SAN DIEGO HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL : Expanded Playoff Format Will Give Hope to Near-Miss Teams

By CHRIS ELLO

Sept. 12, 1986 12 AM PT

SAN DIEGO —

An expanded playoff format, 12 teams instead of eight in both the 2-A and 3-A divisions, will bring the “near misses” of the past a taste of postseason play in 1986.

Teams such as Orange Glen, San Pasqual and Monte Vista, which all stayed home last year in spite of a combined record of 22-8, will get second lives.

Under the new format, the 12 teams that make the playoffs in Division 3-A will be the winners and the runners-up in the Palomar, Grossmont 3-A, Metro-Mesa and City Eastern leagues, with four more teams picked at large by the CIF from among all the leagues.

The winners of the Palomar, Grossmont, Metro-Mesa and City Eastern leagues will get a bye for the first week of playoffs while the runners-up play the at-large teams. The next week, the winners of those four leagues will play the first-week winners.

It will be the same format in Division 2-A, where the four designated leagues will be the Avocado, Grossmont 2-A, City Central and City Western.

But while there will be a greater chance to make the playoffs, the harsh reality of San Diego County high school football is that the seats of power were much the same in 1985 as they were in 1984, and this fall may well bring more of the same.

Consider:

--Sweetwater, the Section 3-A champion in 1983 and 1984, had its 36-game winning streak broken last season. However, it would hardly be fair to say the Red Devils had a poor season. They went 11-0 before losing in the 3-A semifinals to Helix, 15-6.

--Vista, the runner-up to Sweetwater in 1984, was 13-0 last year and won the 3-A championship, 35-7, over Helix. The Panthers also became the first team to win back-to-back Palomar League titles.

--Of the eight teams to qualify for the 3-A playoffs last season, five had qualified the previous season. Only Morse, the City Eastern League champion a year ago, had a losing record in 1984.

--Of the eight 2-A playoff teams in 1985, four were repeaters. And two of the teams that made the playoffs, Castle Park and El Capitan, qualified only because of different league alignments in both the Metro-South Bay and Grossmont League.

If more of the same is in order in 3-A play, Vista and Fallbrook will again dominate the Palomar League and Sweetwater and Chula Vista will again control the Metro-Mesa League. Granite Hills and Morse are favored to repeat as champions in their leagues as well.

In the 2-A, few would be surprised to see Lincoln repeat as section champion, and, as was the case last year, San Marcos and El Camino are expected to provide Lincoln’s stiffest competition.

But, whereas the top teams usually remain the same, that is not the case with the top players. Many of last season’s best have graduated and the new season brings with it new standouts.

Gone are Vista quarterback Sal Aunese and running back Roger Price. Sweetwater’s running back tandem of Terry Rodgers, the Times Back of the Year, and Martell Black is also gone.

The county’s leading rusher, Daryl Crawford of Montgomery, has also graduated, as has the county’s top passer, Valhalla’s Chadde Wolf. Tom Dabasinskas, the Times Lineman of the Year from San Pasqual, has also graduated.

This season, there are others waiting to step in and take their places, players like Vista running back Tommy Booker, Fallbrook wide receiver Bill Dunckel, Chula Vista quarterback Brian Murphy and University City running back Paul MacRenato.

And, under the new playoff rule, teams such as Orange Glen, San Pasqual and Monte Vista will get a chance to blossom--and challenge the same old powers.

As compiled by the Times staff, here is a look at the preseason Times Top 10:

1. Vista Panthers (13-0-0 last year)--The Panthers were the No. 1 team in the state. Aunese and Price are gone, but Coach Dick Haines still has plenty of talent from which to choose. Booker gained more than 500 yards last season in just 50 carries, and that was while running behind Vista’s second-string line, mostly in the fourth quarter. He’ll be tough to contain this year, especially because Vista’s offensive line is always among the best in the county.

2. Sweetwater Red Devils (11-1-0)--The streak is over but the Red Devils still have one of the finest programs in the county, led by Coach Gene Alim. The defense, which shut out six opponents a year ago, is expected to be stronger. And, running behind Alim’s disciplined offensive line, newcomers Pierre Jones and Robert Phillips should be able to help ease the loss of Rodgers and Black.

3. Fallbrook Warriors (8-3-0)--Two years ago, Coach Tom Pack had the finest quarterback in the county in Jaime Miramontes. Now, he says, Scott Barrick is the best he’s ever had. Barrick threw for 1,800 yards last season and leads Fallbrook’s sophisticated passing attack. Wide receiver Dunckel, a Times All-County player a year ago, will provide Barrick with a proven target. The Warriors love to pass and few teams figure to be able to stop them.

4. Granite Hills Eagles (11-1-0)--The Eagles ran the ball superbly a year ago with quarterback Donnie Carroll and running backs Tommie Vardell and Robert Padillo. This year, all three return and Coach Paul Wargo says he is going to put the option in with his wishbone attack. That means trouble for opposing defenses in the 3-A Grossmont League.

5. Lincoln Hornets (9-3-0)--Lincoln was one of the real success stories a year ago, winning the 2-A title after beginning the season with only 14 players. Skip Coons, who coached Lincoln to the championship a year ago, is gone but the Hornets should be all right with Vic Player, who returns as head coach after a three-year layoff. Patrick Rowe, one the county’s best receivers last season, returns, as do most of the key players from Lincoln’s breakaway running attack.

6. Morse Tigers (7-4-0)--Charlie Fishero, the only underclassman to make The Times’ All-County team as a lineman a year ago, returns and should be a key reason the Morse offensive attack won’t slip this season. The Tigers have a tough preseason schedule--including Mission Viejo (Southern Section), Vista, Lincoln and El Camino--but that should only make them more dangerous by the time City Eastern League play rolls around.

7. Orange Glen Patriots (8-2-0)--Scott Carlovsky and Matt Fiorello combined for 98 receptions a year ago and are easily the most dangerous receiving tandem in the county. So one can expect the Patriots to keep the ball moving in the air again this season. Of all the teams that played Vista last year, only Orange Glen made it close, losing 29-21 when Vista intercepted a pass on its own 10-yard line with under a minute remaining. Coach Jeff Carlovsky brought this team a long way a year ago. Should they improve again, a Palomar League championship is not out of the question.

8. Chula Vista Spartans (8-3-0)--Before last season, Coach George Ohnesorgen said he was worried about the play of his offensive and defensive lines. His worries proved unfounded as the Spartans turned out two All-County linemen in Bobby Bleisch and Greg Molina. This year, Ohnesorgen again says he’s worried about his offensive and defensive lines. Few are listening. Chances are he’ll put together another strong group. That, combined with the return of Murphy at quarterback and the return of 1,000-yard rusher Sione Fehoko at running back, should make Chula Vista a contender.

9. San Marcos Knights (6-5-1)--The Knights narrowly missed a berth in the 2-A finals last season, losing to Crawford, 7-6, in the final minute of a semifinal game. This year, Coach Ken Broach returns 6-5, 240-pound fullback Jim Jennings and another strong group of defensive players. The Knights were 6-1-1 in their last eight games after an 0-4 start. This year, they should get things together much more quickly.

10. Helix Highlanders (11-2-0)--Jeff Hammerschmidt, the Highlanders’ quarterback a year ago, was one of the most exciting players in the county. However, he has graduated and Coach Jim Arnaiz’s team must compensate for his loss. Arnaiz has a way of adjusting, considering that Helix has been a contender for the Grossmont League championship since Arnaiz took over as coach 13 years ago. Running backs Sidney Baxter and Kerri Barr return to give the Highlanders a good nucleus.

PRESEASON TOP 10

Pos. Team (League) Last Year

1. Vista (Palomar) 13-0-0

2. Sweetwater (Metro-Mesa) 11-1-0

3. Fallbrook (Palomar) 8-3-0

4. Granite Hills (Gross. 3A) 11-1-0

5. Lincoln (City Central) 9-3-0

6. Morse (City Eastern) 7-4-0

7. Orange Glen (Palomar) 8-2-0

8. Chula Vista (Metro-Mesa) 8-3-0

9. San Marcos (Avocado) 6-5-1

10. Helix (Grossmont 3A) 11-2-0