GLENDALE : 1986 Angeles Times ALL-STARS

Mauricio Pavon spent the football season catching passes--79 of them--for Pater Noster High School in Glassell Park.

The achievement by the 5-8, 150-pound receiver was the top mark posted during the CIF Southern Section regular season.

Coach Dave Luckner of Pater Noster used the words “miracle receptions” to describe how Pavon held the football despite punishing hits.

Pavon is just one of the miracle workers on The Times’ 1986 All-Glendale Section Area All-Star Team, which includes players in 11-man football from high schools in La Canada, La Crescenta, Sunland Tujunga, Eagle Rock, Los Feliz and Highland Park.

The trademark of the team is all-purpose players.

There is the versatile Mike Muhlethaler of Crescenta Valley, a place-kicker, punter, receiver and defensive back; Franklin’s Eric York at cornerback, wide receiver and tailback; Eagle Rock’s Johnny Rodriguez at tailback and safety and Glendale’s Peter Escalante at strong safety, fullback and tight end.

Others who performed multiple roles were Eagle Rock’s Chuck Engel at quarterback, punter and strong safety; La Canada’s Jim Dansby at linebacker and fullback; Marshall’s Tyrone De La Rosa at linebacker, running back and kick returner; Verdugo Hills’ Darren Fitzgerald at place-kicker and quarterback and St. Francis’ Jeff Ojeda at slotback, defensive back and kickoff return specialist.

Players on the 23-man first team (offense and defense), their parents and coaches will attend The Times’ 28th annual High School Football Awards Brunch at 9 a.m. Sunday at the Anaheim Hilton, 777 Convention Way.

Football Brunch John Cooper, coach of Rose Bowl-bound Arizona State University, will be guest speaker at the invitational presentation sponsored by the Times Fund. About 600 guests are expected.

First-team players from Glendale and nine other Times circulation areas (Los Angeles Central, San Fernando Valley, San Diego, Orange County, San Gabriel Valley, Westside, South Bay, Southeast and South Coast) will receive the traditional Golden Helmet Award.

Certificates of honor will be awarded each all-star on the first teams. Players on the second teams in each section will receive the certificates at their schools by mail.

Heading the All-Glendale first team offense is quarterback Ricky Lopez of Franklin in Highland Park. The 6-foot-2 senior completed 58% of his passes for 1,517 yards in Los Angeles City Section play, where he ranked No. 2 in airway yardage.

“Ricky’s leadership not only could put us ahead but also rally our team when we got behind,” according to co-coaches Armando Gonzalez and Robin Cardona. “His passing arm was impressive, but of equal quality were his skills at handing off to running backs.”

Torace Ragland was one of those taking handoffs from Lopez. The quick ball carrier rushed for about 900 yards to make All-Glendale for a second time.

Eagle Rock’s Engel and Rodriguez fill out the first-team backfield. The 5-9 Engel, a junior, excelled at quarterback where he passed for about 1,200 yards and was named most valuable player in the City’s Northern League. Rodriguez, the Northern League’s offensive player of the year, scored in every game as the Eagles won the Northern title, the only championship won this season by a Glendale-area team. Rodriguez also intercepted four passes at safety.

The kicking spot goes to Verdugo Hills quarterback Darren Fitzgerald. One of his three field goals for the season beat Belmont in the final seconds. Fitzgerald, a Times all-star as a sophomore last year, was a ranking L.A. City passer with about 1,000 yards.

Pater Noster’s Pavon averaged 12.5 yards for his 79 receptions. In one game he caught 18.

The other wide receiver is 6-2 junior John Bojanac of Verdugo Hills in Sunland Tujunga. He averaged 24 yards a catch, a startling statistic for 38 receptions. His total receiving yardage was 922.

Ed Suarez of Hoover of Glendale is on the all-star offensive line for the second time. A tough team leader at center, Suarez used his 235 pounds of power “to buckle opponents on his blocks,” according to his coaches.

Sizable strong men, all starring as blockers, nail down the other four line positions:

Gavin Riepe (6-3 and 250 pounds) of La Canada High, Jose Nunez (5-8, 210) of Eagle Rock, Dan Mihal (6-1, 195) of Glendale and Anthony Navarro (6-3, 250) of Franklin. Each excelled on defense as well. Riepe and Navarro have been scouted by colleges.

Power and bigness also accentuates the four lineman on first-team defense.

Two are all-leaguers from St. Francis of La Canada, which played in one of the nation’s toughest football leagues--the Del Rey of the CIF’s Big 5 Conference. The powerful pair are Ted Dawson (6-2, 225) and Geoff Arrobio (5-11, 220). They were acclaimed for pass deflections, ball-stripping, quarterback sacks and tackles.

Dawson, all-state in Wyoming in 1985, has Nebraska, Arizona and Arizona State interested in him.

Glendale’s David O’Connor (5-10, 195) and Franklin’s Sergio Lopez (6-0, 205) also are on the defensive line. O’Connor sacked quarterbacks 12 times, blocked three kicks and averaged eight tackles. Lopez, an all-star repeater, recovered three of the five fumbles he caused and was in on 90 tackles.

La Canada’s Dansby and Marshall’s De La Rosa are joined by Hoover’s 6-3, 210-pound play-buster Steve Hieber at linebacker.

Hieber, an All-Glendale repeater, once again displayed force at pass-rushing and all-over-the-field aggressiveness. In one game he stripped the ball from a running back and returned it 28 yards for a touchdown. Dansby attacked ballcarriers (an average of 18 tackles a game) with the same intensity he attacks the books (3.8 grade average). De La Rosa led his team in tackling. His year included 8.5 yards a crack at running back, and he returned a kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown.

The 6-foot-1 Muhlethaler, All-Glendale in 1985 as kicker, returns as a back on defense. His aggressiveness paid off in five interceptions and a blocked field goal to save Crescenta Valley from a loss. He returned a punt 87 yards for a score and caught four touchdown passes as wide receiver and tight end. Muhlethaler, a 60-minute player and an A student, has been scouted by Stanford, USC and Nebraska.

York was superlative at Franklin cornerback where his defensive feats included an 86-yard return of an interception for a touchdown. As a wide receiver, York was among the best with 33 receptions, and he averaged seven yards a carry when asked to play tailback.

Escalante, a three-year starter, averaged 10 tackles a game and recovered three fumbles for Glendale at strong safety. He also exhibited versatility at fullback and tight end.

Ojeda, another Times all-star repeater, highlighted a season of defending the St. Francis secondary by intercepting two passes. The all-Del Rey league player returned a kickoff 60 yards. At slotback he completed passes and was the punter.

Quarterback on the all-Glendale second team is 5-11, 175-pound Edgar Espinosa. He connected on 57% of his passes, completing 105 for 1,350 yards.

GLENDALE 1986 Los Angeles Times ALL-STARS OFFENSIVE TEAM

Name School Height Weight Year Mauricio Pavon Pater Noster 5-8 150 12 John Bojanac Verdugo Hills 6-2 170 11 Jose Nunez Eagle Rock 5-8 210 12 Dan Mihal Glendale 6-1 195 12 Gavin Riepe La Canada 6-4 225 12 Anthony Navarro Franklin 6-3 250 12 Ed Suarez Hoover 5-10 235 12 Ricky Lopez Franklin 6-2 180 12 Chuck Engel Eagle Rock 5-9 167 11 Johnny Rodriguez Eagle Rock 5-8 150 12 Torace Ragland Franklin 5-8 155 12 Darren Fitzgerald Verdugo Hills 6-1 175 11

DEFENSIVE TEAM

Name School Height Weight Year 1986 Ted Dawson St. Francis 6-2 225 12 Geoff Arrobio St. Francis 5-11 220 12 David O’Connor Glendale 5-10 195 12 Sergio Lopez Franklin 6-0 205 12 Jim Dansby La Canada 5-11 195 12 Tyrone De La Rosa Marshall 6-0 190 12 Steve Hieber Hoover 6-3 210 12 Eric York Franklin 5-10 170 12 Mike Muhlethaler Crescenta Valley 6-1 180 12 Jeff Ojeda St. Francis 6-5 180 12 Peter Escalante Glendale 5-9 180 12

SECOND TEAM OFFENSE

Name School Position Height Weight Year Eddie Ruiz Eagle Rock WR 5-8 140 12 Cotie McMahon C. Valley WR 5-10 165 11 Sam Lee Hoover OL 5-11 215 12 Art Porras Marshall OL 6-1 225 12 Russ Shiraishi Eagle Rock OL 5-11 250 11 Richard Hallstrom St. Francis OL 6-2 245 12 Mike Farrar Glendale OL 6-0 185 12 Edgar Espinosa Pater Noster QB 5-11 175 12 Kent McGregor La Canada RB 5-8 150 12 Mark Hansen La Canada RB 6-3 180 11 John Yang Glendale RB 5-10 180 12 John Gillis Hoover K 6-3 180 12

SECOND TEAM DEFENSE

Name School Position Height Weight Year Mike Porras Hoover DL 6-1 220 12 Bill Contaldi C. Valley DL 6-2 220 12 Steve Woodring Franklin DL 5-10 175 12 Andy Cupp La Canada DL 6-0 205 12 Jason Duncan Eagle Rock LB 5-7 163 12 David Duenas St. Francis LB 5-10 190 12 Randy Brogdon Glendale LB 6-0 185 12 George Vasquez Franklin DB 5-9 165 12 Alan Valdez Glendale DB 5-9 175 12 Steve Nazarians Hoover DB 5-10 210 11 Jimmy Godoy Glendale DB 5-9 175 12