The Preps / Lonnie White : Manual Arts’ Once-Powerful Football Program Hits the Skids

Manual Arts High School is located less than a mile away from the Coliseum, where USC and the Raiders play their home football games.

In recent years, however, that distance may seem worlds apart to the students who have played on Manual Arts’ football teams. The Toilers have fallen on hard times.

Once known as a City Section power, the Toilers are now considered an easy mark on opponents’ schedules. Since making the City 3-A Division championship game in 1986, Manual Arts has won only twice in its last 21 games. After a 1-8 season in 1987, the Toilers finished 1-8-1 a year ago and have lost their first two games this season.

Manual Arts’ fall has been drastic and swift. With 17 City football championships to its credit, the school has won more titles than any other school in the City. From 1980 to 1986, the Toilers were 51-21-1, and had three City championship game appearances, winning consecutive titles in 1983 and ’84.

In Manual Arts’ 14-6 loss on the road against Crenshaw last Friday afternoon, the Toilers had fewer than 30 players in uniform and only two-thirds of them played. With a nucleus of seven or eight players starting on both offense and defense, Toiler Co-Coaches Chuck Hollis and Rodney Spencer face a constant numbers struggle.

“We are definitely limited in what we can do,” said Hollis, who with Spencer has been coaching the Toilers since ’85. “We just do not get the good athletes anymore.”

Against Crenshaw, the lack of experienced players showed. The Toilers played the highly regarded Cougars tough, but fatigue, penalties, shanked punts and missed tackles made their eight-point deficit seem insurmountable.

Despite being out-numbered, out-sized and overmatched, the Toilers displayed fine spirit and at times, flashes of talent. Trayvone Mitchell had an 86-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the first quarter, and Eric Hubbard ran impressively after several good catches in the second half.

In looking for a cause for Manual Arts’ recent problems, the school’s location is a major factor. Usually, the rise of gangs and drugs in the school’s area is blamed for the drop in the Toilers’ football program, but Hollis disagrees.

“Because the inner-city is publicized for its drugs and gangs, we have been given a bad rap about our situation here,” Hollis said. “But the gang problem is everywhere, and we jump on any potential problem here right away. That is simply a cop-out in looking at our problem.”

Hollis also disputes the idea that Manual Arts’ problem of getting enough players out for its teams is a recent one. Only 35 students reported for football at the beginning of the season and only 26 remain.

“That has always been a problem,” Hollis said. “In 1986, we basically had the same amount of players when we made it to the City finals. We just had a few good players who were dedicated to play, so it can be done with a small team.”

Jeff Engilman, who coached the Toilers from 1979-84 and is currently coaching at Sylmar, agrees with Hollis.

“There has never been a lot of players at Manual,” Engilman said. He and Steve Landress led the Toilers to a 22-2 record in their last two seasons as co-coaches at Manual Arts. “When we won the City title in 1983 with only 32 players, we thought that we would have a great turnout the following year, but we had the same number out as we had the year before.”

To Hollis, the problem is not number of players but the quality of the athletes he has to work with. In the early 1980’s, the Toilers had some of the top talent in the city in All-City selections Andrew Jackson, Jeff Joseph, Herman Nash and Steve Broussard, now a standout running back at Washington State.

In the last two seasons, the Toilers have not had one player chosen on the All-City 3-A Division teams, which include 40 players each year.

“We are being robbed blind of whatever talent we do have living in our area,” Hollis said. “The kids with any kind of football background are going to Dorsey, Crenshaw or out to the (San Fernando) Valley. We are losing the fight for the quality athletes.

“We also have a problem in having our athletes stay eligible. We lose a lot of players every year because they did not have the grades and did not go to summer school.

“Also, the attitudes of the kids have changed. It used to be that it meant something to be out there but now the kids are all in it for themselves and have an attitude like they are doing you a favor. It is to the point where you have to be not only a coach but a doctor and sociologist.”

While Manual Arts’ football program has been declining, however, its basketball program, under former Coach Reggie Morris and now Randolph Simpson, has remained a force. The Toilers won the state title two seasons ago and reached the City 4-A Division final the last two seasons.

Manual Arts also has a successful soccer program. Coach Bohdan Futala has not had a losing season in his five years as coach.

Despite Manual Arts’ current situation, Hollis believes that things can get better.

“Our goal is to make the playoffs (which the Toilers did last season with a 1-7-1 record under the City’s lenient playoff qualifications),” Hollis said. “We basically have a good team that needs to gain experience. Once league (play) starts, hopefully we should be competitive.”

Last week, the Southern Section passed several league realignment proposals that will take effect in 1990-91.

The biggest move is the breakup of the Angelus League, which will now be called the Mission League. Mission Hills Alemany and Playa Del Rey St. Bernard will join La Puente Bishop Amat, Torrance Bishop Montgomery, Santa Ana Mater Dei and Santa Fe Springs St. Paul to make up the new Mission League, along with all-girl schools Fullerton Rosary and Lakewood St. Joseph. Anaheim Servite will move from the Angelus League into the Del Rey League, along with Rosemead Bosco Tech, to take the place of Alemany.

Prep Notes

Carson regained its top position in the City with a 16-6 win over Lynwood last Friday night, with quarterback Armin Youngblood passing for two touchdowns. The Colts moved ahead of Wilmington Banning, which tied Pasadena Muir, 7-7, Saturday night. . . . Granada Hills looked impressive in its 19-7 win over 3-A Division power Franklin, while Dorsey lost, 20-14, to Bell Gardens. . . . In Fairfax’s 20-7 lost to El Camino Real, junior tailback Mario Mattison rushed for 207 yards in 27 carries. . . . Jay Fields of Hamilton rushed for 200 yards, scored four touchdowns and kicked four extra points in Hamilton’s 42-6 victory over Hollywood. . . . Tim Holliday of Westchester rushed for 125 yards in nine carries in Westchester’s 28-3 win over Narbonne.

In Southern Section action last weekend, Roger Boden of Los Altos gained 148 yards in 11 carries in Los Altos’ 24-13 win over La Habra. . . . Darryl Green of Riverside Rubidoux rushed for 191 yards and scored two touchdowns in a 37-0 win over Riverside Arlington. . . . Jason Jones of Long Beach Poly returned an interception 14 yards for the winning touchdown in the Jackrabbits’ 14-7 win over Bishop Amat. . . . Jack Manu of Paramount completed all four of his passes for 112 yards and three touchdowns in the Pirates’ 34-8 win over La Puente Nogales. . . . John Haqq of Culver City rushed for 271 yards in 19 carries and scored three touchdowns in his team’s 39-7 win over Los Angeles Salesian.

TIMES’ TOP TEAMS

Southern Section

No. School, League Record 1. Fontana, Citrus Belt 3-0-0 2. Loyola, Del Rey 3-0-0 3. Paramount, San Gabriel Valley 3-0-0 4. Los Altos, Sierra 3-0-0 5. Leuzinger, Bay 3-0-0 6. Santa Monica, Bay 2-0-0 7. Long Beach Poly, Moore 1-1-0 8. Muir, Pacific 2-0-1 9. Rubidoux, Citrus Belt 2-0-1 10. Mission Viejo, South Coast 3-0-0 11. Oxnard, Channel 3-0-0 12. Lompoc, Northern 3-0-0 13. Serra, Camino Real 3-0-0 14. Hawthorne, Bay 3-0-0 15. Thousand Oaks, Marmonte 2-0-1

City

No. School, League Record 1. Carson, Pacific 1-1-0 2. Banning, Pacific 1-0-1 3. Granada Hills, North Valley 2-0-0 4. South Gate, Central 2-0-0 5. Dorsey, Pacific 1-1-0 6. Crenshaw, Pacific 2-0-0 7. Franklin, Northeast 1-1-0 8. Westchester, Metro 1-1-0 9. Sylmar, Valley East 1-0-0 10. San Fernando, North Valley 0-2-0