GHS gets ready for tonight’s game against Burlingame
By Marc Davd Sports Editor
Gilroy – There are no automatic “Ws” this year, as first-year Gilroy High head football coach Rich Hammond acknowledged recently.
“We play five teams that won section titles in the last two years,” Hammond said, rattling off the names — Burlingame, Woodside, Palma, San Benito and Oak Grove. “Considering the difficulty of our schedule, if we get in the playoffs we’ll be a dangerous team because it will mean we beat some good schools. We’ll find out a lot about ourselves before the league with our schedule.”
It begins at 7:30pm today at Garcia-Elder Complex when the Mustangs host Burlingame.
With the Justin Sweeney era over at Gilroy, the Mustangs will try to establish a new identity. Sweeney totaled more than 3,500 yards rushing the last two seasons and scored 246 points.
Hammond wants a more team-oriented approach for Gilroy, which has defeated the Panthers the last two years by a total of nine points.
“We need to be able to run the ball consistently, and to stop the run on the defensive side of the ball,” said Hammond, who replaces Darren Yafai. “If we do those two things we’ll be successful.”
Paul Gonzales, who rushed for 173 yards and had 118 yards in receiving yards, is the top returning back. Junior Travis Reyes, who like Gonzales runs about a 4.5 40, also figures to get plenty of touches. Marc Vegas starts at quarterback.
Defensively, hard-hitting safeties Frank Subia and Vince Giacalone figure to be leaders. Also, two-way lineman Carlos Estrada is another key Mustang.
“We played a championship team in a scrimmage,” Hammond said of last Friday’s encounter with San Benito. “It was a great way to try and raise our level of play.
“We made some little mistakes that kept us from being successful. We’re not very far from being good. And going against the defending section champ can only help us.”
Hammond has preached team unity from the start, and he feels the team is off to a strong start in believing in each other.
“We had a good week of practice,” he said. “It’s a very positive group. I’m really proud of how well they are working together, how they are there for each other. That’s the part that is exciting. We’re going to have hiccups, no matter what. But if they lean on each other, we’ll be fine.”
Other than senior quarterback Matt Hemeon, out with an injured knee, GHS is healthy. He expects a “dogfight” with Burlingame.
The Panthers run a wing-T offense which will put a lot of pressure on the Mustangs’ 3-4 defense, and particularly the outside linebackers.
“It will be a dogfight like it always is with Burlingame,” Hammond said. “We need to keep up the intensity that we showed in practice and stick together.”
One trend the coach and team would like to change is maintaining the fast start that the Mustangs have had in the last two years. GHS got off to a 3-0 start last year before finishing 5-5. In 2004, Gilroy was 5-0 before losing by a point to San Benito in the Prune Bowl and finishing 8-4.
Five of the Mustang coaches – Greg Garcia, Steve Lo, Will Lawrence, Willie Gamboa and Rich Martinez – are GHS graduates.
