Orange Lutheran’s Amato to Close Book on Career : Prep football: Back and neck injuries have forced guard/linebacker to give up the game after the section final tonight.

Three years ago, when he was a sophomore at Orange Lutheran, Chris Amato went to his first meeting with new Coach Jim Kunau and was handed a playbook that, to him, looked as thick as the Yellow Pages.

“I thought, ‘Coach, no way are we going to learn all of this,’ ” Amato said.

Fortunately for Orange Lutheran, Amato and his teammates figured things out.

Tonight, Orange Lutheran will play in its second consecutive Southern Section Division X championship game. Last year, the Lancers were defeated by a vastly superior Montclair Prep team, 53-13. This time, they were supposed to meet Rosamond, but Rosamond was removed from the playoffs last week for doctoring the game videotape sent to its playoff opponents.

Instead, Orange Lutheran will face Cerritos Valley Christian, which lost to Rosamond in the semifinals 45-10. The game will be a rematch; in November, Valley Christian defeated Orange Lutheran 36-31 to win the Olympic League title.

This time the stakes are a little higher, giving the contest added meaning.

Amato, 17, certainly hopes so. Tonight will be his final football game. He has been dogged by back and neck injuries that have made it difficult for him to play. Some colleges have inquired as to whether he will continue, but Amato said the injuries need time to heal. So even though “I’m feeling as good as I have at any point of the season,” this is it.

“I decided before the season started not to play in college,” Amato said. “Win or lose [tonight], it will be hard to leave the field. But I can go knowing I got to play in a good program.”

Amato said the bones that support his neck curve out instead of up. He has two slipped vertebrae in his lower back. He said doctors are unsure if he was born with the two conditions or developed them as a youngster. Amato said he does not risk paralysis by playing but does suffer severe migraine headaches.

Being a two-way starter doesn’t help, especially considering how relatively small he is for the positions he plays. At 6 feet 1, 195 pounds, Amato is the right guard on offense and an outside linebacker on defense.

But the pounding Amato takes has not kept him from excelling.

At linebacker, he led Orange Lutheran (10-3) with 126 tackles (62 unassisted), and added two sacks, two recovered fumbles and two interceptions. At guard, he did enough blocking for running back Che Holloway--who rushed for 1,844 yards and 23 touchdowns--to be named Olympic League lineman of the year.

Amato is not sure what he did to deserve the award. “I’m quick off the ball, but I’m one of the slowest guys around when it comes to running,” he said. “Probably one of the biggest things is I hate having a guy block me, then just keep driving me downfield. It bugs me. So I learned how to get off those blocks. And it’s having an idea where the play is going to go.”

Kunau calls Amato “one of the more remarkable young men” he has coached at Orange Lutheran.

“There are not enough good things to say,” Kunau said. “Chris is a consummate team leader and team player. He is a complete gentlemen off the field, a 3.8 [grade-point average] student, a kid who goes out of his way to help people and make the team better. And he has never cared whether he got an ounce of credit.

“He’s completely unselfish and always positive. I’ve never seen him down on anything or complain. So for me, it’s fitting he gets another opportunity to win [a section title]. He has accepted not going on and is making the most of his high school career. But he will be extremely successful in whatever he does.”

Presently, Amato is only thinking of success tonight. The memories of last year’s defeat are harsh. He played on a sprained ankle, further reducing his mobility, and felt helpless watching the speedy Mounties race away in the second half, scoring 34 consecutive points.

Amato also thinks Orange Lutheran was merely happy to have made it to the championship game. The feeling is different this year. Adding the revenge factor won’t hurt either, even though the first meeting was one of the most exciting games Amato said he has ever played in.

“It was a game of a lot of scoring changes, touchdown for touchdown,” Amato said. “I love playing Valley because they are well-coached and well-schooled. They’re not just schoolyard team; it’s playing a team of our caliber with the plays they have.

“They beat us on a last second touchdown; [running back Kenchasa] Amos ran through the right side and cut back. Since then, there is a lot of new stuff we’ve had to prepare for. But I also think we’ve learned a lot since the beginning of the playoffs.”

Still, Amato feels the Lancers are not overmatched. In addition, there are 14 seniors besides Amato who want their final appearance as Lancers to be memorable for the right reasons.

But look for Amato to be the last player to leave the field after tonight’s game. He has been fulfilled by his experiences at Orange Lutheran and he does not want them to end.

“As the program grew, I grew,” Amato said. “I learned that change could occur. And I’m better for it.”