HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL PREVIEW : Burly Linemen Intent on Lifting Calabasas Into Contention

In terms of football notoriety, the offensive lineman--that hulking, hard-nosed individual--is “Mr. Anonymous.”

You won’t find him gracing the covers of national magazines or signing multimillion-dollar endorsement deals with the regularity of his skill-position colleagues. His job description calls for slugging it out down after down, all the while helping those glamorous quarterbacks, running backs and receivers celebrate touchdowns.

Well, the big boys at Calabasas High are in the spotlight, and Coach Larry Edwards is hoping the unit can help the team bask in the glory of a Frontier League championship.

“(The line) started a craze in the weight room during the off-season,” Edwards said. “Our goal was to get the line as strong as possible for this season, but then all of the kids wanted to come in and lift.

“They came in on holidays, before school, after school. Every day they would come up to me and say, ‘Coach, when can we lift?’ We think that because of the strength of our line, and our team as a whole, we have a strong foundation for a successful season.”

He is not alone.

Based in large part on its size and strength, Calabasas, which tied for fourth last year, is expected to make a strong run at the league championship.

Nordhoff Coach Cliff Farrar, whose team is the reigning league champion, expects the Coyotes to present a formidable challenge.

“With what they have coming back on the line, they should be the team to beat,” Farrar said. “They’ve got a lot of big, strong kids, and that’s something real nice to have.”

Moorpark Coach Rob Dearborn takes solace in not having to encounter Calabasas early in the season. Moorpark is the league newcomer, switching places with Fillmore, now of the Tri-Valley League.

“We don’t have to play them (until Nov. 6), so we’ll take on that hurdle when we come to it,” Dearborn said. “But I know they’ve got to be right in (the race for the championship) because there’s nothing like having five big guys on the offensive line.”

The leader of the group is 6-foot-5, 265-pound tackle Jason Rempel, an all-league selection as a sophomore last season.

“He’s (bench pressing) 315 and he’s incredibly quick and fast,” Edwards said. “He’s one of the best in the area.”

Guard Dereck Wessler (5-10, 175), a second-team, all-league pick, is the only senior on a line brimming with promising juniors: Terry Moran (6-2 210), Jesse Zamudio (6-0, 235) and Joey Gagliardi (6-3, 265) play center, tackle and guard, respectively. John Sipla (6-1, 230), also a junior lineman, figures to see considerable time at guard.

Such youth on the line might have been a concern for Edwards had not the rest of the roster been stocked with seniors. There are 20 seniors on the 36-player roster.

In fact, Edwards is so impressed with the line that he scrapped last season’s veer-option attack in favor of some good old-fashioned, ram-it-down-the-middle, power-I football.

Operating the offense will be senior quarterback Todd Cignarelli (5-11, 170). Cignarelli, who became a starter midway through last season, passed for 585 yards with four touchdowns and nine interceptions.

Scott Sistrunk, the Coyotes’ leading rusher from a year ago with 253 yards in 77 carries, returns for his senior season and should play tailback.

“We used to run the I, so we just dusted off an old playbook and put it back into use,” Edwards said. “We think this is the best offense for us to put our strength to use.”

Because of vigorous conditioning, 16 team members are able to bench-press 300 pounds or more.

“This is a senior-dominated team,” Edwards said. “It was a combination of them being just a little more determined and disciplined about what they wanted to accomplish this year after a little bit of a disappointing season last year.

“Having a strong attitude and something to prove made them want to keep putting up the weights.”

What pleases Edwards more than the prolific power-lifting numbers, however, is the potential to win.

“This is the first time in many years we’ve had such great size across the line,” he said. “The game is won or lost in the pit, and we think we’ll be able to wear people down and move them on both sides of the ball.”

FRONTIER LEAGUE

FINAL 1991 STANDINGS PROJECTED FINISH Nordhoff: 7-4, 4-0 Nordhoff Santa Paula: 5-6, 2-2 Calabasas Fillmore*: 4-7, 2-2 Santa Paula Calabasas: 4-6, 1-3 Santa Clara Santa Clara: 3-7, 1-3 Moorpark

* Denotes school that has moved to the Tri-Valley League.

Denotes former Tri-Valley League school.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Player School Pos. Ht. Wt. Class Danny Alcantar Santa Paula DB 5-11 165 Sr. Adam Blundell Nordhoff RB 5-10 170 Sr. Ryan Cuthbert Nordhoff LB 6-1 195 Sr. Andrew Faalevao Santa Clara RB/NT 5-10 240 Sr. Steve Malka Calabasas RB/DL 6-4 220 Sr. Oscar Ramirez Moorpark DL 6-0 185 Sr. Jason Rempel Calabasas OL/DL 6-5 265 Jr. Steve Saum Nordhoff QB 5-10 180 Sr. Scott Sistrunk Calabasas RB/DB 5-9 160 Sr. Brian Whittaker Santa Paula QB 5-11 165 Sr.