Orange County Prep Review : Brea to Bid Farewell to Its Stadium : Big Celebration Planned for Halftime of Western Game

When the Brea-Olinda High School football team plays Western Friday night at Brea, there will be more at stake for the Wildcats than just a possible playoff berth.

It will also mark the last varsity football game played at their stadium, and the school is going all out to celebrate that event.

Brea is 2-0 in the Orange League, 4-3 overall. Western (1-2, 4-4) will need to win for its own playoff drive if it hopes to catch either Brea or Valencia, which are tied for second place in the league behind Anaheim.

New academic buildings and athletic facilities are being built about a mile from the current campus, built in 1926, on Birch Street. The land that the stadium is on has been sold and will be redeveloped as a retail complex. Eventually, the entire 39-acre school site will be similarly redeveloped.

Because of the close ties between the community and the school, the Wildcats will hold a going-away party for the stadium at halftime.

“We’ve asked for an extended halftime program, just like you do for homecoming games,” said Ken Reed, Brea activities director. “What we’re doing is having all of the alums and everybody in the stands from the Brea side come down and circle the field at halftime.

“Then we’ll release helium-filled balloons, shoot off fireworks and then for the last time we’ll (recite) the school alma mater. It seems like a nice way to go.”

Although the campus will remain in use through the 1987-88 school year, with the new school projected to open in the fall of 1988, the athletic fields, in use since the late 1920s, will be torn up later this month.

Tall in the Saddle: As undefeated seasons go, this one has been sort of quiet for Saddleback (8-0), the defending CIF Central Conference champion.

Last week, the Roadrunners beat Sea View League rival Newport Harbor, 17-0, to raise their league record to 3-0 and set up a showdown Friday with league newcomer Tustin (3-0, 7-1).

It should be a good test for Saddleback, a team that has outscored its opponents 259-41. And among their victories, the Roadrunners not only beat but pasted defending Southern Conference champion Santa Ana (25-6) and South Coast League power Capistrano Valley (48-7).

Last season, quarterback Myron Butler and tailback Glenn Campbell were the stars who led the Roadrunners to the championship. This season, it seems that somebody new steps forward each week.

Further, while the trend in high school football is toward oversized players (250 pounds and up), Saddleback has only five players on their roster of more than 200 pounds.

The Roadrunners rely instead on speed, whether it’s from running backs and receivers, such as Nate Primous and Danny Ontiveros, or by the defenders, whose trademark has been team pursuit.

Rival coaches have said that Saddleback Coach Jerry Witte’s team is especially well-disciplined, hits hard, commits few penalties and that their players don’t complain to the referees or taunt their opponents.

In short, a class act.

Prep Notes

The annual friendship game between Brea-Olinda High School staff and the Brea Soccer Assn. coaches, referees and parents will be held at the school’s football field on Nov. 11 at 7 p.m. Pregame and halftime activities are being planned for the children involved. This will be the last soccer game played at the Brea-Olinda football field. . . . Mike Heil, Foothill’s quarterback in the mid-1970s, is working at a casino in South Lake Tahoe after a baseball career at Saddleback College and the University of Oregon. . . . Rancho Alamitos defensive back David Singletary is the nephew of Chicago Bears linebacker Mike Singletary. . . . Mission Viejo Coach Bill Crow’s weekly commentary in the Diablos’ game program is called “The Crow’s Nest.”