PREP FOOTBALL ’92 : A LOOK AT THE CITY SECTION AND SOUTHERN SECTION : SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION I

* FAVORITES: Fontana, La Puente Bishop Amat, Loyola and Rialto Eisenhower.

* TOP CHALLENGERS: Long Beach Wilson and Santa Ana Mater Dei.

* DARK HORSE: Long Beach Poly.

* WHAT’S NEW: The South Coast League replaces the Sunset League. Mater Dei is no longer in a parochial league.

* OUTLOOK: Many coaches are pointing to Fontana as the team to beat, but it is hard to pick against Eisenhower. The Eagles, who spent most of last season rated No. 1 in the country, return a solid core of players. Defensive lineman Germaine Gray might be the most recruited player in the Southland. Coach Tom Hoak also has proven he can win the big games, leading Eisenhower over rival Fontana the last two seasons. Fontana will rely on experience, with three-year starting offensive lineman Andrew Meyers the leader. Loyola and Bishop Amat will make their traditional runs at the title. Long Beach Wilson, coming off a cinderella season, returns 11 starters. Defending champion Mater Dei has question marks on offense.

SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION II

* FAVORITES: Anaheim Esperanza, Los Alamitos and Pasadena Muir.

* TOP CHALLENGERS: Compton Dominguez, Huntington Beach Edison and Newhall Hart.

* DARK HORSE: Canyon Country Canyon.

* WHAT’S NEW: Three leagues--Empire, Foothill and Sunset--are new to the division. Pacific and San Gabriel Valley leagues are the lone holdovers.

* OUTLOOK: This is the most competitive division in the Southern Section. The three favorites could challenge most Division I contenders. Los Alamitos, which defeated Esperanza in the Division III title game last season, will be hard to beat with quarterback Tim Carey fueling the passing offense. Esperanza has won 27 of its last 28 games. Muir hopes to add some stability with the return of Coach Jim Brownfield, who led the team to section titles in 1985 and ’86 before taking a five-year break. Canyon, a Division I power in recent years, is capable of making a run at the championship.

SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION III

* FAVORITES: Baldwin Park and La Puente Nogales.

* TOP CHALLENGERS: Hawthorne, Palos Verdes Peninsula and Thousand Oaks.

* DARK HORSE: Ventura Buena.

* WHAT’S NEW: The division has a new look except for the holdover Bay League. The addition of the Marmonte League will make it very competitive.

* OUTLOOK: Sierra League powers Baldwin Park and Nogales met in the Division IV title game last season, with Baldwin Park winning, 28-7. Both are expected to battle for top honors once again. Baldwin Park features running back Lawrence Phillips, who is considered one of the top prospects in the Southland. Nogales has Lamont Adams, a returning all-division running back. Thousand Oaks has the experience to break in at the top, but the team will have to shake off recent trouble in the playoffs. The most exciting player in the division might be junior running back George Keiaho, who could propel Buena with an outstanding season.

SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION IV

* FAVORITES: Irvine and Tustin.

* TOP CHALLENGERS: Moreno Valley Canyon Springs, Rancho Santa Margarita and Riverside Poly.

* DARK HORSE: Villa Park.

* WHAT’S NEW: The division adds the Century, Mission and Sea View leagues. The Baseline and Ivy leagues scale down from eight to six teams each.

* OUTLOOK: It is hard to pick against Irvine, which won the Division II title last year while competing in the South Coast League. Instead of staying put and moving up a division, the Vaqueros dropped down by joining the Sea View League. Irvine returns 11 starters off a 12-2 team, including running back Scott Seal. Tustin will be Irvine’s main challenger in the league and division. The Tillers, led by veteran Coach Marijon Ancich, are going after their third consecutive appearance in a section championship. They lost to Valencia in last season’s Division VI title game. Santa Margarita will play its first league season after three successful years as a freelance competitor.

SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION V

* FAVORITES: Corona and Temecula Valley.

* TOP CHALLENGERS: Etiwanda, Indio and Ontario Chaffey.

* DARK HORSE: Colton.

* WHAT’S NEW: Desert-Valleys, Mountain View and San Andreas leagues are back. Mt. Baldy and Sunbelt leagues are new.

* OUTLOOK: Corona and Temecula Valley are heavy favorites. Corona, riding an 11-game winning streak, is the defending division champion after defeating Arroyo last season. Temecula Valley lost to Inglewood Morningside in the Division VIII championship last season, but was recently awarded the title after it was found Morningside used an ineligible player. The move up won’t hurt the Bears, who return two all-Southern Section players and several all-leaguers. Etiwanda should be improved after a disappointing 5-5 season in ’91. Indio and Chaffey return enough talent to challenge.

SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION VI

* FAVORITES: El Monte Arroyo and Placentia Valencia.

* TOP CHALLENGERS: Covina and Walnut.

* DARK HORSE: Hacienda Heights Los Altos.

* WHAT’S NEW: The Orange League is the only holdover. The Miramonte, Mission Valley, Valle Vista and Whitmont leagues are new additions.

* OUTLOOK: Defending division champion Valencia is not as loaded as last season when it went 14-0. But the Tigers should have little trouble winning their ninth league title under Coach Mike Marrujo. Arroyo, coming off a loss to Corona in the Division V championship, should be a viable contender. The Knights return 10 starters. Covina and Walnut are coming off winning seasons that ended with quick exits in the playoffs. Although Los Altos had a disappointing ‘91, Coach Dwayne DeSpain should have his team back near the top.

SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION VII

* FAVORITES: Arroyo Grande and Inglewood Morningside.

* TOP CHALLENGERS: Beverly Hills, Fullerton Sunny Hills and San Luis Obispo.

* DARK HORSE: Garden Grove Rancho Alamitos.

* WHAT’S NEW: Except for the Northern League, the division is all new. Additions include the Freeway, Garden Grove, Montview and Ocean leagues.

* OUTLOOK: After Division II, this is the most competitive division team for team. Arroyo Grande and Morningside rate as slight favorites with at least half a dozen other schools capable of winning it all. Arroyo Grande, which returns eight starters, will be trying to reach the division final for the second time in three years. Morningside cannot be counted out with quarterback Stais Boseman running the show. Boseman, who also plays on defense and special teams, led the Monarchs to the Division VIII championship last season. The title was recently taken away, however, after it was learned the team used an ineligible player.

SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION VIII

* FAVORITES: Laguna Hills, Lakewood Artesia and Mission Viejo Trabuco Hills.

* TOP CHALLENGERS: Gardena Serra and La Mirada.

* DARK HORSE: South Pasadena.

* WHAT’S NEW: Camino Real, Pacific Coast, Rio Hondo and Suburban leagues are new. The Sunkist League remains the same.

* OUTLOOK: Laguna Hills and Trabuco Hills are set to renew their rivalry in the Pacific Coast League. The teams split two games last season, with Laguna Hills winning the second one for the Division VII championship. Trabuco Hills appears to have the upper hand this season with the return of quarterback Pat Barnes, who passed for 3,000 yards last season. Artesia is another team counting heavily on its quarterback. Aaron Flowers, who threw for 34 touchdowns last season, will pass on nearly every down. South Pasadena continues its climb from tradition doormat status, hoping to improve on last season’s 7-3-1 mark.

SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION IX

* FAVORITES: Atascadero, Carpinteria and Oak Park.

* TOP CHALLENGERS: Lompoc Cabrillo, North Torrance and South Torrance.

* DARK HORSE: Beaumont.

* WHAT’S NEW: The Tri-Valley League remains intact. Frontier, Los Padres, Pioneer and Skyline leagues are new.

* OUTLOOK: Running backs Tarik Smith of Oak Park and Reggie Etheridge of Cabrillo are two of the top prospects in the Southland and should be able to help keep their teams in the title hunt. Atascadero moves down a division after losing to Morningside in the Division VIII semifinals last season. Defending division champion Carpinteria returns eight starters from last season’s 12-2 team. North and South Torrance should fare better in a lower division. North Torrance returns all-league quarterback Frank Rameriz, who passed for 2,000 yards last season.

SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION X

* FAVORITES: Cerritos Valley Christian and Whittier Christian.

* TOP CHALLENGERS: Big Bear and Bishop.

* DARK HORSE: Cypress Brethren Christian.

* WHAT’S NEW: The division was bolstered by the additions of the De Anza, High Desert, Olympic and Sante Fe Leagues. The Alpha League is a holdover.

* OUTLOOK: Cerritos Valley Christian and Whittier Christian have dominated in Division IX for the last two years, so they should be solid contenders in a lower division. Whittier Christian, which won a section title two years ago, returns 13 starters from a team that was eliminated in the quarterfinals. Valley Christian will be young, but Coach Mike Wunderley has won 71% of his games over the last 14 years. Big Bear, coming off its finest season in a decade, should fare well with the return of three all-league players. Bishop is looking to improve on last season’s 8-4 mark with the help of 12 returning starters.

CITY SECTION DIVISION 4-A

* FAVORITES: Carson, Dorsey and Wilmington Banning.

* TOP CHALLENGERS: Locke and Sylmar.

* DARK HORSE: Granada Hills Kennedy.

* WHAT’S NEW: Crenshaw, Franklin, Huntington Park, Jefferson, Los Angeles, Marshall, Roosevelt and Van Nuys moved up from Division 3-A.

* OUTLOOK: Carson, Dorsey and Banning have dominated in 4-A for the last several years. This season should be no exception. Defending champion Dorsey might have the strongest program, in which the team reloads instead of rebuilds. Wide receiver Antonio Carrion is considered by many as the top prospect in the country at his position. Banning and Carson are both going through coaching changes, which could result in early difficulties. Joe Dominguez stepped down at Banning last spring after a controversial year. He was replaced by assistant Ed Paculba. Carson co-coach Jim D’Amore also stepped down after last season, leaving Marty Blankenship to run things by himself.

CITY SECTION DIVISION 3-A

* FAVORITES: San Pedro and Washington.

* TOP CHALLENGERS: Eagle Rock, Pacific Palisades, South Gate and Woodland Hills Taft.

* DARK HORSE: Wilson.

* WHAT’S NEW: Bell, Eagle Rock, Gardena, Manual Arts, North Hollywood, South Gate, Taft and Wilson move down from 4-A. Harbor City Narbonne changes conference, from the Southern Pacific to the Southeastern.

* OUTLOOK: The City Section has given a break to struggling programs by keeping them in 3-A and moving up winning teams to 4-A. Thus, it is hard to figure who will come out on top. San Pedro and Washington are rated as slight favorites because they are used to the rugged competition that comes from being in the Southern Pacific Conference, which includes Banning, Carson and Dorsey. Eagle Rock, South Gate, Taft and Wilson should fare well since they competed in 4-A last season. Palisades should field its best team since Perry Klein was quarterback.

Seniors to Watch

A look at the class of the 1992 high school football season.

NAME SCHOOL HT. WT. POS. Pat Barnes Mission Viejo Trabuco Hills 6-3 185 QB Stais Boseman Inglewood Morningside 6-4 200 QB Tim Carey Los Alamitos 6-4 180 QB Antonio Carrion Dorsey 5-10 170 WR Aaron Flowers Lakewood Artesia 6-2 180 QB Demarco Ford Long Beach Wilson 6-1 205 LB Ed Gray Riverside North 6-1 175 WR Germaine Gray Rialto Eisenhower 6-5 250 DL Zukoni Hodges Pasadena Blair 6-1 185 RB Travis Kirschke Anaheim Esperanza 6-4 235 DL Sammy Knight Riverside Rubidoux 6-1 185 DB Tyson Lingenfelter Upland 6-5 245 DL Saladin McCullough Pasadena Muir 5-11 180 RB Johnny Macon Downey 5-11 175 QB Andrew Meyers Fontana 6-6 285 OL Brandon Moore Wilmington Banning 6-1 185 DB Lawrence Phillips Baldwin Park 5-11 190 RB Tyrone Pierce Sylmar 6-3 230 LB Phalen Pounds Pasadena 6-6 290 OL George Sagen Los Alamitos 6-0 180 WR Tarik Smith Oak Park 5-11 180 RB Blake Spence Mission Viejo Capistrano Valley 6-4 230 TE Shaun Stuart Saugus 6-4 280 OL Eliel Swinton Van Nuys Montclair Prep 5-10 190 RB Treyvone Towns Pasadena 6-4 220 LB

PLAYER and COMMENT

Pat Barnes: Threw for 23 touchdowns last season.

Stais Boseman: Considered best all-around athlete in the state.

Tim Carey: He’s rated the best on West Coast.

Antonio Carrion: Has great hands and plenty of speed to match.

Aaron Flowers: Threw for 3,951 yards last season.

Demarco Ford: A player who is all over the field.

Ed Gray: A top basketball prospect as well.

Germaine Gray: Sat out half of ’91 with injuries.

Zukoni Hodges: May also be recruited as defensive back.

Travis Kirschke: OC lineman of the year as junior.

Sammy Knight: Had 169 tackles to finish No. 2 in Southern Section.

Tyson Lingenfelter: Averages seven tackles a game.

Saladin McCullough: A player who rarely leaves the field.

Johnny Macon: Runs the option as well as anyone.

Andrew Meyers: A rare three-year starter for Coach Dick Bruich.

Brandon Moore: A top prospect at strong safety.

Lawrence Phillips: Can play a variety of positions well.

Tyrone Pierce: Has great speed for his size.

Phalen Pounds: An explosive run blocker.

George Sagen: Averages 14 yards a reception.

Tarik Smith: Also plays in defensive backfield.

Blake Spence: Recovering from shoulder injury.

Shaun Stuart: Considered best center in the Southland.

Eliel Swinton: School known for great running backs.

Treyvone Towns: Returning all-Southern Section player.