Patton’s First Big Break Was a Very Small Role

Before Eric Patton became the football coach at Capistrano Valley, he was a movie star. Well, sort of.

Patton was playing for the Southern California Sun in the now-defunct World Football League when he and several other Sun players were invited to work as stunt doubles in the movie “Two Minute Warning.”

Sun Coach Tom Fears worked as the football stunt coordinator for that movie, as well as for “Semi-Tough” and “North Dallas Forty.”

The Sun had folded, and Patton was just out of the hospital after undergoing knee surgery when Fears called.

“I just got my cast off,” Patton said. “It was full-contact, kickoffs and everything. I wasn’t ready for that.”

Fears insisted. He persuaded Patton to suit up and appear as an extra during the sideline scenes. Patton couldn’t refuse, and spent three days at the Coliseum during filming.

“I was very grateful to Tom for that opportunity,” said Patton, whose Capistrano Valley team meets Mater Dei at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Orange Coast College. “It was $200 a day, which was pretty good money for a guy who wasn’t playing.”

Trent Bordok, a linebacker who was expected to be one of Woodbridge’s top returning players, has transferred to Tustin and is awaiting clearance from the Southern Section to play for the Tillers, Tustin Athletic Director Al Rosmino said Wednesday.

Bordok, 6 feet 3 and 230 pounds, enrolled at Tustin Monday and attended the first day of class Wednesday. Rosmino said Bordok moved with his mother from Irvine into the Tustin Unified School District. Tustin officials have contacted the Southern Section to confirm his eligibility.

The Corona del Mar High School girls’ volleyball team, the defending state Division I champion, is ranked third in the state coaches’ preseason poll.

The Sea Kings, who return no starters from last year’s 28-1 team, follow top-ranked Torrey Pines and second-ranked Mira Costa.

Capistrano Valley is ranked eighth, defending Division II champion La Habra is 11th, Laguna Beach is 12th, El Toro 15th and Newport Harbor 17th.

Other county teams receiving votes were Edison, El Modena, Fountain Valley and Valencia.

Rick Gibson, Woodbridge High School football coach, knew something was wrong when he saw 12 referees walk on the field.

“I said, ‘What’s the deal,’ ” Gibson said. “I like officials, but this was crazy.”

It was then, 10 minutes before game time, that Gibson was informed that he and the Warriors had traveled 3,000 miles for a scrimmage against Warrenton (Va.) Fauquier High. The two crews of officials took turns working Woodbridge’s 38-15 loss to Fauquier.

The news frustrated Gibson, who arranged for more than 40 players and coaches to make the trip for what he thought was a game. The trip cost the program $40,000.

“I don’t know if I can blame anyone in particular for this,” Gibson said. “But I think I learned something about working with out-of-state coaches.

“It all came down to terminology, what they called a ‘jamboree.’ ”

Under Virginia rules, teams play 10 games and are allowed as many as two scrimmages, which are called “jamborees.”

“But they charged admission to get in and they sold programs like it was a game,” Gibson said.

The scrimmage also featured some interesting rules. The teams played five quarters, four by the varsity and one by the junior varsity.

Teams were allowed only 12 plays from scrimmage, then punted. There were no kickoffs.

Despite the defeat, the trip wasn’t a complete loss for the Warriors. They toured Washington, D.C., visiting the White House, FBI, Capitol and Smithsonian buildings.

“Touring Washington, D.C., was our whole idea behind making the trip,” Gibson said. “And we did a good job of that.”

Huntington Beach High graduate Matt Taylor, The Times Orange County volleyball player of the year last season, will have some positive--and painful--memories of this summer.

Taylor, a freshman at UCLA, earned his triple-A beach rating, qualifying him for most of the top tournaments.

But his luck took a bad twist, or turn, when the front wheel fell off his bicycle as he rounded a corner in downtown Huntington Beach two weeks ago.

Taylor, who flipped over the handlebars, landed on his face. It took several stitches to sew up a cut on the inside of his lip.

Don Munsell, baseball coach at Trabuco Hills, has resigned, and the school is accepting applications. Anyone interested should contact Athletic Director Gary Sabella at 768-1934, ext. 7808.