Gilroy’s fans will be able to see the Mustangs for the final time at home before the playoffs when they host Pajaro Valley Friday night.
The Mustangs remain in firm control of the Pacific Division sitting at 6-0 overall and 2-0 in league play.
Gilroy will be eager to get back on the field after having its game last week abruptly cancelled due to smoke from the North Bay fires.
“Our routine was definitely altered,” said coach Jubenal Rodriguez. “It will be nice to get back to normalcy. We’re excited get on field finally and play another team. It’s felt like we’ve been practicing all hours don’t and we know why.”
Pajaro Valley, meanwhile, has been in a bit of a rut this season.
The Grizzlies sit at 1-6 overall. Take away their win over Lynbrook on Sept. 16 and they have been outscored 249-55 this season. They have been held to a touchdown or less in four out of the seven games, including two shutouts.
“Pajaro Valley is going through coaching transition. Regardless of whether you’re successful or you’re not on the winning side, when you go through coaching transitions, it’s always difficult.”
Regardless of the Grizzlies’ woes, Rodriguez said PV does a good job of mixing up snap counts and mixing things up to fool a defense.
“Hopefully we’ll be able to read our keys and get aligned right before snap,” Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez said he knows it might be easy to overlook PV based on its record and what other teams have done, but he said it is incumbent on his boys to treat every game like a playoff game and go hard regardless of someone’s record.
“We literally see every opponent the same way,” Rodriguez said. “We have to stick to the game plan. Our goal is to get better every week because we’re going to face tough competition once we get into the playoffs.”
Gilroy is the lone unbeaten team remaining in the Pacific Division.
Still left are Monterey (2-1), Alisal (3-1) and Watsonville (1-1).
The Mustangs were supposed to play Watsonville last Friday until the game was cancelled on account of smoke.
Gilroy has already defeated Alisal and will play Monterey on the road next week.
However, one of those two teams will have their one loss disappear as they play each other this week.
Also, Watsonville still has to play Alisal. As a result, the final week of the season when Gilroy is going to make up its game from last week, the Mustangs could have already clinched no worse than a share of the league title depending on Alisal’s record.

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Cheeto Barrera is the sports editor for the Morgan Hill Times and Gilroy Dispatch.

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