Chatsworth’s Davila Carries Off a Switch

After rushing for 217 yards and three touchdowns in last week’s victory over Cleveland High, Chatsworth’s Nestor Davila leads area City Section players in rushing with 675 yards and is tied for the lead in scoring with 54 points.

But to dedicate himself to football, Davila had to give up baseball, which he played as a sophomore. That decision might have forced him to do some fast talking at home. Davila’s father was a school principal in Esteli, Nicaragua, before the family moved to Los Angeles in 1978 at the outbreak of Nicaragua’s civil war.

In Nicaragua, baseball is the national pastime and American football is almost unknown.

“He sometimes watches games on TV,” Davila said of his father, “but he really doesn’t understand football. I have to explain to him what it means if I have a good game.”

In that case, he has had a lot of explaining to do recently.

In a victory over Reseda on Oct. 2, Davila rushed for 191 yards, giving him more than 400 in two games. Impressive numbers, especially considering that Davila, a senior, is still learning his position.

“This year, I’m getting the ball more,” he said. “I’m getting a chance to do more.”

Davila was fighting for a starting position in the Chancellors’ backfield last year before an injury to a wide receiver forced him to change positions. Davila (5-foot-10, 170 pounds) wound up catching 19 passes for 340 yards before losing his academic eligibility after six games.

Intent on returning to tailback this season, Davila turned out for track last spring to improve his speed and endurance. “I dropped my time from five seconds to 4.89 in the 40,” he said.

A BLUNT ASSESSMENT

San Fernando Coach Tom Hernandez says that speedy junior Leon Blunt is perhaps the school’s best option quarterback in recent years.

The statistics bear that out--Blunt has passed for 365 yards and rushed for a team-high 336--and so do the opinions of opposition coaches. After Granada Hills beat San Fernando, 21-13, last week, Highlander co-Coach Tom Harp made a point of seeking out Blunt to offer his congratulations. Blunt kept an outmanned San Fernando offense in the game with a series of madcap, scrambling runs out of pass formation. Blunt finished with 58 rushing yards.

“Is that kid going to be good next year, or what?” Harp said. “He gets loose on almost every play. We couldn’t keep up with him.”

TEE SHOTS

Kennedy senior kicker Jeremy Deach was expected to be a bona fide offensive weapon this season. Last week, he was unloading cannon shots.

Deach booted field goals of 43, 40 and 34 yards to key Kennedy’s 23-20 victory over Taft. Deach booted the game-winning field goal with about five minutes to play. He has made six of eight attempts this season, missing only from 47 and 57 yards, but college interest has been lukewarm.

Two years ago, colleges stopped using the kicking tee. Consequently, recruiters face a tough task in determining which high school kickers can make the transition to kicking off the ground. Deach does not seem to be taking the lack of attention personally.

“A lot (of colleges) don’t know if you can make the change,” Deach said. “There’s no real way to tell who can.”

AND THE WINNER IS . . .

Kicker Michele Diana of Cleveland might have to wait until the end of the season to learn whether she has set a state scoring record for female football players.

Diana booted a pair of extra points last week to give her 10 points for the season. The state record is held by Rachel Gagliano of Monroe, a kicker who accounted for 11 points three years ago.

Because there are several girl kickers in the state this season, it will not be clear who has set the mark until after the season, according to Mark Tennis of Cal-Hi Sports magazine. Tennis said there are female kickers at Santa Barbara and Milpitas highs and that there might be others.

FINALLY

Fortunately for the football coaches at Kilpatrick, Ron Coleman threw a football in a physical education class.

Coleman recently was transferred to Kilpatrick, a Los Angeles County youth correctional facility, from the Challenger Youth Center in Lancaster. He was supposed to play basketball for Kilpatrick but one look at his arm during a physical education class and the coaches decided Coleman also could help the football team.

He missed two games because Southern Section rules state that a player must participate in 10 practice sessions with a team before becoming eligible. In his first game, Coleman completed eight of nine passes for 137 yards and two touchdowns, leading previously winless Kilpatrick to a 32-28 come-from-behind victory against Whittier Christian, the third-ranked team in Division X.

“It’s like a light bulb went on,” Coach Glenn Bell said of his team. “They started attacking. I was stunned at the end of the game--not that we did it but how we did it and against who.”

Kilpatrick (1-4) trailed, 28-12, before mounting a comeback. Cecilo James, who was the quarterback until being displaced by Coleman, played flanker and caught four passes for two touchdowns and 133 yards.

NEW MAN ON THE JOB

What prompted Hueneme Coach Ed Knight to replace quarterback David Andrade, a three-year starter, with freshman George Jones? Knight declined comment, but it likely had more to do with Andrade’s performance than that of Jones.

Andrade had thrown nine interceptions and had been sacked seven times before Jones assumed the starting role two weeks ago. Andrade entered the game Friday against San Marcos and threw two passes. One was intercepted.

Andrade has completed 44 of 105 for 611 yards. In two games, Jones has completed 16 of 48 for 256 yards and one interception.

WELCOME BACK

Standout Oak Park senior running back Tarik Smith, who suffered an ankle injury two weeks ago, is expected to play Friday against Fillmore. Although his ankle had almost healed, Smith--regarded as one of the top recruits in the Southland--was held out of last week’s 29-0 nonleague victory over Moorpark as a precautionary measure.

CRYSTAL BALL

Littlerock Coach Jim Bauer does not profess to be clairvoyant. After last week’s 36-8 victory over St. Genevieve however, his players might think otherwise.

About three hours before kickoff, Bauer told the Lobos that St. Genevieve might try anything to win. Maybe a fake punt here, a fake field goal there. Trick plays can win games, he said, and you have to be ready for anything.

Bauer’s words were taken to heart. The Valiants tried a fake field goal in the first half, but four defenders followed the kicker--who was going to the sideline for the forgotten tee--and tackled him soon after the holder threw the kicker a pass.

“It sure brought a smile to our lips,” Bauer said. “It showed me that they were listening. Sometimes you get the feeling like they’re just going, yeah, yeah, yeah, and not hearing a word you say.”

The Valiants did fake a punt in the fourth quarter and they scored on a 45-yard touchdown pass. “Yeah, well, you can’t win them all,” Bauer said.

David Coulson and staff writers Kevin Baxter, Steve Elling, Jeff Fletcher, Vince Kowalick, Paige A. Leech and Jason H. Reid contributed to this notebook.