GHS head football coach is not a happy man
In time, Morgan Hill’s Sobrato High School would like to form a rivalry with its neighbors from Gilroy.
According to Darren Yafai, that time might have already come.
The Mustangs’ head football coach is not happy about Sobrato’s attempt to exit TCAL – and he’s not alone.
“We’ve been hung out to dry,” he said.
Yafai’s beefs are many.
For one, when he was informed of Sobrato’s entry into the league in the fall, he was forced to break a two-year contract with North Monterey County, which was scheduled to visit Mustang Stadium in Week 5 of next season. All the league’s coaches were left in a similar bind.
“The coaches, in general, are pretty frustrated,” Yafai said. “Originally, we didn’t really want to let them in on just a one-year basis, but it wasn’t our decision, and we had to live with it. So we didn’t want them in the first place, but we accommodated them and inconvenienced ourselves.
“Then they drop out three or four months later. Now we’re hurting.”
Gilroy called North County back, but the Condors had re-scheduled long ago. And to make matters worse, a few of the schools that did have an open week – Yafai named Alisal as an example – had already been contacted by Sobrato and were leaning toward signing a contract with the Bulldogs.
“Out of the small, small group of schools that haven’t finalized their schedule, Sobrato is trying to scoop them all up,” he said.
That didn’t sit well with the group of TCAL coaches that were forced to canvass the clinic they attended in San Francisco this weekend.
“We were scrambling … almost in a panic to get football games scheduled,” Yafai said.
Yafai said he approached Sobrato head football coach Jeff Patterson at the clinic and asked him about keeping Gilroy on next year’s schedule but was rebuffed. But Patterson told the Dispatch he had asked Gilroy and other TCAL teams about scheduling future games but had no takers.
“It doesn’t seem like Sobrato is interested in playing Live Oak or Gilroy,” Yafai said.
Meanwhile, Yafai said he talked with Oakland Tech Sunday night about playing in Gilroy this fall and the head coach seemed receptive to the idea. However, Yafai isn’t allowed to pursue it any further because the Board of Managers has yet to meet to decide the fate of Sobrato.
“Now our hands are tied,” Yafai said. “I don’t know why the Board isn’t meeting tonight.
“We’re being slammed every direction we turn.”
As of Tuesday, Gilroy AD Jack Daley said he had not been informed of when the league’s emergency Board of Managers meeting would be held.
