Gutierrez Leaves Legacy at Santa Clara

Santa Clara High football fans--and anyone else with a fascination for flights of fancy--can take their eyes from the sky.

Tim Gutierrez has thrown his final high school pass.

But he went down firing, throwing for 321 yards in a 48-21 loss to Trabuco Hills in a Southern Section Division VIII semifinal last Friday. The performance gave him a career total of 7,251 passing yards, third all-time in the Southern Section and fifth on the all-time state list.

On the Southern Section list, Gutierrez ranks behind USC quarterback Todd Marinovich (9,182 yards) and Pat Haden (7,633), a former USC and Ram standout.

Marinovich also heads the state list and he is followed there by Ron Cuccia (8,804 yards from 1975-77) of Los Angeles Wilson, Haden and John Paye (7,569; 1980-82) of Menlo School.

This season, Gutierrez (6-foot-2, 195 pounds) completed 210 of 334 passes for 2,939 yards and 18 touchdowns. He threw only nine interceptions.

As his passes flew, so did Santa Clara. The Saints won the Frontier League championship with a 5-0 record this season and were 10-3 overall. Last year, the team advanced to the playoff quarterfinals.

“Timmy’s a winner,” said Larry Lawrence, who replaced Steve Dann as coach this season. “I think of the kid as one of my own.”

Like his passes, Gutierrez, a three-year starter, never let his ego soar out of control.

“The most impressive thing about Tim is that I never once heard him brag,” Lawrence said. “He knew how to be loose but he never popped off. Always a joker, never a bragger.”

Word of his accomplishments has spread nonetheless, and several Division I colleges are interested. Washington State and New Mexico, teams that utilize a straight drop-back passer like Gutierrez, are the most active recruiters.

“Tim’s strengths are his quick release, his arm strength and accuracy, and his leadership,” Lawrence said. “He only drawback is that he is slow. He definitely needs to go to a college that emphasizes the drop-back pass.”