FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK : Valley 4-A Breeds a New Stable of Thoroughbred Halfbacks

Khalid Ali of Granada Hills High, Albert Fann of Cleveland and Edwin Jones of Kennedy are gone, but the Valley 4-A League figures to once again be rich in talented running backs this season.

Ali rushed for 1,388 yards and scored 18 touchdowns, Fann for 1,128 and 14, and Jones for 883 and 8 last season. Their teams all made the City 4-A playoffs by running opponents into the ground.

The departure of backs that good has sent coaches rummaging through their rosters for replacements.

Kennedy Coach Bob Francola found one in senior Ron Hardy, a versatile two-year starter at outside linebacker and tight end. Hardy, who runs the 40 in 4.5 seconds, can break long gainers or earn inside yardage the hard way.

“He’s our best athlete, so we’re going to give him the ball as much as possible,” Francola said of the 6-1 1/2, 190-pound Hardy.

Hardy will run out of the split-back, veer offense, with seniors Willie Marshall, Zeus Woody and Dmetre Cooley vying for the remaining tailback position. Cooley is a transfer student from Venice.

Granada Hills Coach Darryl Stroh didn’t have to search quite as hard for Ali’s replacement. Jamal Farmer, who last year as the fullback gained 309 yards on only 44 carries, will move to halfback this season. Wade Young and Tom Romano, both seniors, are prospects at fullback.

Granada Hills, of course, will rely on the passing of 6-4 senior quarterback Jeremy Leach for most of its offense.

At San Fernando, sophomore running back Tyron Boyd will try to turn around a team whose leading rusher, Terry Smith, gained but 317 yards on 83 carries in 1986.

According to Coach Tom Hernandez, the Tigers will run the 5-11, 180-pound Boyd out of a single-back formation.

“Tyron’s going to be good,” he said. “He has a lot to learn, but he’s going to be the guy back there.”

The changing of the guard, however, may be led by Cleveland’s Mark Mooney, who was named the B-level Valley 4-A Player of the Year last season after he rushed for 1,100 yards and 14 touchdowns as a sophomore.

Gaining ground: Gino Tagliaferri’s shoulder has healed well enough to make a three-man race of Kennedy’s quarterback situation. And then some.

Although still listed behind senior Darreyon Taylor and junior Tony Smets by Francola, Tagliaferri is making waves since undergoing surgery on his right rotator cuff.

Last season the right-handed Tagliaferri was limited to snapping the ball on punts. However, if the past baseball season is any indication, Tagliaferri is again healthy. As the Golden Cougars’ designated-hitter, Tagliaferri batted .439.

He then led the Valley area in home runs (11) and runs batted in (32) while batting .414 for the Granada Hills American Legion baseball team. And, as if to shut the door on questions regarding his rotator cuff, Tagliaferri played shortstop for that team.

Tagliaferri is competing for a job left open by Jeff Newman (744 yards passing and nine touchdown passes), who graduated in June and earned a scholarship to Hawaii.

Francola, tongue firmly in cheek, admitted being partial to Smets. Like Francola, Smets is left-handed.

Tiger diet: Joe Mauldin, San Fernando’s returning starter at quarterback, apparently had a busy off-season--at the dinner table.

The senior returned from summer vacation at 6-2, 185 pounds, an increase of one inch and 15 pounds, and Hernandez, the Tigers’ coach, couldn’t be happier.

“Joe’s improved 100% from last year,” Hernandez said. “He’s just really matured at quarterback.”

Running the offense out of a wishbone formation last season, Mauldin completed 53 of 117 passes for 560 yards, with 10 interceptions and one touchdown. The Tigers have scrapped the ‘bone this season in favor of multiple sets.

The Scorps’ corps: Camarillo Coach Carl Thompson is banking on senior Donald Dodson to replace Mike Henry at quarterback. Because of his height, or lack thereof, the 5-9 Dodson will be throw most of his passes from a roll out.

Among Dodson’s targets will be tight end Mark Mathis, a 6-3, 215-pound transfer from West Clovis, outside Fresno, and Gil Valencia, a wide receiver who led the Scorpions in receptions last season.

Having two quality receivers is wonderful, Thompson said. He only hopes Dodson connects with regularity.

“Otherwise, it’s like a Ferrari without a steering wheel,” Thompson said.

Marmonte muscle: Thousand Oaks quarterback Steve Sisco had a fine summer of seven-on-seven, giving the Lancers a potentially potent offense. Running backs Mike Moore and Marc Monestime, who has gained more than 1,000 yards for two straight years, are returning starters.

The question mark for Thousand Oaks is defense, where the graduation of several all-league players--including linebackers Gus Nelinger and Joe Sturges, linemen Ken Haefliger and Mike Yasenchok, and safety Matt Young--have left large holes.