These Guys Prove They Know Their X’s and O’s

They’ve brought up the rear of every alphabetical order roll call since kindergarten. But first in football Friday night were Jason Zdenek of Chaminade High and the Zavala brothers of Santa Paula.

Zdenek zapped El Camino Real by returning an interception for a touchdown in the third quarter to give the Eagles a 21-10 lead, and he intercepted another pass late in the 38-10 victory.

Willie Zavala, a sophomore, passed for four touchdowns--including two to his senior brother Robert--in Santa Paula’s 58-12 victory over Desert.

Zdenek also plays quarterback, and he threw three touchdown passes in the team’s opener last week, a 51-6 victory over Agoura. But he threw two interceptions against El Camino Real, which took a 10-7 halftime lead.

“I didn’t play well on offense the first half, so I had to get it back on the other side of the ball,” he said.

From his free safety position, Zdenek circled behind an El Camino Real receiver who had run a hook-and-go route and made the interception.

“I started down the sideline, then saw all of them coming toward me, so I cut back all the way to the other sideline,” Zdenek said of his 45-yard scoring return.

Zdenek, a senior, enjoys quarterback, but his greatest zeal is saved for safety.

“I’ve always preferred defense,” he said. “Playing both ways gives me a little variety. On offense I get to run the ball and on defense I get to make big hits.”

Most coaches are reluctant to use their quarterback on defense, but after ignoring him most of last season, Chaminade’s Rich Lawson believes Zdenek is too valuable to leave on the sideline.

“Zdenek is finally getting his chance,” Lawson said. “You know those guys whose name begins with a Z, they are always the last to get called.”

Not in Robert Zavala’s case. Not when his brother can call his number at any time.

Behind the Zavalas, Santa Paula stormed Desert. The Cardinals’ attack reached a zenith in a 36-point second quarter. Zip, zap, zoom, the Cardinals stretched a 7-6 lead into a 43-6 blowout in the space of 12 minutes.

“We got in a zone, we just started rolling,” Willie Zavala said.

Early in the quarter, a pass from Willie was tipped by Robert into the hands of Timmy Gonzalez, who raced 41 yards for a score. On Santa Paula’s next possession, Willie faked a bootleg and lobbed a pass to Robert, who knocked over two defenders on his way to the end zone, completing a 43-yard play.

As the first half wound down, Willie used play action before finding Robert on a 31-yard scoring pass play. Willie hit Matt Palmer with a 20-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter and finished with 193 yards passing.

During the two-hour bus ride home, the Zavalas did something the Desert defense had been unable to do.

“We caught some Z’s,” Willie said.

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Catching up on his sleep Saturday morning was another quarterback, Chris Czernek, who, like Zdenek, is of Czechoslovakian descent. Since returning from Hawaii with his Newbury Park teammates Monday, Czernek said he has been a zombie.

“I was dead,” he said. “I didn’t sleep well all week and I had so much homework to catch up on, I was up until midnight every night.”

Imagine what a rested Czernek can accomplish. The junior passed for 362 yards and four touchdowns in Newbury Park’s 32-27 victory over San Marcos, the second week in a row he has been the area’s leading passer.

In two games, Czernek has completed 42 of 74 for 738 yards and eight touchdowns.

Czernek is frequently asked around campus if he is going to break the records of Keith Smith, the state’s all-time leading passer who led Newbury Park to a 14-0 season in 1993.

The unassuming Czernek invariably replies with a simple, “No.” Czech that. Based on his first two games, he might want to start mixing in a maybe.

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Alvan Arzu zigs when you think he’ll zag and zags when you think he’ll zig. This makes him hard to tackle, illustrated by his 280 yards rushing in Notre Dame’s first two games.

“Look for the cutback lanes, that’s what I do,” Arzu said. “I get outside a few times early in the game, then teams will overpursue. That’s when I cut back.”

Arzu, a senior who missed most of last season because of a knee injury, has personal goals taped to a wall in his room: 1,200-1,500 yards; 15-25 touchdowns; an average of 8.0 yards a carry. And the No. 1 goal--repeat as Southern Section Division III champions.

“Last year I couldn’t contribute, and that’s given me more incentive,” he said.

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After watching Thousand Oaks force Hart’s Ted Iacenda to fumble twice and Steve McKeon to hurry several passes in Hart’s 31-17 victory Friday night, it is clear why rival Marmonte League coaches such as Westlake’s Jim Benkert and Newbury Park’s George Hurley are uneasy about playing the Lancers.

Those coaches say Thousand Oaks is the most-physical team in the Marmonte League. Win or lose, opponents will be sore on Saturday.

“I got rocked a few times,” Iacenda said after the game. “It was good to face a hard-hitting opponent like that.”

Middle linebacker Greg Gallup, Thousand Oaks’ leading tackler a year ago, met the powerful Iacenda nose-to-nose several times, the crackle of their contact reverberating into the stands.

“Gallup just has that sense of where the ball is,” Thousand Oaks Coach Mike Kelly said. “And when he gets there, there will be some noise.”

* Contributing: Vince Kowalick.

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Scoring Points

The following is a list of the yearly high school scoring leaders from the San Fernando Valley and Ventura County areas. Playoff statistics are included.

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YEAR PLAYER SCHOOL POINTS 1986 Russell White Crespi 188 1987 Russell White Crespi 228 1988 Russell White Crespi 152 1989 Derek Sparks Montclair Prep 210 1990 Pathon Rucker Glendale 202 1991 Elijah Raphael Kennedy 180 1992 Wilbert Smith Montclair Prep 158 1993 Wilbert Smith Montclair Prep 248 1994 Ted Iacenda Hart 248

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