PREP FOOTBALL SPOTLIGHT : THE REAL McCOY

Last week, Culver City Coach Lou Lichtl said Hawthorne’s Corey McCoy was the best running back he had seen since Glyn Milburn, the former Santa Monica speedster who plays for Stanford.

McCoy added to his fast-growing reputation Friday night, rushing for 255 yards and four touchdowns in only 15 carries to lead visiting Hawthorne to a 43-20 nonleague victory over Torrance.

In his past two games, McCoy has rushed for 395 yards in 24 carries, a 16.5-yard average, and scored six TDs. He had scoring runs of 45, 26, 20 and 47 yards against Torrance.

“He’s a lot of fun to watch,” Hawthorne Coach Dan Robbins said. “He was a little dinged up this week, so imagine what he does at full strength.”

Robbins was asked what McCoy could do if he was given the ball 20 to 30 times a game. He averages 13 carries.

“He’ll never see that (many carries) if he plays for me,” Robbins said. “We have too many great kids to give it to one person. It’s fun to mix it up, to share the wealth.”

Torrance Coach Bill Bynum compared McCoy’s explosive running style to Morningside’s Stais Boseman. Morningside beat Torrance, 55-30, last season on its way to the Southern Section Division VIII title, which it later forfeited.

“(McCoy and Boseman) are both Division I caliber,” Bynum said. “This kid tonight did better than Boseman did against us. This was just like playing last year’s Morningside club, except I think this team is stronger.”

OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS

Hawthorne’s victory was its fourth in a row after an opening-game loss to Loyola, the top-ranked team in Division I. Torrance, on the other hand, has lost four consecutive games since beating Verbum Dei.

A telling statistic is how both teams have fared late in games. Hawthorne has outscored opponents, 94-31, in the second half. Torrance has been outscored, 67-13, in the second half and had not scored in the fourth quarter until getting a field goal Friday.

AVOIDING A REPEAT

As Culver City mounted a last-minute drive Friday night, West Torrance Coach Kerry Crabb couldn’t help but think back to last season when the Centaurs rallied to beat West, 32-31.

“As they were driving and they kept converting the third and fourth downs, it seemed like a replay of last year,” Crabb said.

The difference this time is that West held its ground. After Culver City drove 72 yards to the West eight-yard line--twice converting fourth-down plays--a fourth-down pass by quarterback Tommy Covington bounced off the hands of wide receiver Jasiri Rodell with one second left as West hung on for a 19-13 victory.

“I feel lucky, that’s the bottom line,” Crabb said.

Crabb was relieved partly because of his coaching decision that resulted in a Culver City touchdown on the last play of the first half.

Trailing, 7-6, West stopped Culver City four times inside the five to get the ball back at its own three with five seconds left. But instead of letting the clock run out, Crabb called time out and then called for quarterback Ryan Marshall to pass. The ball was intercepted by defensive back Chris Ellison, who returned it 25 yards for a touchdown to give the Centaurs a 13-6 halftime lead.

“Hopefully I will never make a bonehead call like that again in my life,” Crabb said. “I blame myself for it and I told the team I’d work my butt off to get it back for them in the second half.”

PATSIES NO LONGER

Centennial, for years an easy mark for South Bay schools, served notice Friday night that it is a team to be reckoned with this season.

The Apaches dominated from start to finish en route to a 33-8 victory over previously unbeaten Redondo, which entered the game leading the South Bay in team offense and ranked third in the Southern Section Division VII media poll. It was the Apaches’ third consecutive victory after opening the season with losses to highly ranked Dominguez and Peninsula.

Centennial, taking advantage of several Redondo mistakes, scored on its first two possessions and built a 25-0 halftime lead.

Redondo Coach Chris Hyduke blamed the loss on poor preparation and a lack of emotion, but gave credit to Centennial.

“Centennial played an excellent game,” Hyduke said. “As a coaching staff, we knew going in that we were going to have to play a good game, but the kids didn’t believe us. We’re very disappointed in their performance, but I’m glad it happened out of league and not in league.”

The Sea Hawks, who had been averaging 363 yards a game, were held to 177 total yards and only 49 yards rushing in 28 carries. Centennial finished with 224 yards, getting a big game from lightning-quick Shannon Randale, who played running back and quarterback. He accounted for 104 yards total offense and passed for a TD.

GETTING THE JOB DONE

Second-year Coach Joe Hembrick deserves much of the credit for Centennial’s turnaround. After finishing 1-9 last season, including a last-place record of 0-4 in the Pioneer League, the Apaches gave an indication they would be improved by going unbeaten in summer passing league games at El Camino College.

Hembrick, who coached for 11 years at Lynwood before coming to Centennial, said it has taken time for the offense to catch up with the defense.

“The defense has been playing well all year,” he said. “It’s the offense that has been turning the ball over. . . . We were a lot more efficient tonight. Now we’re running the ball effectively.”

Hembrick felt his defense could stop Redondo’s running game.

“I figured our front four could handle them,” he said. “I looked at some of the wins they had. I didn’t think they faced a team that was as physical as we were, so I was banking on our front seven to contain them.”

Redondo running backs Bob Cracknell and Scott Moore, who entered the game ranked second and sixth, respectively, in area rushing, combined for 52 yards in 22 carries.

DEBATE SETTLED

The quarterback controversy appears to be over at Redondo after junior Scott Albin passed for 128 yards and a touchdown Friday in relief of senior Keegan Quigley.

Hyduke had been playing both quarterbacks in an attempt to settle on a starter before the team’s Ocean League opener Friday against Beverly Hills.

“We put Albin in there and I think some of my questions might have been answered,” Hyduke said. “He stepped in there under pressure and threw well.”

LAST OF THE MOHICANS

Gardena Coach Mike Sakurai called it an “incredible week.” In the span of six days, the Mohicans lost nine players because of injuries leading up to Friday’s 47-0 loss to Crenshaw.

Among the more colorful injuries was a player who fell in the bathtub, another who fell over a blocking bag while leaving practice, and two players who collided during a non-contact passing drill.

The injuries left Gardena with 28 players for Friday’s game. Fortunately for the Mohicans, they have a week off before their Oct. 23 game against San Pedro.

FRIDAY’S HEROES

San Pedro running back Ambrose Russo broke loose for a 59-yard touchdown run with 7:24 left to give the Pirates a 20-20 tie with defending City Section 4-A Division champion Dorsey. . . . Bishop Montgomery tailback Eric Chaney scored on a four-yard run with 4:22 remaining to give the Knights a 6-0 victory over Santa Ana Valley. . . . Banning’s Mike Henderson blocked a punt with four minutes left to set up a three-yard touchdown run by Damin Hurst and lift the Pilots to a 14-7 victory over San Clemente. . . . Serra wide receiver Rod Smith scored on a 24-yard pass play from quarterback Damon Vereen with 37 seconds left to give the Cavaliers a 28-21 victory over Mary Star. . . . Peninsula’s Hynman Whang blocked a punt and recovered it in the end zone for a touchdown in the second quarter to erase a 3-0 deficit and send the Panthers to a 25-3 victory.

DEFENSIVE STANDOUTS

* North Torrance tackle Keith Traylor had three of his team’s five sacks on Mira Costa quarterback Scott Combs, and end Dino Harris recovered a fumble in a 25-0 victory.

* Peninsula tackle Matt Youngs had three of his team’s seven sacks on Beverly Hills quarterback Reza Ghodstinat in a 25-3 victory.

* Carson tackle Sipo’u Mareko had 16 tackles, including two sacks and six tackles for losses in a 36-12 victory over Washington.

* San Pedro end Michael Spelich had 10 tackles, including two sacks, and cornerback Eddie Correa had an interception and a blocked point-after kick in a 20-20 tie with Dorsey.

* Hawthorne’s William Tuivai, Matt Heilman and Albert Kupu each had a sack to help the Cougars hold Torrance to minus-five yards rushing in a 43-20 victory.

* Leuzinger held Morningside to 32 yards rushing in a 21-3 victory.

IN QUOTES

Centennial Coach Joe Hembrick after his team beat previously unbeaten Redondo, 33-8, for its third victory in a row: “It’s a great win for the school. They’ll be hanging from the chandeliers over there next week. We haven’t had three wins in a row in about 20 years.”

North Torrance Coach Joe Austin after his team improved to 5-0 with a 25-0 victory over Mira Costa: “We haven’t really played our best game yet. Our defense really played well, but our offense was shabby. I should have (run) the ball a little more.”

Mira Costa Coach Bill Lysle on his team’s loss to North: “We left the game in the locker room. The guys that did the most talking did the least playing.”

West Torrance Coach Kerry Crabb on his team’s defense, which shut out Culver City in the second half of a 19-13 victory: “It was an incredible defensive effort by the staff and the kids. Their backs were to the wall and they rose to a new level. We faltered a little on our side of the ball, but fortunately our defense was there to pick up for us.”

Santa Ana Valley Coach Scott Strosnider after a 6-0 loss to Bishop Montgomery: “I’ll take full responsibility for the loss. Our offense never got going in the second half, and that’s why we lost.”

Serra Coach Kevin Crawley after his team rallied from a 14-6 halftime deficit to defeat Mary Star, 28-21, in a Camino Real League game: “We came out in the first series and I don’t think we were expecting Mary Star to hit as well as they did. There’s not too many times where we’ve gone one, two, three punt. We had to do that in the first half.”

Mary Star Coach Mike Marinkovich after his team’s disappointing loss: “The kids had a monumental effort. I think we showed some people that we belong in this league.”

INJURIES

El Segundo quarterback Jake Coulter suffered a knee injury in a 24-3 loss to Valley Christian of Cerritos. His status for Friday’s Pioneer League opener against Torrance is uncertain. El Segundo running back-linebacker Joey Bolder sat out with a shoulder injury, but is expected back Friday. . . . Peninsula tailback James Durroh sat out a 25-3 victory over Beverly Hills and is questionable for Friday’s Bay League opener against Leuzinger. Peninsula offensive guard Matt Redman, a 6-5, 275-pound junior, suffered a sprained knee against Beverly Hills. . . . Narbonne quarterback Marco Ramirez suffered a back injury in a 17-0 loss to South Gate and was taken to Bay Harbor Hospital, but was not admitted.