Fourth Sport Is the Charm for Newport Harbor’s Clayton

At 6 feet 5 and 190 pounds, Newport Harbor’s Billy Clayton displays the combination of size, talent and athleticism that helps make him one of the jewels in this year’s bumper crop of boys’ volleyball seniors.

And his play seems even more remarkable considering Clayton, who signed early with Stanford to play volleyball, has played the sport seriously for only four years. Volleyball was perhaps his No. 4 sports choice when he arrived at Newport Harbor.

“When I was a freshman, I thought I was going to play baseball in the spring,” Clayton said.

“I’ve really only played about 1 1/2 years of club volleyball, but I think I have some potential that I haven’t yet realized. Volleyball is such a great sport. It’s hard to play a match and not have fun.

“Growing up, I was a gym rat and basketball was my No. 1 sport. And when you get to high school, everyone seems to like football. And it’s the king of high school sports in a way.”

Clayton, who didn’t give up basketball until this season, was a three-year starter for the football team and helped the Sailors win the Southern Section Division VI championship last fall. Those gridiron talents also drew the attention of college recruiters.

“It was difficult playing three sports,” Clayton said. “But winning the [section football] championship in my senior year, that was a perfect cap to my career. I have no second thoughts.”

But he could have participated on another level in football. “He probably could have played collegiately as a wide receiver,” Newport Harbor football Coach Jeff Brinkley said.

Brinkley said Clayton compares favorably with former Newport Harbor standout Danny Pulido, a 6-5, 233-pound sophomore tight end at Oregon. Brinkley added that Clayton could have developed into a receiver similar to Danny Farmer, UCLA’s all-time leader in receiving yardage and a standout volleyball player for the Bruins.

“Of course, Farmer is proven and who knows if Bill would have gotten that good,” Brinkley said. “But he can run well, jump, catch. He was a starting free safety for three years, but he was so good, we had to find a way to get him on the field on offense too.”

Athleticism isn’t foreign to Clayton’s family. His older sisters are track and field standouts: Mandy, who graduated from Stanford, and M.E., who is at Brigham Young.

Deciding to commit early to Stanford was a slam dunk for Clayton.

“I knew Stanford would be one of my top choices even outside of athletics,” he said. “But to have it fit in, just like that, to get the opportunity to go to school there and play for a top program too? It was just too good to pass up.”

FULLERTON LANDS RAPP

Santa Margarita Coach Eddie Rapp accepted a full-time job at Fullerton College last week to coach the women’s team, but he will finish the season with the boys’ team at Santa Margarita before teaching this summer at Fullerton.

“It was tough to leave here,” Rapp said. “But I think it’s a step in the right direction.”

Rapp, who has been at Santa Margarita for seven years, led the Eagles to two boys’ section titles. He also helped the girls’ team win four consecutive section titles and capped his career at the school with the Eagles’ first state title last December.

LOOKING AHEAD

Eighth-ranked Santa Margarita, fresh off a victory over Newport Harbor last week, plays at seventh-ranked Mater Dei Thursday, the second key match of the week for the Monarchs. Tonight, Mater Dei plays unranked Servite in another Serra League match.

Ninth-ranked Newport Harbor hosts No. 5 Woodbridge tonight and plays at No. 3 Corona del Mar Saturday.

If you have an item or idea for the prep boys’ volleyball report, you can fax us at (714) 966-5663 or e-mail us at: mike.itagaki@latimes.com