Ref Ready to Change His Stripes

Referee Bill Hudson walked off the Western High football field Friday believing he had officiated his last game.

After 33 seasons, the players moving faster than ever, Hudson was ready to retire. And on the same field where he officiated his first varsity game, he also officiated what was to be his last, the Southern Section Division VI second-round game between Newport Harbor and Kennedy.

That’s what he thought, anyway. But because of commitments other officials have to basketball and college football this weekend, Hudson got called into action once more, for the Division VII semifinal between Los Altos and Whittier California.

Hudson, 68, a retired supervisor at Hughes Aircraft, is one of three officials with more than 30 years’ experience who are retiring at the end of this season. Referee Larry Arason has retired after 50 seasons, and the head linesman on Hudson’s crew, Dick Geroux, makes his exit after 30 years.

So Hudson will be the last of this year’s big three, joining a group of five officials who retired last season after after 30 years of service each.

“It’s not the greatest feeling,” Hudson said. “Once you walk on the field, the adrenaline starts flowing. I’ll miss it, but it’s time to let the younger guys do it.”

It’s a bittersweet time, to be sure.

“When we got to the last quarter the other night, I was counting the minutes,” Hudson said. “I was thinking, ‘This is it, this is it.’ I got home and told my wife [Janet], ‘I guess you can throw this stuff away.’ ”

Good thing she didn’t.

“I would have preferred to go out working two Orange County teams,” Hudson said. “I’ve made a lot of friends with the coaches.”

Hudson will remain as the association’s assigner.

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Orange Lutheran (10-2) will travel to Downey St. Matthias High on Friday to play its Division XI semifinal game against L.A. Cathedral (11-0), said Jim Kunau, the Lancers’ athletic director and football coach.

Kickoff is 7:30 p.m.

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Newport Harbor has defeated Kennedy in the playoffs the last two seasons, 49-0 in 1999 and 49-10 on Friday.

“We’re getting better,” Kennedy Coach Mitch Olson joked afterward. “Next year, it will be 49-20.”

The game in 2003 should be a barn-burner.

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Tustin has won both its Division VI playoff games by identical 54-22 scores. That probably won’t happen this week against Irvine (12-0), which has given up only 84 points all season and shut out its first two playoff opponents.

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Calvary Chapel finished 7-5 after losing its Division XI second-round game to Ventura St. Bonaventure, 73-7, Friday.

However, a roll call of those five losses is certainly impressive.

St. Bonaventure is the top-seeded defending champion in Division XI. Olympic League rivals Orange Lutheran and Cerritos Valley Christian are among the top four seeded teams in the division. Arrowhead Christian is the favorite to win the Division XIII championship, and Horizon Christian is the top-seeded team in San Diego’s Division IV playoffs.

The five teams that beat Calvary Chapel have a combined record of 52-5, and all but Valley Christian reached the semifinals this weekend.

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Just before Esperanza’s football team boarded the bus for its Division I second-round playoff game at Fontana Miller Friday, the players were given copies of newspaper clippings containing a quote from Miller Coach John Tyree that poked a little fun at the Aztecs’ style of play.

Tyree told the San Bernardino Sun that Esperanza’s one-back offense and 4-3 defense, designed to stop the pass, wouldn’t work against his Rebels, who run an option offense. He also said the Aztecs were a “very physical Orange County team, which means they’re not very physical at all.”

“Our players already had enough motivation before they saw that,” said Esperanza Coach Gary Meek, whose team went on to dismantle Miller, 30-10.

Temitope Sonuyi rushed for 225 yards and the Aztec defense helped caused six turnovers.

Correspondents Eric Maddy, Dale Ruhe and Mike Wojciechowski contributed to this report.