Game of the Week: Crescenta Valley High, Burbank brace for collision course

The following are previews of the area’s upcoming high school football games this week.

Approaching the halfway point in the season, Crescenta Valley and Burbank sport winning records and have spent the entire season ranked in the CIF Southern Section Southeast Division poll.

With Crescenta Valley owning a prolific offensive attack and Burbank normally playing sound defense, each will look to continue turning to their strengths when the Falcons and Bulldogs meet at 7 p.m. Friday in a key Pacific League contest at Burroughs High’s Memorial Field.

Crescenta Valley (4-0) and Burbank (3-1) each opened with Pacific League victories Friday. Crescenta Valley, ranked No. 5 in the division, started league play with a 48-21 home win against Burroughs. Crescenta Valley ended a five-game losing streak against Burroughs. Burbank, ninth in the division despite having lost standout running back and reigning All-Area first-team pick James Williams to a season-ending knee injury during the second week of the season, began league with a 34-14 road win against Pasadena.

“These are the kind of games you want to play in when you go up against a team like Burbank,” Crescenta Valley Coach Paul Schilling said. “I can see this being a great game.

“They don’t have James, but they are still very good. They have a very quick and aggressive defense that can come after you in a hurry. It’s going to come down to who wins the turnover battle, who can hold on to the ball more.”

Crescenta Valley senior quarterback Brian Gadsby completed 16 of 25 passes for 255 yards and three touchdowns against Burroughs. Chase Walker, Jordan Lobianco and Connor Van Ginkel each caught a touchdown pass. Gadsby, a reigning All-Area first-team honoree, has completed 89 of 126 passes for 1,259 yards and 14 touchdowns on the season.

Crescenta Valley also turned to its ground attack, as running back Jonathan Jun rushed for 210 yards in 33 carries and four touchdowns.

Burbank, which advanced to the semifinals last season, has been successful under the tutelage of first-year coach Richard Broussard. The Bulldogs are yielding 19.2 points per game and have allowed 14 points in each of their three victories.

Broussard said he liked the way Burbank regrouped against Pasadena following a defeat against Canyon Country Canyon the previous game.

“It’s good to see the way they bounced back and it’s good to be 1-0 in league,” Broussard said. “We got a win against a pretty good team in Pasadena and we know it’s going to be an excellent test against CV.

“They put up a lot of offense, but we’ve been pretty sound throughout on defense.”

Burbank lineman Kyle Alvarez finished with three sacks against Pasadena. Burbank linebacker Chris Wong collected 11 tackles and fellow linebackers Andy Reyes and David Medrano had 10 apiece.

Burbank running back Tony Toledo notched 137 yards rushing in 22 carries and two touchdowns against Pasadena. On the season, he’s rushed for 334 yards in 71 carries and four touchdowns.

Both teams tied for second place a season ago, as Crescenta Valley posted a 48-47 overtime win against Burbank. However, Burbank is 5-3 against Crescenta Valley since joining the Pacific League in 2006.

Calabasas at St. Francis, 7 p.m. Thursday: Between 1997-99, Jim Bonds and Casey Clausen enjoyed plenty of success together at Alemany High. With Bonds coaching the program, he had a gifted quarterback in Clausen, who had transferred from La Cañada High. Alemany produced a lot of victories and became one of the premiere teams in the region.

Bonds and Clausen are now the head coaches at St. Francis and Calabasas, respectively, and the two will reunite on the field for the first time for a nonleague game.

“He’s one of the best players I’ve ever had,” said Bonds, whose team is 4-0 and remains ranked No. 1 in the latest CIF Southern Section Southeast Division poll. “We are still good friends and I’ve followed his career. I’m excited about him getting his first head-coaching job. I don’t usually like to play against friends, but I definitely want to see him do well and he will.”

Clausen, who played quarterback at the University of Tennessee, said Bonds has served as a mentor for him while moving up the coaching ranks.

“When I got the job at Calabasas, I called him,” Clausen said. “I have nothing but respect for coach Bonds because he’s taught me so much.

“It would be great to some day have a program similar to the one he runs at St. Francis. They are one of the top programs around and we think it will be a good opponent for us to go up against.”

St. Francis posted a 49-32 home nonleague win against Canyon Country Canyon on Friday. The Golden Knights have had no trouble scoring, as they are averaging 43.8 points per game.

However, Bonds said surrendering 32 points against Canyon was a bit of a concern.

“That’s not like us to normally give up that many points,” said Bonds, the reigning All-Area Coach of the Year. “We still feel like we haven’t played a complete games on offense, defense and special teams.

“Our offense bailed us out last week and our defense bailed us out the game before against Monrovia. So, we want to be able to excel in all three phases.”

St. Francis senior quarterback Jeremiah Martin completed 19 of 27 passes for 315 yards and a pair of touchdowns against Canyon. On the season, he’s completed 60 of 80 passes for 1,172 yards and 10 touchdowns to no interceptions. Martin and running back Avery Williams each rushed for two touchdowns against Canyon.

Calabasas dipped to 3-2 following a 38-23 nonleague home defeat against Rio Mesa on Friday. The Coyotes began the season 3-0 before losing two straight. Sophomore quarterback Tristan Gebbia completed 16 of 40 passes for 291 yards and three touchdowns and one interception against Rio Mesa. Gebbia is 81 of 134 for 1,308 yards and 16 touchdowns on the season.

Flintridge Prep at Campbell Hall, 4:30 p.m. Thursday: Flintridge Prep (3-2) will be on a very short week having just three days to prepare for Campbell Hall. At least the Rebels have some momentum after winning their second straight contest. Flintridge Prep cruised to a lopsided 47-8 nonleague home win against Mountain Empire on Saturday at Occidental College.

Flintridge Prep quarterback Andrew Tsangeos enjoyed a big effort, finishing with five total touchdowns. He completed nine of 13 passes for 134 yards and three touchdowns and had 11 rushes for 90 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Tsangeos’ favorite target has been wide receiver Riley Jones, who caught six passes for 66 yards and a pair of touchdowns Saturday.

Campbell Hall (3-0) posted a 43-20 win against California School for the Deaf on Sept. 19.

Flintridge Prep and Campbell Hall will meet for the first time since Sept. 24, 2010, when the Vikings notched a 33-14 victory.

Glendale at Arcadia, 7 p.m. Friday: Glendale has had recent difficulties finding the end zone during its three-game losing streak. In fact, the Nitros (1-3, 0-1 in the Pacific League) have scored only seven points in their last three games and have been blanked twice. Glendale suffered a league-opening 30-0 home loss against Muir on Sept. 25.

Against Muir, Glendale had just 95 yards of total offense. Running back Luis Ruiz finished with 38 yards rushing in 15 carries for Glendale, which forced three turnovers and perhaps will gain some confidence against Arcadia (2-2, 1-0).

Arcadia started off league Friday with a 24-7 home win against Hoover. The Apaches overcame a 7-0 deficit before scoring the game’s final 24 points. Arcadia committed four turnovers, but didn’t allow an offensive touchdown. Arcadia running back Bradley Mills rushed for 70 yards in 17 carries and teammate Josh Benson added 60 yards in nine carries and one touchdown against Hoover.

In last season’s matchup, Arcadia picked up a 14-6 victory on the road. The Apaches are 10-0 in their last 10 games against the Nitros.

Pasadena vs. Hoover at Glendale High’s Moyse Field, 7 p.m. Friday: Like Glendale, Hoover (1-3, 0-1 in the Pacific League) will look to snap out of its offensive funk. The Tornadoes have scored seven points in each of their last two games. Hoover began league Friday with a 24-7 road defeat against Arcadia. On the bright side, the Tornadoes forced four turnovers against Arcadia. Their only points came via an interception return by Sal Gomez that gave the Tornadoes a 7-0 lead in the second quarter.

Pasadena (1-3, 0-1) began league Friday with a 34-14 home defeat against Burbank. The Bulldogs have lost three games in a row.

Pasadena quarterback Jorge Reyes, who transferred from Downey, completed 10 of 26 passes for 136 yards and one touchdown against Burbank.

The Bulldogs posted a 33-13 win against the Tornadoes last season. The Tornadoes are 1-9 in their last 10 meetings with the Bulldogs. Hoover’s last win against Pasadena came Oct. 12, 2012, when it posted a 37-8 victory. That was the last time the Tornadoes won a league game. They have lost 11 league matchups in a row.