White leads Edison
For more than half his life, Dave White has led the Edison High football team. He’s 60 years old, and at times during practice, White shows his age by wearing an old leather helmet.
The old-school look keeps the players loose and White young. When you’re in charge of a program as long as White has been at Edison, you find ways to have fun.
White still enjoys coaching teenagers, so much so that he does not want his 31st and final season to end. He said it feels as though his last year has gone by quickly.
He has coached 13 games since Aug. 20, when Edison’s season kicked off in Maui, Hawaii. The year started in paradise, and 15 weeks later, White is on the verge of leading the Chargers to the promised land.
Game No. 14 for White is the CIF Southern Section Division 3 championship game between his No. 2-seeded Chargers (12-1) and No. 1 La Mirada (11-2). White believes there could be more in store for Edison after it plays at La Mirada on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
White is hoping there will be more games to prepare for, more games to play. He is stepping down after the season to spend more time with his family, to follow his son Garrett play football at Yale.
The perfect way for White to go into retirement is a day or two before he turns 61 on Dec. 18. The CIF State Bowl Games are on Dec. 16 and 17. Leading Edison to its first state championship in the program’s history would be the ideal way for White to go out.
“I think if we win, we have a shot at state,” said White, referring to the Chargers earning a berth into a CIF State Southern California Regional Bowl Game, the precursor to a state final. “We’d be 13-1 and [our only loss would have been] to Mater Dei, and we [would have] beat La Mirada, the defending state [Division III-AA] champion. But we’re not even thinking about that. We’re trying to win this one.”
White is not overlooking La Mirada, ranked No. 15 in the state by CalHiSports.com. He understands how hard it is to reach this point in the season and how much harder it is to win a section crown.
“You have to have a lot of hard work, some luck, and you have to stay healthy,” White said.
White would know. He has been to this stage before. More often than not, White has been on the losing end.
This marks the Chargers’ fifth section finals appearance under White. The first time he led his alma mater to this round was in 2001, and the final trip has come 15 years later. It has been a remarkable last 16 years for White, who every three years or so has his program in the big game.
The only time White guided Edison to the top was four years ago, in the Southwest Division. He lost in his first three tries, to Long Beach Poly in 2001, to Orange Lutheran in ‘06, and to Servite in ‘09, all in the premier division.
The Chargers, ranked No. 16 in the state, are in the third highest division this year. No matter the division, White said he tells his players to treat championship week as they would any other week.
“You can’t get the players too hyped. You don’t want them nervous,” White said. “We’re not changing much. [We have the] same routine. [We] watch our film and do our practice.”
White has kept himself busy this week watching film on the Matadores. White said he has watched 11 of La Mirada’s 13 games this year.
There are six games White has zeroed in on, starting with the most recent ones in the playoffs, the 36-20 win on the road against Los Alamitos in the semifinals, the 32-31 come-from-behind win at home against Whittier La Serna in the quarterfinals, and the 49-6 blowout win at home against Paso Robles in the first round. The other three La Mirada contests White has focused on were from nonleague play in September, a 34-0 loss at home to Bellflower St. John Bosco, a 48-0 loss on the road to Mater Dei, and a 43-14 win at home against San Clemente.
La Mirada’s two setbacks have come against the current top two teams in the state. Edison has also lost to Mater Dei, one of two common opponents the Chargers and Matadores share. The other is Los Alamitos.
The Chargers lost to the Monarchs, 42-0, in nonleague action at Orange Coast College, and they defeated the Griffins, 17-9, at Veterans Stadium in Long Beach, helping White claim his second straight undefeated Sunset League title.
The footage on La Mirada that stood out the most to White was last week’s win against Los Alamitos. He said he came away impressed with how running back Nick Hernandez, nursing a rib injury, ran 39 times for 142 yards and three touchdowns and with how efficient quarterback Tristan Meyer played, completing 16 of 19 passes for 269 yards and a touchdown.
“[They run a] pro-style [offense], with a tight end, two backs, under center mostly,” White said of the Matadores, who average 42.4 points, 196.2 rushing yards and 171.8 passing yards per game. “They shift. They motion. They try to get you uncomfortable and confused, and they run the same plays. They want to control the clock, the possession.”
White said the key for Edison is to keep the Matadores’ offense off the field. He said his gut tells him that La Mirada will run 20 more plays than the Chargers.
At the end, the number of plays don’t matter to White. For him, it’s what a team does with them.
As far as producing yards and points in a hurry, White hasn’t had to worry much with Griffin O’Connor running Edison’s no-huddle, spread offense.
The junior quarterback has thrown for 2,985 yards and 33 touchdowns, with only five interceptions. He has three standout wide receivers to throw to, Shaun Colamonico (48 receptions for 916 yards and 12 touchdowns), E.J. Ginnis (46 receptions for 926 yards and 11 touchdowns) and David Atencio (32 receptions for 485 yards and six touchdowns). He can also go to a versatile running back in Jack Carmichael, who has rushed for 845 yards and 10 touchdowns, and caught 23 passes for 296 yards and three touchdowns.
“We hoped we’d get there. We kind of figured they’d be there,” White said of the Chargers and the preseason favorite Matadores meeting in the section finale. “They got a lot of guys back [from their Southeast Division championship team from last year]. We’re happy, fortunate and fired up to be there. We started our season on Aug. 1, had that early game in Hawaii, and now we’re playing in December. It’s good stuff.”
Things are so good for White that he wants his last season to continue for two more weeks. The ultimate going away gift for White would be for Edison to win him a state title, a day or two before his birthday.
