Young gridmen look to limit mistakes in Friday’s match-up
against Santa Cruz
GILROY – The Gilroy High gridmen are still feeding off the adrenaline rush of an opening night victory, but they are also in deep preparation for a high-flying Santa Cruz squad in week-two.
Both teams come into Friday night’s match-up with 1-0 records as Gilroy fended off Terra Nova for a 30-23 home win and Santa Cruz nipped Pacific Grove in its opening game, 26-20.
“I think both teams are going to move the ball… This Santa Cruz offense has a lot of offense. They can put the ball in the end zone,” head coach Darren Yafai said. “If we turn the ball over five more times, we will not win this time. If we drastically cut down on our mistakes, we’ll have a shot at winning.
Yafai was happy to get the win to start the season, but not blind to the fact that his team cannot turn the ball over five times and expect to win every week.
“If we put the ball on the ground, then it could be a struggle. We have to hold onto the ball,” Yafai said. “We won that game because we were opportunistic (on defense). A lot of the turnovers by Terra Nova, we created.”
The Mustangs benefited from seven Terra Nova turnovers in week-one with a tenacious defensive unit that caused most of them.
“We were aggressive. We caused turnovers. We played with a lot of heart and a lot of energy,” Yafai said. “But we also played some undisciplined football at times.”
Santa Cruz comes into town returning 16 players with a bone to pick against Gilroy, which won at their home last year. After losing to the Mustangs at home though, Santa Cruz went on to finish 5-5 on the season with a young team of mostly sophomores and juniors.
“They only have like 33 kids on their team, but 16 are returning starters. They have a lot of kids go both ways,” said Yafai, whose few two-way players don’t play every down on either side. “We’d like to think if it’s a close game in the second half, we’re going to be a lot more fresh than they are. But they’ve got some pretty studly players.”
Gilroy was led by its aggressive defense as well as senior slasher Melvin Bryant – who rushed for three touchdowns – but this year’s garlic unit has five sophomores on its young varsity roster.
“Our team this year is similar to them last year,” Yafai said. “In fact, last year they were young and talented. Now, they are experienced and talented. Whereas this year we’re young and talented.”
Two of the five Mustang sophomores anchor the offensive line. Strong tackle Matt Hunkin stands six-foot-three at 320 pounds and center Bobby Best stands 6-2 at 220 pounds.
“They are the two strongest kids on our team,” said Yafai of his sophomore front. “One’s our center and one’s our strong tackle. It’s nice to be able to say we’ll have these kids for three years.”
Best was a starting tackle on the freshmen squad last season, while Hunkin was starting on the defensive line for the junior varsity team. They have both made the adjustments to their new positions.
“They’ve got a ton of potential,” Yafai said. “They are the type of kids, by the time their seniors, will be looked at by colleges.”
Gilroy – which finished last season with only two sophomores on its varsity roster and none the year before that – also has sophomore inside linebacker Taylor Micali, sophomore place-kicker Neil Martin and sophomore defensive lineman Marcus Munoz getting action this year.
“We have some good seniors as well with the Melvin Bryants and Ben Hemeons, but our senior class doesn’t have a lot of depth,” Yafai said.
In week-one, Bryant rushed for three touchdowns and Hemeon passed for the other on a 23-yard hook-up with junior standout Jared Gamm – who had an interception on the defensive side.
Limiting turnovers remains the key for the young, talented Mustangs since they will have their hands full against Santa Cruz as they go for their second straight win at home.
“I can guarantee you Santa Cruz is not going to turn the ball over five times. If we turn the ball over five times, we’re not going to beat Santa Cruz,” Yafai said. “If we cut down our mistakes… if we do that, we’ll have a shot of winning. If we make the same mistakes, it will be a struggle for us.”
