Saugus looking for more than respect

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Saugus isn’t looking for respect from its Foothill League brethren anymore.

Even before Friday’s 34-19 victory over Valencia, the Centurions, ranked No. 23 in this week’s Times’ rankings, feel like they’ve already achieved admiration from the likes of Hart, Canyon and Valencia.

They’re looking for something more -- and I don’t know if it was the postgame adrenaline talking -- but Saugus wants and, more importantly expects, to fight its way to a Foothill League title.

‘This win was a big step toward our goal of becoming Foothill champions,’ said Saugus RB Ryan Zirbel, who rushed for 167 yards and three TDs in 22 carries. ‘We’ve got respect and we’re getting more now.’

And you can tell the Centurions are getting a little used to being ‘big time.’ Last year, following their victory over the Vikings, the players and fans all went crazy since it marked the first time in a while the Cents came away with a ‘W’ against a recent league champ like Valencia.

I don’t know if Saugus’ first-half dominance had anything to do with it, but tonight’s reaction was much more subdued. I guess that’s because Saugus was actually the favorite in this one and was pretty much in control from the start.

‘The deal this year is we’re not going to surprise anybody anymore,’ Saugus Coach Jason Bornn said. ‘We’re past that.’

(Above is a photo of the Saugus defenders, who recorded an amazing 10 sacks against Valencia. And I didn’t think they could ever top that nine-sack performance they had last week against St. Francis. What do I know?)

- Austin Knoblauch