Blanton Uses Selective Recall to Get Ready : Mater Dei: Quarterback accentuates last year’s positives, such as throwing 11 touchdown passes in three games.

There are two ways Mater Dei High quarterback Billy Blanton can remember the end of the 1990 football season.

Memory 1: The coming of age . Blanton throws for 743 yards and 11 touchdowns in three games. The Monarchs reach the Southern Section Division I semifinals.

Memory 2: The coming apart . Blanton, hobbled by a sprained ankle, throws three interceptions against Quartz Hills in the semifinals. Mater Dei loses, 37-7.

Take a guess which thought rolls off Blanton’s tongue?

“Those three games did a lot to build my confidence,” said Blanton, a senior. “I felt there wasn’t anything I couldn’t do. I want to carry that positive feeling over to this season.”

With a glass that’s half full, Blanton is ready to go to work.

A year ago, he was an unknown factor. A kid with a strong arm but wet behind the ears.

Today, Blanton is a proven commodity, not to mention a dangerous one. His presence alone makes the Monarchs one of the favorites in the Angelus League.

“Blanton makes Mater Dei tough,” Loyola Coach Stephen Grady said. “He gives them a guy who can pull the trigger.”

Blanton just has to keep from shooting himself in the foot.

This season, he doesn’t have the luxury of anonymity. There will be defenses geared to contain the passing game and blitzes designed to rattle his nerves--and possibly his teeth.

The fact that the Monarchs have no experienced running backs will only make Blanton more of a target. “Pass first, run second,” will likely be the defensive philosophy of Mater Dei’s opponents.

“I know other teams are going to come at me this year,” Blanton said. “That’s OK, I’ve learned a lot last season, and I can handle it. I just have to stay focused.”

Blanton, who has been on the varsity since he was a sophomore, has been through the pressure before. The ups and downs, not to mention the turmoil of last season, made for some hard lessons.

The Monarchs got off to an 0-2 start. The offense, which had few returning players, struggled.

Blanton completed only 12 of 28 passes in an 18-15 loss to Capistrano Valley in the season opener. He spent most of the game being chased by Cougar defensive linemen and was sacked five times.

The next week, he threw two passes that were intercepted and failed to put the Monarchs in the end zone in a 21-3 loss to Tustin. It was the first time Mater Dei had failed to score a touchdown since 1987.

“A lot of Billy’s problems were because the offensive line was inexperienced,” Coach Bruce Rollinson said. “He didn’t have time to throw.”

When running back Derek Sparks, a controversial transfer from Van Nuys Montclair Prep, became eligible in the third week, Rollinson found there was no need to throw. The emphasis quickly shifted to the running game.

Blanton’s duties were reduced to handoffs and play-action passes. But it took the pressure off him.

“The defenses started keying on him (Sparks), which made my job easier,” Blanton said. “I wasn’t getting pounded as hard.”

Blanton continued to struggle, but the Monarchs didn’t live or die by his performances.

He completed only 10 of 21 passes for 91 yards against Loyola. But Mater Dei won, 3-0.

“Billy was learning all the time,” Rollinson said. “He was picking up more and more of the offense. Finally, there came a point where he came to us for more and we had nothing left to show him.”

That point was just before the season final against St. John Bosco.

The Monarchs needed a victory to qualify for the playoffs.

On the first play of the game, Blanton hit Ricky Ellis for 36 yards, and the Monarchs were off and rolling. Blanton completed 15 of 21 passes for 320 yards and three touchdowns in a 48-21 victory.

“Everything just came together that night,” Blanton said. “After that game, I was loaded with confidence. I felt I could make any play, throw any pass.”

That swagger carried through the first two playoff games.

Blanton completed 15 of 18 passes for 221 yards and five touchdowns in a 58-31 victory over Long Beach Poly in the first round. The next week, he completed 13 of 17 for 220 yards and three touchdowns in a 34-20 victory over No. 1-seeded Eisenhower.

“That’s when things got fun,” Rollinson said.

The good times ended in the semifinals against Quartz Hills.

The day before the game, Blanton was throwing on the sidelines and leaped to make a catch. He landed on top of a football and limped into the training room.

Blanton threw two interceptions in the first half, and Mater Dei trailed, 17-7. The Monarchs never recovered.

“That’s a game I want to forget,” Blanton said. “There were better memories from last year.”

And maybe a few to come.

A LOOK BACK AT ‘90

Team Overall League PF PA Biship Amat 9-2 4-0 336 171 Mater Dei 7-6 3-1 306 297 Loyola 12-2 2-2 317 118 St. John Bosco 5-4 1-3 184 182 Servite 2-8 0-4 135 282

Leauge MVP: Jason Ptterson, Biship Amat. Offensive MVP: Zack Zertuche, Bishop Amat. Defensive MVP: Drew Casani, Loyola.