Lopez Is Big Man, Even in Big Sky

E very coach at the Big Sky Conference football meetings earlier this week in Park City, Utah, spoke optimistically about the coming season.

As Cal State Northridge’s first-year Coach Jim Fenwick said, “At this time of year, everybody feels good about their programs.”

For some, like Cal State Sacramento, there’s no place to go but up. And third-year Coach John Volek, coming off a 1-10 season, is hoping Guillermo Lopez will help improve the Hornets.

Lopez, a 6-foot-3, 360-pound transfer from Moorpark College and a graduate of Hueneme High, is slated to start at right offensive tackle for Sacramento.

“He’s a massive human being,” Volek said. “If he works hard, he could make a living in this game.”

Lopez received honorable mention on the All-Western State Conference team last season at Moorpark.

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The Hornets finished 0-8 in Big Sky games last season, their first in the conference, so Volek poked fun at his own expense.

“I’m happy to be here,” he said. “When you go 1-10, you’re happy to be anywhere. . . . Our goals are very simple: We want to win a Big Sky game.”

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Another player from the region who could become a starter is Montana sophomore Di-Onte Smith, who played at Grant High.

Mick Dennehy, Montana’s coach, said Smith is competing for the right cornerback spot.

Smith, 5-10 and 180, was an All-Valley Pac-8 Conference selection in 1994, his senior season at Grant. Montana is the two-time defending Big Sky champion.

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Official workouts don’t start for a few weeks yet, but Moorpark wrestling Coach Paul Keysaw is already looking forward to the season.

“I feel real confident with my recruiting class coming in,” Keysaw said.

“I’ve also got three All-Americans coming back.”

Keysaw said key recruits are Chuck Sandlin from Camarillo, Rey Torres from Royal, Jesse Batista from Rio Mesa and Scott Erickson from Dos Pueblos.

The newcomers will complement sophomores Ati Comer, Gabe Roman and Dan Ramirez, who helped the Raiders finish sixth in the state last season.

Moorpark had a 9-2 dual-meet record and won the Western State Conference title with a 5-0 record.

At the state meet, Roman was runner-up in the 150-pound division, Comer took third at 158 and Ramirez was fourth at 190.

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While Northridge administrators seek funds to reinstate baseball and men’s volleyball for one season by asking the university corporation for a $586,000 loan, which is to be repaid with emergency funds from a state bill sponsored by Sen. Cathie Wright (R-Simi Valley), Mission College’s athletic program appears to be finished.

Or at least until some fat cat from the private sector comes to the rescue.

John Klitsner, Mission’s former athletic director and baseball coach, said there’s little hope of reviving the sports program, which the school axed July 9 for financial reasons.

“We’ve written an official letter to [the Western State Conference], saying we won’t be able to compete this year,” Klitsner said.

Northridge, however, could soon have the baseball and volleyball teams back in place.

The corporation is expected to vote next week on whether to grant the loan.

Even if it’s turned down, Northridge most likely will receive the money from the state when the Legislature finalizes the budget and Gov. Wilson approves it.

Wright wrote a bill providing $586,000 in additional funding for California State University, which is to use it to subsidize the two disbanded Northridge programs for one season.