Shift in offense fuels Narbonne’s success

Seven years ago, when Manuel Douglas took over the football program at Harbor City Narbonne, his offensive philosophy was built on out-of-date thinking.

“I was a wing-T guy,” he said.

Trying to overpower opponents almost exclusively by running the ball behind a huge offensive line was what Marine League teams did best.

But change was taking place in the City Section. Woodland Hills Taft was setting the standard with a wide-open spread offense. Crenshaw won a championship with an effective passing attack. And Lake Balboa Birmingham won four Championship Division titles by running and passing.

Douglas became a believer.

“I’ve been converted to the dark side,” he said. “It’s exciting; it’s fun.”

On Friday night, Narbonne (9-1, 5-0) wrapped up the Marine League championship and a likely No. 1 seeding for the Championship Division playoffs by defeating Carson, 26-0.

Quarterback Josh Moten completed 18 of 30 passes for 302 yards and two touchdowns with three interceptions. The Gauchos’ defense limited Carson (5-5, 3-2) to 47 yards total offense.

Most of the snaps on offense for Narbonne this season have come out of a shotgun formation. Douglas installed a spread attack to take advantage of Moten’s athleticism. He still believes in the run-first strategy, but he recognizes he must find ways to turn loose his outstanding athletes.

“My athletes are as good as anybody in the City,” he said.

He’s not bragging. The proof is clear in how fast they run and their versatility.

Defensive back-receiver Byron Moore Jr., who is committed to USC, has played himself into consideration for City player of the year with his receiving and hard hits on defense. He caught five passes for 140 yards, including a 59-yard touchdown play. He also had an interception.

Junior defensive back Sean Parker, who has scholarship offers from Arizona State, Colorado and Michigan, was getting in his licks against Carson. He led a defense that limited the Colts to 21 yards passing.

Linebacker Tim Tucker returned an interception for a touchdown, and tackle Mike Ramirez was effective on both sides of the ball.

“I think we have real balance between the pass and run,” Moore said.

“Every time one of us touches the ball, something great is liable to happen.”

As for Carson, which made it to the Coliseum final last season, it has been a disappointing season after a promising start in which the Colts lost in triple overtime to Santa Ana Mater Dei in their opener.

Carson lost four starters this week to academic ineligibility, and quarterback Daniel Torres has been stuck playing fullback because of a broken thumb.

While Narbonne has earned the right to be selected No. 1 at today’s seeding meeting, the Gauchos will face plenty of competition to make it to the championship game on Dec. 13 at the Coliseum.

Taft won the West Valley League championship Thursday night by knocking off Birmingham behind the elusive D.J. Morgan. Crenshaw, a young team, is making enough improvement to be considered a title contender with sophomore speedster DeAnthony Thomas.

San Pedro continues to play well with its stingy defense and run-oriented offense. Birmingham still has enough weapons to defeat an opponent that overlooks a two-time defending City champion.

The good news for Narbonne is that if its rushing attack isn’t working, there’s a reliable passing attack on which to fall back.

That’s the lesson from this decade -- that one-dimensional football is no longer good enough to win a City title in the era of the spread offense.

--

eric.sondheimer@latimes.com