Erickson, Jordan, Crescenta Valley lead way in Pacific League football selections
A postseason berth, a triumph in the Victory Bell game and a winning preseason were just a few of the highlights, respectively, for the Crescenta Valley High, Hoover and Glendale football teams this season.
The Pacific League doled out a few more accolades to all three squads as each merited multiple selections, led by 14 picks for the Falcons.
This past season, Crescenta Valley finished 8-3 and 5-2 in league to take third in the Pacific League a year after winning the crown.
The Falcons also suffered a 13-12 loss in the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division VI playoffs to eventual semifinalist Mira Costa.
Of the trio, Crescenta Valley was the only one to win a major award as senior defensive end/tight end Brian Erickson was named the Pacific League Defensive Player of the Year, while senior lineman Destin Jordan shared co-linemen of the year honors with Burbank’s Anthony Lira.
“As I look back at this season, there’s some disappointment that we didn’t go further in the playoffs,” Crescenta Valley coach Paul Schilling said. “It didn’t end the way we wanted it to, but we also had eight wins this year, which is something that not that many CV teams have done.”
Erickson was the lone athlete from any school not to split a major award after leading the league with 119 tackles (10.8 per game), while tying for third in sacks (nine). On offense, Erickson hauled in 15 catches for 232 yards and two touchdowns.
“I definitely feel like I earned the award and worked hard for it, but I didn’t expect anything,” Erickson said. “I knew what I had to do to succeed and I was part of a pretty good defense.”
As for Jordan, the senior was stout on the offensive line and part of an offense that averaged 195.5 rushing yards per game and finished with 25 rushing touchdowns.
“There were two kids nominated for the award and they were both the two best linemen in the league,” Schilling said. “I’m happy for Destin. He’s a three-year starter, he’s a worker and a leader.”
Crescenta Valley’s offense had a couple of additions on the first team, including junior quarterback Cole Doyle, an offensive skill pick.
The signal-caller completed 104 of 204 passes for 1,573 yards and 20 touchdowns versus seven interceptions. The dual-threat quarterback also rushed 122 times for 759 yards and nine touchdowns.
“Honestly, if you just look at the pure stats, he improved,” Schilling said. “Last year, he threw 15 touchdowns to eight interceptions and this year he had five more touchdowns with one less interception. I thought he had a great year and I think he has the respect of everyone in league.”
One of Doyle’s top blockers was senior Tommy Chun, who was also tabbed to the first-team offensive line.
“I thought we had three guys who could have made the first team, but you don’t get to make those choices when you don’t win league,” Schilling said. “We could only get one guy on the first team and Tommy had a great year.”
Falcon Chris Wood was selected to the league’s first team as a kicker after the senior finished seven of nine on field-goal attempts and was 46 of 49 on extra-point tries. Wood also booted an amazing 51 touchbacks.
“Those touchbacks were unbelievable,” Schilling said. “That’s where he won the vote. Chris is a kicker, not a soccer guy, and he loves what he does and it shows.”
On defense, the Falcons picked up two first-team selections, leading with senior Jaedin Springfield.
The lineman was a beast and finished with 83 tackles (7.5 per game) along with eight sacks.
“Jaedin is a super crazy hard-worker,” Schilling said. “He’s a [4x100-meter] runner on the track team and is the team’s fastest sprinter. His quickness is what makes him so tough for other teams.”
Senior Tyler Lobianco earned the last of his team’s first-team nods at defensive back after tallying 28 tackles and three interceptions. At receiver, Lobianco caught 33 passes for 603 yards and seven touchdowns.
“Tyler had a great season and he could have honestly been on the ballot as a first-team receiver,” Schilling said. “That’s the hardest thing at times, figuring out where to put these guys on the ballot.”
Glendale Unified’s only other Pacific League first-teamer was Hoover senior quarterback/running back/receiver/linebacker Quran Bouldin, who was named first-team offensive skill.
The talented performer rushed for 861 yards and passed for 335 yards, while catching 17 passes for 410 yards. He tallied 11 total touchdowns.
On defense, Bouldin added 43 tackles, five sacks, four forced fumbles and two interceptions.
“Quran was vital to everything that took place on offense,” Hoover coach Terrance Jones said. “He always seemed to be out there and he could make plays on both sides of the ball.”
Bouldin and Hoover finished 2-8, but continued recent success against Glendale with a 35-25 win in the season finale.
The Tornadoes boasted two second-team picks in junior defensive back James Chang and defensive lineman Azad Markosian.
Chang finished with 53 tackles, three interceptions, three forced fumbles and seven pass deflections. On offense, the receiver caught 20 passes for 554 yards and had six total touchdowns.
Markosian contributed 37 tackles, four sacks, two fumble recoveries, two forced fumbles and blocked four extra-point attempts.
Crescenta Valley picked up five second-team accolades in offensive skill player Austin Novak (25 catches for 386 yards and five touchdowns), offensive lineman Riley Center (16 tackles on defense), defensive lineman Alec Derpetrossian (73 tackles, Pacific League-leading 11 sacks), linebacker Chase Center (43 tackles, two interceptions and three touchdowns on offense) and defensive back Angel Ochoa (44 tackles, Pacific League-leading five interceptions and five offensive touchdowns).
Glendale posted a winning 2-1 preseason and finished 2-8 this season.
“It was a tough season, but there were some positives, too,” Glendale coach George Maiale said. “We kept fighting and I like that right now we have a lot of guys working out on their own and getting ready for next season.”
The Nitros earned two all-league honorable mentions in junior quarterback Van Haslett (11 passing touchdowns and three rushing touchdowns with 1,250 yards of total offense) and junior linebacker Chris Ybarra (83 tackles, 18 tackles for a loss, four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and three sacks).
Hoover added two honorable mentions in junior quarterback Andrew Rangel and senior defensive end Allen Melikyan.
Rangel threw for 260 yards and four touchdowns, caught 16 passes for 315 yards and two touchdowns and tallied 38 tackles and two interceptions.
Melikyan contributed 69 tackles, six sacks and two forced fumbles.
Crescenta Valley senior running back Joe Suh (104 carries for 679 yards with eight touchdowns and 15 receptions for 167 yards and four scores) and sophomore linebacker/receiver Vincent Parrott (30 tackles with three touchdowns on offense) were tabbed as honorable mentions.
