New Role Awaits Esperanza’s Meek

Of all the numbers Gary Meek posted during 17 seasons as football coach at Anaheim Esperanza High -- two Southern Section championships, roughly 100 players who went on to play in college and three in the NFL -- five might be the number that sticks in his mind, at least for the next couple of weeks.

That’s the number of turnovers Esperanza committed Friday in its season-ending 30-12 loss to Santa Ana Mater Dei in a Southern Section Division I quarterfinal at Cal State Fullerton.

“I wish we could have played better,” said Meek, 55, who is stepping down as coach to replace longtime Athletic Director Jim Patterson next semester. Meek might have considered a dual role as coach and athletic director except for Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District rules that bar such an arrangement.

Meek said he was intrigued by the opportunity to guide a school’s athletic program and encourage athletes to go against the grain of one-sport specialization. Another factor was the financial incentive. And Meek couldn’t bear the thought of an outsider running the athletic department.

“I didn’t want to see someone come in who doesn’t know us and our philosophies at Esperanza and the traditions we have,” Meek said. “That was a little scary to me.”

Meek almost became athletic director last year, when Patterson announced that he was prepared to step down. But Meek didn’t want his career to end after a 4-5-1 season and convinced school and district officials to let him stay on one more semester as coach.

Meek said he was confident his successor would be selected from within the program.

Among his favorite memories, Meek listed the 1990 team that finished 14-0 and defeated Santa Fe Springs St. Paul to win the Division III title. He also recalled the 1992 team that won a Division II title and the 1986 squad -- his first -- that went 9-2-1 and reached the quarterfinals.

Nearly 48 hours after his final game, Meek said it still had not sunk in that a 27-year coaching career had ended.

“I don’t think it will hit me until next year,” he said, “when everything starts up again and I’m not out there on the field.”

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Raul Lara knows all about the Long Beach Poly-Mater Dei rivalry, having served as the Jackrabbits’ defensive coordinator from 1995 to 2000, but he doesn’t know what it feels like to face the Monarchs as a head coach.

Lara will get his opportunity Saturday when the teams play in a Division I semifinal at Edison Field as part of a doubleheader. Los Alamitos and Los Angeles Loyola will play in the other semifinal. Game times have not been announced.

“It’s going to be a challenge,” said Lara, who has a 23-2 record in two seasons. “We can’t go in there thinking we’re going to roll over them. We have to play a good game.”

Mater Dei Coach Bruce Rollinson has little doubt that his counterpart will be ready.

“He’s been in two [Concord] De La Salle games and has been under the gun,” Rollinson said. “I don’t think this is any big deal to him.”

Rollinson fears that his Monarchs do not match up well with the Jackrabbits along the offensive and defensive lines and might have problems covering Poly’s fleet of speedy receivers.

That receiving corps took a hit Friday when Khalid Abdur-Rahim had to be taken to a hospital after reporting numbness on his left side following a tackle. Lara said Abdur-Rahim was not seriously injured but probably won’t play against the Monarchs.

Mater Dei running back Rafael Rice, the team’s leading rusher, is probable for the game after sitting out the quarterfinal victory over Esperanza because of an inflamed nerve in his back. Rafael’s brother, Cortez, and John Martinez filled in to lead the Monarchs.

It would be a shame if the teams were at less than full strength as they renew their storied rivalry, which has been especially intense the last six years.

Poly beat Mater Dei in the 1997 championship game at the Coliseum, but the Monarchs returned the favor in 1998 when the teams met for the title at Edison Field. A 21-21 tie in a 1999 title rematch at Edison Field prompted the Southern Section council to rule that overtimes must be played in championship games.

In 1996, the last time Poly and Mater Dei played in the playoffs before the championship game, the Monarchs emerged with a semifinal victory and went on to defeat Loyola to win the title.

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Quintin Daniels had two interceptions in Los Angeles Loyola’s 38-8 upset of Bellflower St. John Bosco, but Jesus Cuellar was the unsung hero for the Cub defense in the Division I quarterfinal.

Cuellar, a senior defensive back, was assigned to cover Joe Cowan, a 6-foot-4 receiver with game-breaking ability. Cowan was limited to one catch for five yards.

“We doubled-teamed him a lot, but Cuellar did a great job on him one on one,” Coach Steve Grady said.

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Chino will not make a third consecutive appearance in the Division II final because its offense, which gained plenty of yards between the red zones, was bottled up in crucial situations in a 13-9 quarterfinal loss to San Clemente.

The Cowboys drove inside the Tritons’ 20 twice in the first half but had to settle for field goals each time.

A blocked punt late in the game gave Chino a first down at the Triton 26 and a chance for the victory. Running back Jacob Flowe moved the Cowboys to the 23, but Aubrey McCravey sacked Kevin Glaab for a three-yard loss on the next play. Glaab’s pass fell incomplete on third down and San Clemente secured the victory when Josh Smallwood’s pass to Glaab on a flea-flicker on fourth down fell short.

San Clemente quarterback Beau Budde’s 11-yard scoring pass to Chris Miller with 7:30 left to play allowed the Tritons to avenge a home loss to Chino in last year’s semifinals.

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Antelope Valley Lancaster Coach Brent Newcomb said quarterback-safety-punter Johnny Walker, who suffered a sprained thumb in the team’s 43-22 victory over Arcadia, probably will play against Manhattan Beach Mira Costa in a Division II semifinal Saturday.

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Frustration mounted in the fourth quarter of Santa Ana Foothill’s 37-21 victory over La Mirada, as each team was flagged for two major penalties. Coincidentally, they were called on consecutive plays on separate occasions.

When the game ended, at least one leader emerged for La Mirada, as senior defensive back Jason Gardner kept telling his agitated teammates, “Take it like men.”

Staff writers Martin Henderson and Peter Yoon and correspondent Bryan Dopp contributed to this report.