Friday Night Lights Returns
to Santa Barbara’s
Central Coast
The Independent’s High School Football Preview
By Victor Bryant | August 17, 2023
Excitement is at a fever pitch as a long offseason of training will finally pay off under the Friday night lights when the 2023 high school football season begins on Friday, August 18, with week zero games on the docket for the majority of schools around the state. Here’s a roundup of what’s going on in the Santa Barbara area.
Santa Barbara
The Dons are coming off a successful 2022 campaign in which they shared the Channel League title and finished 9-2 overall. A storybook run under JT Stone in his final season as coach came to a humbling end at the hands of eventual CIF-SS Division 4 champion Downey and their superstar quarterback Aidan Chiles (now at Oregon State) with a first-round loss in the CIF-SS Division 4 playoffs.
With 10 starters returning on offense, including three-year starting quarterback Abel Renteria, Santa Barbara is once again a Channel League title contender. First-year coach Nate Mendoza, who led Dos Pueblos to the CIF Championship game in 2017, brings a renewed urgency to the Santa Barbara program. With a talented and experienced roster on hand, expectations are high.
“Our players have been saying since January that they don’t want to share the league title again, so they’ve got a lot of work to do,” Mendoza said. “It goes without saying that Rio Mesa and Pacifica are outstanding programs in our league.”
It is the final season of the current iteration of the Channel League — next season, the teams will be split up into different leagues that are intended to enhance competitive equity.
Santa Barbara figures to boast a balanced offensive attack this season with all five starters returning on the offensive line, including sophomore Malachi Johnston, who picked up a scholarship offer from the University of Nevada in the offseason, and four seniors: AJ Gomez, Javier Tinoco, Noah Napoles, and Adrian Chavez. That experienced group will block for senior running back Koa Herrera and junior Bode Fauskee. At 6’3″ and 220 pounds, Renteria is also a bully in the run game from the quarterback position.
“Some games I’m going to have to put the team on my back, and I’m fine with that,” said Renteria, who rushed for nearly 500 yards and nine touchdowns last season.
Renteria has a talented group of receivers led by Channel League Receiver of the Year junior Kai Mault, who eclipsed 1,000 yards receiving. Fellow junior Tomas Gil and seniors Winston Bartley and Jack Holdren have also proved to be reliable and explosive targets. Santa Barbara may not pass quite as much as last season, but the Dons will undoubtedly be very effective when they do.
“I think in the Pacifica game, Abel threw the ball 60-some times, and maybe we’re going to run it more,” Mendoza said. “It’s a different mindset, but it’s on us coaches to establish that.”
On defense, the Dons are athletic in the secondary with senior Jordan Mitchum returning at corner and senior Jacob Nevarez returning at safety. Sophomore Monty Lopez has earned the starting cornerback spot opposite Mitchum and may also contribute at wide receiver.
Linebackers Chaz Rosales and Michael Cabral figure to be a strength of the front seven. Fauskee will also contribute at outside linebacker. On the defensive line, Ivan Hernandez returns, and Napoles will likely play both ways.
Santa Barbara has a challenging schedule beginning at Thousand Oaks on Friday, August 18. Thousand Oaks was 10-1 overall last season. In their second game of the season, the Dons will take on traditional powerhouse Valencia out of the rugged Foothill League.
Bishop Diego
The 2023 Bishop Diego football team is extremely young and very talented. The Cardinals only have two seniors on their entire team, so predicting wins and losses will be a difficult task, but coach Tom Crawford and his staff are confident that they can avoid a significant drop-off, despite the lack of experience.
“We’ve reached a point with the program that there are high expectations. The guys buy into the work ethic that is needed to strive for those expectations,” said Crawford. “This is going to be an interesting year for us in the sense that this is by far the youngest group that we’ve had.”
Last season, the Cardinals finished 9-4 overall and reached the CIF-SS Division 3 Semifinals, where they fell to Upland 17-7.
The foundation of the Bishop Diego running game has been powerful offensive lines and talented running backs. That formula remains intact, as the Cardinals return three players with starting experience on the offensive line, including Tristan Fui, Mays Pese, and JD Vargas. Pese has offers from Washington State, Oregon State, and University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), among others. Fui is one of the two seniors on the roster, and at 6’3″ and 280 pounds, he is an intimidating presence at left tackle.
“Me and my linemen have been working since January, so I’m really looking forward to this season,” Fui said. “We also have Mays [Pese]; he has been leading the defensive line, and I have been leading the offensive line.”
The primary ball carrier for Bishop Diego will be senior Misa Paiau, who rushed for nearly 800 yards last season on 10 yards per carry. At 5’11” and about 215 pounds, Paiau has excellent agility for an athlete his size and appears ready to explode in his final season.
“We’ve got a pretty young team, but we’re working to get better every day, improving every day and every practice,” Paiau said. “We’re not wasting any time.”
Qu’Ran Gossett eclipsed 2,000 yards rushing last season and is now at University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). The Cardinals will need Paiau to replicate that production for Bishop Diego to compete in the ultra-competitive Marmonte League. Paiau has an offer from Cal Poly and will likely garner more recruiting attention as the season progresses.
At quarterback, sophomore Tua Rojas will take the reins, and he brings a dual-threat element. He is shiftier than what Bishop Diego quarterbacks have displayed in recent years. What Rojas lacks in experience, he makes up for in upside.
Rojas is the younger brother of former St. Bonaventure superstar quarterback Kai Rojas, who went on to play football at the United States Naval Academy.
Fellow sophomore John Michael Flint may also get some snaps at quarterback and will likely start in the secondary with his athletic 6’3″ frame.
“Both quarterbacks had a really nice summer in terms of passing and so forth,” said Crawford of Rojas and Flint. “Both are very talented athletes that can play in the secondary as well.”
The strength of the defense will likely be at linebacker, where Paiau and Isaiah Kitt return. Jason Loitu and Ash Zimmerman will share the duties at inside linebacker after getting extensive work on JV last season.
The secondary will be very inexperienced. The Cardinals will rely on Sam Crawford and Flint at safety. Gabe Villa and Nick Malesky will get the bulk of snaps at cornerback. Malesky is also the team’s top wide receiver.
Bishop Diego will open the season at home against Foothill of Santa Ana, on Saturday, August 19, in what should be a competitive game.
San Marcos
The Royals have narrowly missed the playoffs in back-to-back seasons, and in the final season of the Channel League as we know it, they are looking to reverse that trend.
“We’re almost there. The good thing is our kids; they want to get to the playoffs this year,” said San Marcos coach Ralph Molina. “It’s our last year in Channel League, and I feel good about it.”
San Marcos is big up front on the offensive line led by Manny Verdugo; Tyler McLain; and Dante Bruice, who is 6’8″ and 280 pounds. The Royals will try to run the ball with a stable of backs led by junior Nathan Jones, Joseph Herrera, and Diego Pedroza, and linebacker Brody Branstetter will also contribute in the running game, among others.
San Marcos quarterback Danny Diaz has flashed mobility during preseason practices. | Credit: Victor Bryant
Junior Danny Diaz will take over at quarterback. What he lacks in size he makes up for in mobility. His top target will be 6’2″ wide receiver Luke Crawford, who will also start at cornerback. He led the team in receptions last season. Landon Sheffey, at 6’2″ and 215 pounds, will start at wide receiver and cornerback as well.
“The close games that we lost two years ago and last year — our goal is that we have to win those games to get over that hurdle,” Molina said. “We’re headed in the right direction.”
San Marcos will open the season at home against Knight of Palmdale on Friday, August 18.
Dos Pueblos
The hopes of a resurgence in the Dos Pueblos football program begin with senior quarterback Ryan Marsh, who is poised for a breakout senior season.
Marsh has put 40 pounds onto his 6’3″ frame and is the undisputed leader of the Dos Pueblos offense.
“For me, coming off last year, we had some good games, we had some bad games, and for me personally it was the same thing — we had some highs and lows,” Marsh said. “Just to be able to stay consistent throughout the whole season is a big thing for us. Making sure that everything is going well and staying healthy is a big part of it as well.”
It’s year three for Dos Pueblos coach AJ Pateras, and the 18 seniors are fully accustomed to the tenants of the program. Senior running back/safety Matthew Welch will be a leader on both sides of the ball. Daniel Johnston will also play a key role at wide receiver/cornerback.
Emiliano Rodriguez and Juancarlos Contreras will anchor the offensive line and are two physically imposing players at around 260 pounds. Danny Vidaure and Kaleb Williams will run the ball in addition to Welch.
Nathan Warren and Micah Barnhart will anchor a deep receiving core along with Johnston.
On defense, Roman Alonzo is a physical specimen on the defensive line and will also contribute at tight end.
The Chargers open the season at home against Burbank, whom they defeated on a last-second field goal in last season’s opener.
Carpinteria
The Carpinteria High football team opens its season on the road at Long Beach Cabrillo on Friday, August 25. The Warriors took major strides last season, boosting their win total from zero in 2021 to four in 2022.
The Warriors return senior quarterback Talon Trumble, who emerged as a star running and throwing the ball last season.
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