Taft promises to show up against Birmingham

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After a dispiriting 21-point loss to Banning on Sept. 28, Taft Coach Matt Kerstetter rallied his team with a simple plan: Make the season-ending game against Birmingham meaningful.

To do that, Taft had to get on a roll. The Toreadors (7-2, 4-0) have won five games in a row, including Friday’s 28-12 victory over Chatsworth. So Taft and Birmingham (8-1, 4-0) will decide the West Valley League champion this week.

Kerstetter doesn’t minimize the challenge Taft has in hosting the Patriots. ‘I’ve told people all season [Birmingham] is the best City team I have seen in my seven years here,’ he said. ‘They’ve rolled up every City team they’ve played. I swear they are the high school version of the New England Patriots.

‘Offensively and defensively we have to minimize our mistakes to be in the game. This is the first taste many of our kids will get of the Birmingham rivalry game. We’ll try to approach it like every other game. But I know it’s asking a lot to think some of our kids won’t get caught up in that.’

-- Mike Terry

-- Image from www.taftfootball.com