Well-Balanced Alemany Looks Like Division I Title Contender

Is it possible, even remotely fathomable, that Alemany High, which won five games from 1995-97, could be a contender for the Southern Section Division I football championship?

With a 24-21 victory over Notre Dame on Friday night, Alemany (4-0) confirmed it is among the top teams in the division.

Back in Division I after one season in Division III, Alemany features an explosive attack.

Running back De’Andre Scott blew through Division III power Notre Dame and touted lineman Travis Johnson for 249 yards and two touchdowns in 24 carries.

Quarterback Casey Clausen, who has committed to Tennessee and is visiting Knoxville this weekend, has been worry-free in the pocket, taking his time picking apart defenses.

The Indians, averaging 54.8 points, are on the way up, which cannot be said for several perennial powerhouses in Division I.

Loyola lost to Crenshaw, 7-6, on Sept. 24, a stunning setback for the Cubs, who did not display the offensive prowess of past Loyola teams.

La Puente Bishop Amat, ranked No. 1 in the division, had trouble with winless Antelope Valley on Sept. 24, trailing at halftime, 13-12, and holding a three-point edge early in the fourth quarter before pulling away for a 31-15 victory.

On the same night, No. 2-ranked Long Beach Poly, had similar problems against winless Santa Barbara before winning, 21-13.

Defending champion Santa Ana Mater Dei, ranked No. 5, is inexperienced and has lost to heralded Clovis West and Concord De La Salle.

Alemany playing until mid-December?

Not so fast, Coach Jim Bonds said.

“I think it’s really early to be making any statement like that,” he said. “There’s a lot of teams in Division I that are very capable.

“If we stay healthy, which we’ve been very fortunate to do so far, I think we can put up a fight in our league.

“After that, we’ll be happy to be in the playoffs.”

Still, the positives were many for the Indians, who have outscored their opponents, 219-79, and are averaging nearly 55 points a game.

“This was a big win for Alemany’s football program,” Bonds said. “[Notre Dame is] a Division I-caliber team, but I don’t really want to judge or base anything on [Friday’s] game.”

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It could be one of the bigger air shows of the season, Granada Hills against Kennedy on Friday.

But one of the rocket arms, Jason Winn of Granada Hills, might not be firing.

Winn, who has thrown for 671 yards and six touchdowns in three games, missed Granada Hills’ 19-6 victory over Jefferson on Friday with strained knee ligaments.

Winn’s return is questionable against Kennedy, which boasts Ruben Zaragoza, who has thrown for 1,058 yards and 10 touchdowns in four games.

“It’s the old day-by-day-type of outlook,” said Tom Harp, Granada Hills co-coach. “We just don’t know yet.”

When Winn’s replacement, Bobby Baca, was shaken up in the first quarter, defensive back David DeLeon took over the reins. Although the Highlanders kept the ball on the ground most of the way, DeLeon made one big play, a pass to Anthony Rodriguez that resulted in an 80-yard touchdown.

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Buena Coach Rick Scott can finally say it with a smile: Speed kills.

Known for having a churn-it-out ground game the last few seasons, Buena (3-1) is beating people with fleet-footed running backs D.J. Blackledge and Freddy Keiaho.

The two have combined for nearly 900 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns.

“We’ve always been the ones without speed and we watched people run away from us,” Scott said.

“We’ve had in the past maybe one kid that had a little bit of speed. We’ve had a couple of years where we didn’t have a tailback and we just found ways to get somebody out there around the corner. We’ve just never really had guys who can run away from people.”

Buena also has Kyle Loughman, who became the school’s career passing leader Friday against Camarillo.

The left-handed Loughman, a three-year starter, has thrown for 4,420 career yards, overtaking Jason Isaacs’ 4,401 yards from 1987-89.

“These are the best weapons we’ve had in a while,” Scott said. “There’s just not enough footballs to go around.”

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Harvard-Westlake seemed to be adjusting to life without Alex Holmes.

The Wolverines were 3-0 without the 300-pound Holmes, a top college prospect at tight end who is still a student at the school but has run out of athletic eligibility.

Then came Friday night and a 27-21 loss to Nordhoff in a game that ended with a pass being intercepted at the one-yard line.

The Wolverines last season knocked off Nordhoff, 18-0.

But that was with Holmes, who had four receptions for 59 yards and a touchdown and, from his linebacker spot, helped hold the Rangers to 146 yards.

“I miss it,” Holmes said. “Very much so.”

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Jermaine Marshall of Kilpatrick became the region’s first 1,000-yard rusher with 194 yards in the Mustangs’ 43-42 loss to Montclair Prep.

Marshall has 1,154 yards.

DE’ANDRE SCOTT

Alemany tailback’s performance against Notre Dame:

24

RUSHES

249

YARDS RUSHING

2

TOUCHDOWNS