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Weatherspoon, La Habra to Drive for Title

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Times Staff Writer

A voice boomed with resonance, echoing out of the locker room and into the coaches’ office at Fullerton High School.

“Martin! Can I come in?”

John Turek, the coach who works just down the street, stood in the doorway, wearing a matching shirt and hat proudly promoting Troy football.

“Sure, you can always come in,” Fullerton Coach Martin Luczaj said. “We don’t change anything. Same offense. Same defense.”

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Turek glanced at the blackboard and the maze of Xs and Os hastily scribbled on it.

“Looks good,” he said, laughing.

“It always looks good,” Luczaj answered.

Like Martin Luczaj’s strategy, the Freeway League once again looks good in 1985. Like other leagues, it looks good on the field, with balance again being the most notable characteristic. But unlike other leagues, perhaps, the Freeway League appears to display a rare strength off the field as well. Separated by just a few miles, the six schools are linked not only by the 91 Freeway, Chapman Avenue and a few other roads, but also by the fact that they belong to the same district.

And they share rivalries that may only be termed healthy and not hostile, a departure from many a high school rivalry.

That’s why John Turek felt perfectly comfortable invading Fullerton headquarters to borrow a canister of film to prepare for Troy’s season opener against Garden Grove.

And that’s why Martin Luczaj smiled and acted as though it was his longtime neighbor knocking on his door to borrow a can of paint.

“The rivalries are not unhealthy at all, to the extent that there’s mudslinging or vicious things said or anything like that,” Sunny Hills Coach Tim Devaney explained.

The other day, faculty members from around the district gathered for breakfast. That, of course, included the coaches.

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The players grew up competing against each other and still know their opponents almost as well as their own teammates.

The coaches maintain, for the most part, a mutual respect, and socializing among themselves is not uncommon. Turek and Devaney live two minutes apart. Buena Park Coach Bart Goldstein appeared at a La Habra practice last season to get a better handle on which players to select for his all-league team.

“I don’t think there’s any coach in this league that feels another coach is just a big jerk,” Goldstein said. “It’s not a ‘hate’ situation. If the coaches didn’t get along it would be a problem, a real big problem. It would just rub off on the kids.”

The rivalries intensify once they start playing, and this season they’ll be burning hotter than ever. None of the teams’ league games can be termed an easy victory.

But at the same time, the consensus is that La Habra, which returns perhaps the best running back in Orange County in Chuck Weatherspoon, is a clear favorite.

Five of the six coaches give La Habra the edge.

“La Habra is the team to beat,” Luczaj said. “The rest of us are a toss-up.”

The coach abstaining from the voting was La Habra’s Bob Rau. Naturally.

“It’s real nice of ‘em, but they’re just tryin’ to take the pressure off their own backs,” he said of the preseason forcast. “I absolutely believe any team in our league could beat us if we don’t play well. We have to play extremely well each week, and even then there are no guarantees.

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“This league is unreal.”

Here’s a closer look at the Freeway League:

BUENA PARK: Key Personnel--Scott Milligan (5-11, 170), QB; Mike Carr (5-11, 160), WR/DB; Robert Lemon (6-0, 185), OL/LB and Jeff Guglielmana (5-9, 170), RB/DL.

Top Newcomers--Orlando Robbins (6-2, 180), WR/DB; Quentin Hoff (6-0, 160), OL/LB and David Baylor (6-0, 180) WR/DB.

Outlook--Reggie Brown, who gained 1,140 yards and scored 13 touchdowns is gone, but the hiring of seven new coaches will more than make up for his absence, Goldstein says. And the potential is there, he says, for the inexperienced Coyotes to go from being winless in league play last season to league champions in ’85. “A lot of last year’s coaches shouldn’t have been on the varsity level,” said Goldstein, 27. “The team’s reflecting the coaches, and the coaches are very confident in themselves. I’m smiling for the first time in two years.” Unlike last season, Buena Park will rely on the pass, and will count a great deal on Milligan. “Last year, it was Reggie right, Reggie left,” said George Fraser, an assistant coach. “If Milligan continues along the same course, he’s got a shot at being the number one quarterback in the county.”

FULLERTON: Key Personnel--Victor Williams (5-9, 170), QB; Mike Chacon (5-10, 175), RB/S; Curt Daggett (5-9, 160) WR and Garrick McNey (5-10, 175), RB/LB.

Top Newcomers--Ben Reynolds (6-7, 250), OT; Jeff Miller (5-10, 190) and OG; Greg Putignani (5-10, 190), C.

Outlook--”Nobody’s picking us for anything,” Luczaj says. “I hope they’re overlooking us. We were the underdog last year. We might as well be the underdog this year.” With only four starters returning, the Indians clearly will not be the favorite. “It’s hard to pick a position and tell you that that we weren’t absolutely wiped out there,” Luczaj said. Still, the passing game should be strong with Williams and Daggett, and that’s what Luczaj will emphasize. Lack of maturity could be the Indians’ downfall, but they surprised everyone last year by winning the Central Conference championship. And Luczaj believes they have a chance to return to the playoffs this year. “I think it’s a realistic goal, sure,” he said. “I may tell you that’s a lie on Sept. 13, though.”

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LA HABRA: Key Personnel--Chuck Weatherspoon (5-8, 190), RB; Adolf Renaud (6-0, 180), WR/S; Jeff Ramsey (6-1, 215), OT/DT; Scott Hooper (6-2, 200), TE/LB and Chris Cisneros (5-11, 215), C/LB.

Top Newcomers--Matt Shackelford (5-9, 145), QB and Kevin Capps (5-6, 155), RB/LB.

Outlook--Rau, on his team being ranked No. 1 in the league: “We’ll laugh about it a lot. I think it’s absurd to pick teams.” Rau, on the way the Highlanders shape up: “At this point in time, we’re not a bad football team.” Either the other coaches are overestimating La Habra, or Rau is underestimating his team. There will be no stopping Weatherspoon, and that being the case, there may be no stopping La Habra. Last season, he gained 1,164 yards, averaged 7.3 yards per carry and scored 12 touchdowns. The Highlanders have experience, too, with 11 starters returning. They are young at quarterback, with John Robertson, a junior and Shackelford, a sophomore. But Rau isn’t worried about the quarterback position. The rest of the league should be worried about La Habra.

SONORA: Key Personnel--Steve Stamper (5-9, 180), RB/WR/DB; Brian Miller (5-11, 180), TE/LB; Art Valencia (6-1, 195), TE/LB; Jim Brodeske (5-10, 200), OG/DE and Ron Lesperance (5-9, 165), QB/S.

Top Newcomers--John Davis (5-11, 195), RB/LB; Duene Bell (6-2, 220), RB/LB and Gary Stick (6-0, 180), TE/DE.

Outlook--Gordon Blakeley, the Raiders’ defensive coordinator the last three years, takes over for Vince Senik and will try to help the team rebound from last year’s 1-4 league record and fifth-place standing. The last two years, Sonora got off to 4-1 starts but ended its season at 6-4 (1983) and 5-5 (1984). “We want to stay away from peaking too early,” Blakeley said. “We want to peak going into the league (season). You’ve gotta be careful not to burn the kids out right away.” Aside from the presence of Blakeley, the most apparent difference between this season and ’84 will be a better defense and a weaker offense. Seven starters return on offense, and only two return on defense. Speed and strength are there, but experience isn’t. Nor is tradition. “The loss of a winning tradition at our school (the Raiders’ last playoff appearance was in 1978) will be a big hurdle to go over,” Blakeley said. “Winning’s a habit. Losing’s a habit.”

SUNNY HILLS: Key Personnel--Darrell Lewis (6-4, 260), OT/DT; David Wackerman (6-0, 185), RB/ DB; John Heyen (6-1, 200), OG/DT; Pat Mason (6-3, 215), OG/DT; Tim Imperiali (6-0, 175), RB/DB; Kalee Fonseca (5-10, 170), WR/DB; Rob Tash (5-10, 175), LB; Ty Cashman (5-11, 170), LB and Jason Donovan (5-7, 150), DB.

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Top Newcomers: Trevor Painton (6-0, 170), QB; David Chisum (5-11, 170), QB/DB; Bryan Edmunds (5-10, 200), RB/DT; Scott Edmunds (5-11, 195) and RB/DT; Ric DeFazio (6-1, 170), DE.

Outlook--While everyone mentions La Habra just as soon as the subject of the Freeway League is raised, Devaney has the luxury of hiding awhile. But sooner or later, he knows he’ll be found. “This year I think we’re the unknown commodity in the league,” he said. “But nobody likes us anyway, so they’re gonna shoot for us.” One reason may be that the Lancers were league champions in 1977, ‘78, ‘80, ’81 and ‘84, went to the CIF semifinals in ‘77, ’80 and ’84 and won the CIF title in ’83. Fullback Tim Byrnes, who gained 960 yards and scored 13 touchdowns, and Mike Lutz, who passed for 902 yards, will not be easy to replace. Just three starters return on offense and only one on defense. And while Sunny Hills is lacking in size, Devaney is not lacking in confidence. “I have a good feeling about this team,” he said. “I don’t see a dark cloud hanging over Sunny Hills.”

TROY: Key Personnel--David St. Clair (6-0, 180), QB/S; Art Temple (6-3, 250), OT/NG; David Doidge (6-1, 190), TE/C; Torey Shinault (6-2, 195), FB/LB; Jeff Sant (5-11, 180), OG/NG; Dan Hano (6-1, 195), OT/DT and Ron Jackson (5-11, 175), RB/SS.

Top Newcomers--Jim DiFilippo (6-3, 230), OT/DT; Eric Wright-Hay (6-3, 220) C/DT; David Shirota (5-9, 150), WR; Mike Greer (6-1, 170), FL/S; Stan Davis (6-0, 180), FB/DE and Wayne Ryan (6-1, 185), FB/LB.

Outlook--”We’re better than we were last year,” Turek will tell you, and you think the Warriors will have little trouble improving on their 6-5 overall record, which got them into the playoffs despite a fourth-place finish. But the cautiously optimistic Turek said: “We look good against ourselves, but we may be pretty crummy.” Troy has a top-quality quarterback in St. Clair, who threw for more than 1,000 yards last season and 10 touchdowns. Both the offensive and defensive lines look strong, dominated by the huge presence of Temple. But like the other teams in the league and maybe even to a greater extent, Troy is plagued by a lack of depth. Hence, Turek’s reservations: “We’re certainly capable of being in the playoffs again. And we could go 0-5, too.”

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