game. U The modern high school sport scarcely resembles its early days, when baseball was still America’s pastime and players donned leather helmets. Yet the fi eld remains populated by the same type of individuals who have always been drawn to the gridiron: gritty, tough, fearless, maybe a bit crazy. “Don’t fl inch, don’t foul, hit the line hard,” is good advice for life, President Theodore Roosevelt once wrote. That remains true to this day. The rise of college and professional football to national prominence has had an incredible effect on the high school game, and not for the better. An increasing number of programs have bowed to the pressure to succeed, sacrifi cing tradition (and the rules) for a chance at winning. But the players and coaches we speak to each summer for our annual Pigskin Preview give us reason to hope. They remind us that, with all of the sport’s imperfections, it still has much to offer student-athletes and, of course, fans. Frequently it’s the adults in the room (we’re talking to you, parents) who are giving football a bad name. Too many see the sport as a means to an end rather than a singular opportunity for their sons and daughters to make TABLE OF CONTENTS memories and learn lessons that last a lifetime. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to see your child win a scholarship, but when it becomes the driving 4-10, 14-20 TEAM SPOTLIGHTS force behind every decision, something’s wrong. Comprehensive outlooks for every team in the Acorn coverage area As journalists, it’s our job to prop these kids up; it’s up to their parents and coaches to keep them grounded. The growing sense of entitlement some 11-13 GREAT EXPECTATIONS players bring with them to practice is cause for concern. Football has always Five dynamic returning superstars prepare for their encores been a sport for underdogs, for those willing to fi ght for every yard. When we treat these teenagers like superstars we do them no favors. Let’s remind them that respect is earned, not given, and that their lives will go on long 21 POWER POLL after the game has passed them by. How do the local squads stack up in a hyper-competitive landscape For now, let us all bask in the glow that is football (and keep this handy guide to light the way). But let’s never stop working to make sure this game 23 COMPLETE SCHEDULES we love doesn’t go dark. —Kyle Jorrey Your one-stop-shop for this year’s matchups Published by: J. Bee Publishing, LTD 30423 Canwood St., Ste. 108, Agoura Hills, CA 91301 On the cover: Top, from left: Simi Valley’s Sean Weber, Westlake’s Kamren • Phone: (805) 484-1949 • Office/Sales Fax: (818) 706-8468 Fabiculanan, Moorpark’s Drake London, Camarillo’s Drew Carter and Calabasas’ THE Keithan Gooden Jr. Bottom: Oak Park’s Gianni Smith, Thousand Oaks’ Ryan Shihabi, • Editorial Fax: (805) 484-2313 •E-mail: [email protected] Camarillo’s James McNamara and Oaks Christian’s Zach Charbonnet. Acorn • Hours: 9 a.m. - 5 p.m., Mon. - Fri. •Closed Legal Holidays DANCE AND THRIVE WITH US THIS SEASON COUPON Full Class Schedule Available on our Website: FREE www.thrivedancecenter.com TRIAL CLASS 3623 Old Conejo Road #100, Newbury Park New Students Only With this Coupon. Expires 10-15-18 (805) 375-9988 PIGSKIN PREVIEW PAGE 3 KUDOS TO THE KIDS Appreciate the players who make high school football the greatest game in America By Eliav Appelbaum Calabasas receiver Mycah Pittman, who committed to the University of Oregon, is [email protected] the best athlete in his family. At least that’s what his dad, Michael Pittman, told us back in 2015. Michael played running back in the NFL and helped the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Look over yonder. That football player’s tougher win Super Bowl XXXVII; his oldest son, also Michael, is a starting receiver at USC. than a snot otter chewing on glass in a dusty saloon Moorpark QB Blake Sturgill threw for 36 touchdowns and more than 3,100 yards as in Tombstone, Ariz. a sophomore last year. For an encore, he’ll teach squirrels how to dance the Charleston. Over the hills and far away, you can’t miss fl ashy Blake Kytlica of Rio Mesa drizzles tackling fuel over bowls of shredded wheat. dudes with more moves than a snake charmer coaxing Grace Brethren’s Stanley Ta’ufo’ou and David Jay Toia, both USC commits, also a cabal of cobras into comas. move continents for the Justice League. Oak Park is the only place in California Take a closer look. Appreciate the high school where the backup quarterback (Cole McCreary) and third-stringer (Gianni Smith) are football players who are talented, athletic, scrappy, as beloved as the starting quarterback (Cam Fouts). Zach Charbonnet, a 2,000-yard cerebral, mean, crazy, calm, slow, fast and fearless. running back, will continue racking up miles for Oaks Christian and eventually, the Everyone who takes the fi eld earns my respect. Adults Michigan Wolverines. Andrew Lichtenstein, a Thousand Oaks linebacker, will scrap disappoint me all the time, but kids don’t. to wear the Green Helmet on Friday nights. This edition of the Acorn’s Pigskin Preview, our seventh, is an ode to the top return- Let’s deliver a special shout-out to special teams specialists, long snappers Jesse ing players. They proved they could play, and they’re back, ready to dazzle again. Vasquez of Oaks Christian and Matthew Rhodes of Calabasas, and kicker/punter Dylan I can’t wait to see Moorpark’s Drake London, Westlake’s Kamren Fabiculanan, Cala- Orr of Newbury Park. basas’ Keithan Gooden Jr., Camarillo’s Drew Carter and Simi Valley’s Sean Weber—fi ve Football is a bad word in some parts of the country, and in other places it’s a religion. superstars who graciously grace the cover—make extraordinary plays this fall. It disappoints and exhilarates. It is a game seeped in nostalgia, but there’s always the They’re not the only unknown legends local football fans need to know about. thrill that we’re about to see something new. It is a game that unites and divides, and Kayvon Thibodeaux, a defensive end for Oaks Christian, is an amalgamation of somehow we’re all united in the disorder. Lawrence Taylor, The Rock and the Kool-Aid Man. He busts through brick walls as “It’s the greatest game in America,” said Fabiculanan, a Westlake senior. if they were made of Keith Sweat’s silk jammies. He’s the No. 1 prospect in the U.S., The high school players who take the fi eld every Friday night are the reason why. and the Milky Way. Appelbaum is the Acorn’s sports editor. — RELEAGUING ROULETTE — SUPER-TROLL MARMONTE CAMINO CANYON SHUFFLE LEAGUE LEAGUE LEAGUE Leagues change every year. That’s life. But the CALABASAS BISHOP DIEGO AGOURA current landscape makes less sense than a Screaming NEWBURY PARK CAMARILLO OAK PARK Viking in a David Lynch fever dream. At right, we’ve OAKS CHRISTIAN GRACE BRETHREN ROYAL broken down the leagues for your consumption. Oaks Christian, Calabasas, Agoura, Grace Brethren and ST. BONAVENTURE MOORPARK SIMI VALLEY Rio Mesa (of the Pacifi c View League) are defending WESTLAKE THOUSAND OAKS champs who all face tougher obstacles this season. 25 36 CI always strives to be a campus of MAJORS MINORS innovation and inclusion, supporting TEACHING AND ADMINISTRATIVE student success. Students benefit CREDENTIALS OR AUTHORIZATIONS INNOVATE from internships and volunteer 6 GRADUATE opportunities. They are challenged DEGREES to grow as leaders, experience new Ed.D countries and cultures, serve and EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP enhance our communities through their talents and hard work, and 83% EDUCATE RECEIVE participate in making their education FINANCIAL AID have real-world value. 6,200+ STUDENTS SUCCEED GO.CSUCI.EDU CSU Channel Islands ad x 8” 5 col. (10.125”) Full-color em [email protected] Pigskin ad 2016 The Acorn 2016 17, Due: Aug PAGE 4 PIGSKIN PREVIEW CANYON LEAGUE PLAYER AGOURA TO WATCH Bolts want to light up foes during run to a three-peat HEAD COACH: Kamran Salem (third season) 2017 RESULTS: 6-5 (3-0 in league) CIF-SS first round By Eliav Appelbaum [email protected] BEN TENE When Tene’s biography gets Kamran Salem didn’t spend written, the fi ery, 6-foot-1, his summer submerged in a fi lm 205-pound senior wants to room, watching every play in the be known for three things: history of North American foot- He’s hardworking, a good ball on repeat until his eyes turned athlete and a good student. into bloodshot marshmallows. Tene, who sports a 3.7 GPA, He escaped the noise by read- spent his summer hitting the ing and refl ecting on a book, “In- gym and interning at Century sideOut Coaching: How Sports 21 Peak real estate. The Can Transform Lives,” an inspira- outside linebacker missed tional tome by former NFL player seven games in 2017, but no Joe Ehrmann. returning Charger registered What did Salem learn? more tackles for loss.