ALL-STAR PREP FOOTBALL GAME : Brown Decides He’ll Take One More Bow : After Change of Heart, Servite Star Running Back Will Lead the North

Derek Brown, Servite High School’s outstanding running back, will make a curtain call after all at 7:30 tonight in the 30th Orange County All-Star football game at LeBard Stadium.

Brown, who set many of the county’s rushing records in his three-year career, originally declined to participate in the charity game for graduating high school seniors. But Brown changed his mind while attending a pregame banquet three weeks ago and game officials agreed to add him to the North roster.

Brown sustained a minor ankle injury at Wednesday’s practice that forced him to the sidelines, but North Coach John Barnes of Los Alamitos said he expects Brown to rush 20-25 times in the game.

“We’ll try to get the ball in his hands as much as possible,” Barnes said. “We’ve got shovel passes, delay routes, screens and even a halfback option pass play designed with Derek Brown in mind.”

Brown became the county’s single-season rushing leader with 2,301 yards last fall and finished with 4,663 yards in his career, second only to former Valencia star Ray Pallares’ 5,398 yards in county history.

Brown also scored 30 touchdowns, tying Kerwin Bell of Edison and Eric Fox of Capistrano Valley for second place on the single-season scoring list. He also holds the third and fifth-best single game rushing marks of 338 yards and 312 yards, both against rival Mater Dei.

What’s more, Brown returned kickoffs of 90 and 95 yards for touchdowns in the Division I playoffs last fall, a statistic South Coach Dave Holland of Corona del Mar was well aware of. Holland insisted that game officials follow the national federation rules that prohibit any kickoff that goes into the end zone from being returned.

The South will counter with a passing game. David Henigan, who led Fountain Valley to the Division I title, will start at quarterback. Henigan passed for 4,620 yards in his three-year career, ranking fifth on the county’s career list.

“Henigan had adapted well to our possession-type passing game,” Holland said. “One of our strengths is at quarterback, and I think we’ll throw quite a bit.”

Traditionally, defense has dominated and this year should be no exception. Garrett Greedy, a hard-hitting linebacker from Servite, anchors the North defense. Greedy will attend UCLA in the fall.

Linebackers John Katovsich and Chris Deuchar, who led Corona del Mar to the Division VI title, are the standouts for the South’s defense. The starting front four and linebackers average 229 pounds.

“It’s going to take some mighty good offense to score,” Barnes said. “Our defense is a coach’s dream, and I expect their defense to be awesome.”

Kicker Phil Nevin of El Dorado could be a factor if the North’s offense sputters. Nevin had the longest field goal (57 yards) in the state last season and has declined an offer from the Dodgers as an infielder to kick at Cal State Fullerton.

“If we get anywhere near the 30-yard line and stall, I wouldn’t hesitate to try a field goal with Nevin,” Barnes said.

STARTING LINEUPS

NORTH OFFENSE

Position Name School Height Weight Wide Receiver Ron Monninger Los Alamitos 5-11 165 Wide Receiver Adrian Oliphant Loara 6-2 190 Tight End Tom Deep Kennedy 6-5 225 Tackle Chuck Underwood Esperanza 6-3 245 Tackle Craig Gibson El Modena 6-3 240 Guard Art Lopez El Dorado 6-3 225 Guard Moices Chavez Anaheim 6-0 210 Center Matt Elliott Troy 6-5 240 Quarterback Albert Razo La Habra 6-1 185 Fullback Keef Leasure Valencia 5-11 190 Tailback Derek Brown Servite 5-11 180 NORTH DEFENSE End Kevin Ashworth Pacifica 6-2 205 End Joe Pastorello Katella 6-0 195 Tackle Matt Werner Esperanza 6-5 245 Tackle Darren Gallaway Servite 6-4 230 Nose Guard Shawn Donohue Esperanza 6-0 260 Linebacker Eric Thompson Los Alamitos 6-2 225 Linebacker Garrett Greedy Servite 6-3 230 Cornerback Guy Shepard Valencia 6-1 180 Cornerback Chris Johnson Servite 5-11 185 Free Safety Jason Neben Orange Lutheran 6-1 190 Strong Safety Trey Frank El Modena 5-11 170 Coach John Barnes Los Alamitos SOUTH OFFENSE Wide Receiver Toney Jenkins Capistrano Valley 5-11 160 Wide Receiver Mike Cook Fountain Valley 6-5 190 Tight End Brian Ryder Edison 6-4 220 Tight End Brian Turk Mater Dei 6-5 265 Tackle Ralphael Molle Irvine 6-5 275 Guard Russell Miller El Toro 6-3 235 Guard Brent Drouin Tustin 6-1 210 Center Glenn Christy Fountain Valley 6-2 260 Quarterback David Henigan Fountain Valley 6-1 185 Fullback Tommy Walker Newport Harbor 6-1 200 Tailback Estrus Crayton Santa Ana 6-3 180 SOUTH DEFENSE End Jim Hastie Costa Mesa 6-2 225 End P.A. Emerson Woodbridge 6-5 245 Tackle Todd Norman Ocean View 6-5 260 Tackle Miguel Ochoa Saddleback 6-1 245 Linebacker Kevin Roberts Edison 6-1 210 Linebacker Penn Bushong Mission Viejo 6-2 195 Linebacker John Katovsich Corona del Mar 6-3 230 Linebacker Chris Deuchar Corona del Mar 6-3 225 Cornerback Ryan Nash Woodbridge 5-9 160 Cornerback Todd Delnoce Foothill 6-1 180 Free Safety Casey Mazzotta Tustin 6-0 180 Coach Dave Holland Corona del Mar