Shubin Takes Crash Course in Geography

Anybody got a Thomas Bros. Guide?

It takes one to track the roadways traveled by quarterback Brian Shubin, who has attended four high schools in three years and three schools in less than a year.

Shubin spent his freshman year at Camarillo High, transferred to Thousand Oaks as a sophomore, then transferred to Canyon as a junior. Four weeks ago, Shubin and his family moved to Woodland Hills, where he enrolled at Taft.

Now, because Taft quarterback Mike Ferguson suffered a broken collarbone, Shubin is expected to play tonight in a City Section 4-A Division playoff game against Eagle Rock. Shubin, whose name is still listed in the Canyon program, will back up Dayon Shaw, who was Ferguson’s reliever.

Taft Coach Troy Starr said that Shubin, who has experienced back problems in the past, has received medical clearance and already has picked up the rudiments of Taft’s offense.

In fact, he has already mastered it. Shubin won’t be writing any plays on his wristband.

“Our stuff is beyond simple,” Starr said. “He picked it right away--in about a day.”

Both Shaw and Shubin (6-foot-1, 175 pounds) are juniors, which means the pair will battle for the starting job next fall. If Shubin sits still that long.

“Dayon’s our guy, but Shubin’s going to play,” Starr said. “We have confidence in the kid and you need two quarterbacks in the playoffs. . . . He throws a nice ball.”

NORTHWEST VALLEY

Breakfast at Kokon’s

Joel Schaeffer, the Reseda football coach, says he knew all along that Taft was going to be upset by San Fernando last week. Indeed, the Tigers pulled off a 19-18 victory.

“I told everybody that would listen to bet the house on San Fernando,” said Schaeffer, who had a well-chronicled feud with Taft Coach Troy Starr earlier in the year. “(San Fernando) had to win (to make the playoffs). And they’re still ticked off about those guys being over there.”

Those guys are Jerry Brown and DaShon Polk who attend Taft on a controversial open permit but live in the San Fernando attendance area. Another longtime San Fernando follower, veteran San Fernando Valley sportswriter Pete Kokon, insisted Schaeffer was delirious.

“Kokon’s buying me breakfast,” Schaeffer said triumphantly. “I’m going out on the Tigers.”

FOOTHILL LEAGUE

Missing Ingredient

Scott Boldvich plays quarterback for the most surprising team in the area, the playoff-bound Burroughs Indians. Burroughs, which was 0-10 last year and had won three games over the previous two seasons, finished 5-5, 2-2 in the Foothill League, and secured third place with victories the last two weeks of the season--including an upset of Saugus.

Boldvich, a 6-3, 180-pound junior, has played a key role. He has thrown only five interceptions and leads an offense that rarely turns the ball over.

There’s only one thing missing for Boldvich--a touchdown pass.

“I keep trying to get one,” he said. “Some have been dropped. Some I’ve missed. Plus, when we get inside a certain area on the field, we like to run the ball down their throats.”

FRONTIER LEAGUE

A Winning Touch

Before the season, Moorpark football Coach Rob Dearborn said he feared for his job because the Musketeers had been so bad for so long. At midseason, he had to endure a bizarre investigation by the Moorpark school board into suspected rules violations by the football program.

Now Dearborn is finding out what winning will do. On Wednesday, Moorpark City Hall honored the football team for winning the Frontier League championship--its first title in 52 years--with Mayor Paul Lawrason and Councilman John Wozniak making speeches. Three months ago, Dearborn thought those same men would run him out of town.

“A big weight is off my back; 52 years’ worth,” said Dearborn, whose Musketeers enter the Southern Section Division IX playoffs with an 8-1-1 record. “It was nice to hear John Wozniak talk about how the team went through (everything) earlier in the season and was able to stay focused.”

Now the same school trustees who investigated Dearborn will honor the coach and his players Tuesday.

“It’ll be kind of ironic, because I won’t be able to be there,” Dearborn said. “I have to be at an all-county (selection) meeting. They’ll probably frown on that.”

EAST VALLEY LEAGUE

Passing the Test

When Van Nuys lost all its ballhandlers to graduation last year, it seemed unlikely that the Wolves could duplicate the success they enjoyed in 1992.

Well, they haven’t duplicated it--they’ve improved on it.

Van Nuys finished the regular season 6-4 last year and advanced to the semifinals in its first season at the 4-A Division level. A year later, the Wolves are 8-2 going into postseason play.

Quarterback Chris Byfield is one of the reasons for the success. Byfield (62 of 104, 1,046 yards, nine touchdowns), a junior, has completed nearly 60% of his passes and sports the best percentage among area City quarterbacks. “We have a kind of unique offense and he fits well into it,” Van Nuys Coach George Engbrecht said. “We do a lot of high-percentage passes--most of our passes are about 15 yards.”

MARMONTE LEAGUE

Stay Where You Are

No matter how much he pleads with Coach George Hurley, Newbury Park senior defensive lineman John Bowers (6-2, 195 pounds) will not have his position changed.

Bowers now fancies himself a defensive back following his 42-yard interception return for a touchdown against Westlake. Bowers picked off a pass from Westlake quarterback Kevin Crook in the middle of the field and outraced the Warrior offense to the end zone, securing the Panthers’ win.

Bowers is the second Newbury Park lineman to return an interception for a touchdown. Senior Chris Hill had a 70-yard return in a 41-8 league rout of Camarillo.

“We’ve got some very good athletes playing on the line, that’s why they can outrun people,” Hurley said. “Now they all think they’re DBs, but that’s never going to happen.”

INDEPENDENTS

Making an Impression

With only four seniors, Faith Baptist Coach Greg Weiss expected to rebuild this season, but behind a junior quarterback, the Contenders are 8-1 and seeded second in the eight-man, large-division Southern Section playoffs.

Weiss believes Judd Granzow, a starter since the middle of his freshman year, has the talent to play for most 11-man teams in the area. In nine games, Granzow has completed 71 of 130 passes for 1,715 yards and 22 touchdowns with only five interceptions.

But Granzow (6-foot-4, 190 pounds) can run the ball as well. He has 94 carries for 828 yards, averaging 8.8 yards a carry, and 15 additional touchdowns. He also plays defensive end and is a pitcher and infielder for the Faith Baptist baseball team.

“He’s gone to all the big quarterback camps and gone up against Keith Smith and other top quarterbacks,” Weiss said. “With his baseball and football talent, he could be the best athlete I’ve coached here. He could be a quarterback or a third baseman.”

Around the Leagues. . . .

* Superstition of the week: St. Genevieve assistant Shane Sawitz must eat a hot dog and drink a root beer as he watches an opponent in pregame warm-ups. “He knows where all the concession stands are,” Coach Richard Fong said.

* Harvard-Westlake Coach Dave Bennett calls Matt Sebree the best kicker he has coached in his 27 years. Sebree, a senior who is also an outstanding volleyball player, has received inquiries from several Division I schools, including Penn State.

* Glendale senior Ramiro Munoz, who was replaced as the starting kicker earlier in the season, scored a touchdown on an 85-yard interception return in his first series of the season on defense. “It was 34-7 at the time and we were just trying to get everyone in,” Coach Don Shoemaker said.

* Alemany won’t be playing Hart again soon. “I’ve had about enough of those people,” Coach Pat Degnan said. “They can find somebody else to beat up on. If I’m going to get beaten, I’m going to get beaten by somebody I respect, not somebody I don’t want to have anything to do with.” Although Alemany stayed close to Hart (14-7) this season, it lost, 43-0, in 1992 and Degnan said he thought Hart ran up the score.

Staff writers Steve Elling, Jeff Fletcher, Dana Haddad, Michael Lazarus, Paige A. Leech, John Ortega and Jason H. Reid contributed to this notebook.