Coaches Optimistic They Have the Backs to Carry Their Teams

Defending Golden League champion Antelope Valley High has some productive shoes to fill now that Jermaine Lewis has moved on to UCLA.

Lewis led high-school rushers from the region with 2,511 yards and had 34 touchdowns last year.

Stepping in as Lewis’ replacement won’t be easy, but senior Eric Mobley, a transfer from Antelope Valley Christian who ran over eight-man competition last year, appears to be ready.

He already has earned the respect of one important person.

“Eric’s going to be a thousand-yard rusher and score a lot of touchdowns for us,” Antelope Valley Coach Brent Newcomb said.

Newcomb isn’t the only coach in the league who is optimistic about his rushing attack. Each believes he has at least one running back capable of rushing for 1,000 yards.

No league in the region had as many as five 1,000-yard rushers last year.

The Golden League’s top senior ballcarriers, led by Lewis and Littlerock’s Lafayette Bailey (1,397), ran for nearly 6,000 yards last year. But there is plenty of talent left.

Palmdale has senior Jan Brown, who rushed 1,146 yards and scored 14 touchdowns, plus senior Jason Anderson, a transfer from Monroe who rushed for 1,325 yards and 11 touchdowns last year.

Coach Jeff Williams plans to make Brown Mr. Inside, Anderson Mr. Outside and get each player between 15 and 20 carries a game.

“When [Anderson] showed up on campus, he didn’t know about me,” Brown said. “And a newspaper said he might replace Jan Brown. We had a little talk. We get along OK now. We were blocking good for each other last week.”

If Brown and Anderson can get along and end up complementing each other, Palmdale might have the best backfield in the league. But don’t count out Quartz Hill.

The Rebels have the circuit’s top returning rusher, senior Jeremiah Harris, who last year gained 1,354 yards and scored 14 touchdowns. He will be joined in the backfield by 6-foot-2, 235-pound senior fullback Jacob Waasdorp, an All-Valley selection by The Times at linebacker last season. Junior Doug Carlton makes it a three-back set.

“It’s going to be us and Palmdale,” Waasdorp said. “I even think both Palmdale running backs and our backs could get 1,000 yards each. It depends on the play-calling.”

Highland probably has its most talented corps of runners. Senior transfers Marcuss Fisher (Valley View) and Will Amey (Victor Valley) join 6-1, 190-pound sophomore Brandon McElvaine, who gained more than 1,600 yards for the Highland freshman team last year. Senior Marcus Prevost, one of the league’s best defenders at safety, is also expected to be a threat running the ball.

At Littlerock, senior Devon Reese finally gets his chance now that Bailey has graduated. Two years ago, Reese gained 750 yards in five games when Bailey was injured. Last year, he averaged almost six yards a carry in limited action.

At Antelope Valley, Mobley is hoping to make a triumphant return. After playing on the freshman team for the Antelopes, Mobley transferred to Antelope Valley Christian and dominated the eight-man Agape League by rushing for more than 4,000 yards in two seasons.

“A thousand yards is not a challenge for me,” he said. “Two thousand is.”

Littlerock Coach Jim Bauer doesn’t consider the possibility of the league having five 1,000-yard rushers far-fetched.

“I certainly think that’s possible,” Bauer said. “I just thank God there’s only one football for those tailbacks.”

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AT A GLANCE

* THE PROVEN: Antelope Valley receiver and defensive back Tony Walker is the league’s most dangerous player on both sides of the ball. Quartz Hill linebacker Jacob Waasdorp, an All-Valley selection by The Times, gets recruiting calls from Nebraska. Running backs Jeremiah Harris of Quartz Hill and Jan Brown of Palmdale each averaged 6.9 yards a carry and rushed for 14 touchdowns. Highland defensive back Marcus Prevost, Palmdale linebacker Malosi Leonard and Antelope Valley linebacker Aaron Yost are returning all-league players.

* THE PROMISING: Palmdale junior quarterback Grant Livermont passed for 829 yards as a sophomore but had arm troubles during the spring. Antelope Valley running back Eric Mobley rewrote the record book as a ground-gainer playing eight-man football at Antelope Valley Christian last year. Another transfer, Palmdale running back Jason Anderson, rushed for 1,325 yards and 11 touchdowns for Monroe last year.

* FAST FACT: Ridgecrest Burroughs, an original member of the Golden League, moves to the new Mojave League this fall.

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Golden League Schedules

Antelope Valley

Sept. 13--M.E. Lezerne/Canada

Sept. 20--at Barstow

Sept. 27--at Sylmar

Oct. 4--Long Beach Poly

Oct. 25--*Littlerock

Nov. 1--*at Highland

Nov. 8--Palmdale

Nov. 15--*Quartz Hill

Home Site

Antelope Valley High

Highland

Sept. 6--at Silverado (Nev.)

Sept. 13--Banning

Sept. 20--at Canyon

Sept. 27--Victor Valley

Oct. 4--Stockdale

Oct. 11--Ridgecrest Burroughs

Oct. 18--*at Palmdale

Oct. 25--*at Quartz Hill

Nov. 1--*Antelope Valley

Nov. 7--*at Littlerock

Home Site

Quartz Hill High

Littlerock

Sept. 6--at Valley (Las Vegas)

Sept. 13--Serrano at Palmdale High

Sept. 20--at Hesperia

Sept. 27--at Barstow

Oct. 3--Chaminade

Oct. 11--Valencia at Canyon High

Oct. 18--*Quartz Hill

Oct. 25--* at Antelope Valley

Nov. 7--*Highland at Palmdale

Nov. 15--*at Palmdale

Home Site

Antelope Valley High

Palmdale

Sept. 13--at Ridgecrest Burroughs

Sept. 20--Saugus

Sept. 26--Riverside Poly at UC Riverside

Oct. 4--Hart at College of the Canyons

Oct. 11--Canyon

Oct. 18--*Highland

Oct. 25--Roosevelt, 7 p.m.

Nov. 1--*Quartz Hill

Nov. 8--*at Antelope Valley

Nov. 15--*Littlerock

Home Site

Palmdale High

Quartz Hill

Sept. 13--Kennedy

Sept. 20--Crespi

Sept. 27--at Hesperia

Oct. 4--Saugus

Oct. 11--at Apple Valley

Oct. 18--*at Littlerock

Oct. 25--*Highland

Nov. 1--*at Palmdale

Nov. 8--at Lompoc

Nov. 15--*at Antelope Valley

Home Site

Quartz Hill High