Baltau Helps Canyon Pass Early Test

Like the Canyon High passing game in general, receiver Clint Beauer had his ups and down in 1987. For every pass that ended up secure in his hands, there was one fluttering at his feet.

But it did not matter much, because the Cowboys had a running game centered on Chris Peery, who gained 1,290 yards, scored 15 touchdowns and was named the state sophomore player of the year by Cal-Hi Sports.

So on the days when Beauer went sour, or when his teammates did, too, few noticed. This year, however, Peery is no longer with the team, sidelined because of academic and personal problems. That leaves the Cowboys, who were 10-3 in 1987, with a large hole to fill.

And with only two running backs with varsity experience returning--they amassed a whopping 359 rushing yards and one touchdown between them last year--Canyon likely will spend more time filling the passing lanes than a Maserati on a midnight freeway cruise.

In the first round of passing-game competition in the L. A. Games at West Torrance High on Saturday, Canyon’s passing game was on cruise control, rolling to an impressive 20-7 win over Van Nuys. Canyon faces Newport Harbor at noon today at West Torrance High.

Maybe it was learned by rote, or maybe out of necessity, but the Cowboy air attack--dormant for most of last season--appears to be back in the saddle again.

“Part of it’s because we don’t have an overpowering running back, but most of it is because we have the tools to throw,” quarterback Rod Baltau said. “We have the short passing game, long passing game, and a lot of our receivers are back.”

Baltau completed 12 of 17 passes for 190 yards and 3 touchdowns Saturday, and three catchable passes were dropped. Last season, as a junior taking over for Michigan-bound Ken Sollom, Baltau passed for 1,095 yards and 6 touchdowns in 13 games.

Against Van Nuys, the passing attack was nearly unstoppable. Baltau (6 feet, 2 inches, 170 pounds) engineered scoring drives on each of the team’s first three possessions.

Beauer caught seven passes for 91 yards, including an 18-yard scoring strike from Baltau. A stark contrast, indeed, for a player who, by his own admission, spent time down and out last season.

“I still get teased a lot because of what happened last year. I came out and just didn’t play well,” Beauer said. “I had a lot of drops and the nerves came out worrying about everything.”

Beauer did just about everything right against the Wolves, as did the rest of the Canyon receivers. Baltau also connected with Jason Stanley on a 13-yard touchdown pass and with Chris Eddy from a yard out.

Even when the Canyon offense was headed into a 20 m.p.h ocean breeze, the air attack looked crisp. Which, of course, begs a question: Are these the winds of change, and will the Cowboys be putting it up in September?

“I hate an imbalanced attack,” Coach Harry Welch said. “When we had Sollom, we used a balanced game. I can see us going with the same general game plan.”

A circuitous and qualified yes, but a yes just the same. There is other evidence.

“A lot of teams make adjustments to play better in the passing league,” Baltau said. “We don’t do that, we work on the same things we use in the regular season.”