Rancho Verde can sleepwalk through league play

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I probably left the impression Tuesday that Riverside North had the biggest cakewalk in league play this fall.

I’d like to move Rancho Verde to the top of that list instead, please.

The Mustangs (3-2 thanks to two forfeits) could bench half their starters against Inland Valley League foes, replace them with tuba players, the drum major and the guy who stands on a ladder and flails his arm like a wasp is on his back, and still go undefeated.

Too bad Rancho Verde and Riverside North don’t fill out the Mountain View League this year. That would be one dynamite league.

I guess if I had to pick a challenger in the Inland Valley it would be Moreno Valley (4-1). The Vikings didn’t look so hot while losing their opener to Elisinore, 14-6, but have won four straight, most recently a 37-34 victory over previously unbeaten Arroyo Valley. It was the fourth time this season that Moreno Valley’s game has been decided on the final possession.

The Mustangs host Moreno Valley on Oct. 26 and the Vikings’ best hope is that Rancho Verde gets caught looking ahead to their toughest opponent this season, a nonleague game at Norco on Nov. 2. The Cougars are ranked No. 18 in the Southland by The Times and should have starting running back Joshua Nakamoto back from injury by then.

The Mustangs have the league’s most exciting player in senior receiver Andrew Bouvay, a former quarterback at L.A. Fremont. I watched him catch 10 passes for 191 yards and a touchdown in a 38-28 victory last month over visiting Bloomington, showing Robbie Boyer-like hands, but more athleticism.

Of course, the league’s best player is Rancho Verde offensive tackle Tyron Smith, a USC commit and Army All-American game selection who is ranked No. 3 in state, regardless of position.

Can’t forget the big guy.

- Dan Arritt