The High Schools : Host of Receivers Flood Hart’s Passing Lanes

The best defense, the saying goes, is a good offense. How true at Hart High.

No more trying to pick up the blitz with that extra back, or tight ends trying to hold off surging linebackers.

For all its complexity in the past, the Indians’ passing attack has assumed a schoolyard quality.

All right, you two guys go long, you two guys square out and you cut across the middle. Ready, BREAK!

And it works. Quarterback Rob Westervelt passed for 215 yards and four touchdowns--exclusively in the first half--as Hart battered Saugus, 56-14, Friday.

Two weeks earlier, Westervelt was flattened by Crespi’s blitz in a 21-13 loss. Last week, the Indians barely held off Palmdale, 14-13.

So, against Saugus, every available receiver was sent on pass errands, leaving Westervelt with only five blockers.

“There are five people in the pattern,” Coach Mike Herrington said. “We figured we weren’t being successful keeping guys back to block, so we might as well try and find the guy they’re not covering.”

Merry-go-round: Running back Kris Kirksey is out for the season. Fullback Greg Exler has missed the past 2 1/2 games. Running back Brian Vellmure sat out the second half last week and will not play Friday.

Such is the state of Camarillo’s backfield.

Kirksey, who injured his knee last season, will not be back. Exler, who sprained his ankle, likely will start Friday against Royal. And Vellmure, the junior who has stepped in and rushed for 297 yards, sprained his ankle against Westlake. His absence also hurts the Scorpions on defense, where he is the starting free safety.

Add injuries: Moorpark tailback Tony Upshaw, the Valley area’s leading scorer with 12 touchdowns, might miss Friday’s game at Santa Paula because of a sprained right ankle.

Streak ends: Canyon center Lenny Grimaldo and kicker-wide receiver Steve Mann both went down with knee injuries last week. Although Coach Harry Welch is uncertain how long either player will be out, he said that both injuries appear to be ligament damage and “don’t look good.”

For Grimaldo, the injury ended a streak of 17 consecutive games as Canyon’s starting center. Grimaldo’s brother, Rudy, started at center for Canyon in 28 consecutive games in 1983 and ‘84, Southern Section title years for the Cowboys.

Closed door: What does a coach do when his team has squandered 11 opportunities inside the opponents’ 10-yard line? Burroughs has totaled 1,004 yards in offense, yet has scored just 54 points in four games.

“We’re having a hard time,” McElwee said. “We have miscommunication. We call sweep right, and when it gets into the huddle it’s sweep left. And we only run the sweep one way.”

Last week against Glendale, Burroughs failed to score from the one-yard line on two occasions.

Staff writers Tim Brown and Vince Kowalick contributed to this notebook.