Driving home from Friday night’s Central Coast Section
Championship game at San Jose City College, where the Oak Grove
Eagles had just defeated the Gilroy Mustangs 46-35, I heard a radio
talk show host recite one of today’s more popular sports
mantras.
”
Sports don’t build character,
”
he said,
”
they reveal it.
”
Driving home from Friday night’s Central Coast Section Championship game at San Jose City College, where the Oak Grove Eagles had just defeated the Gilroy Mustangs 46-35, I heard a radio talk show host recite one of today’s more popular sports mantras.
“Sports don’t build character,” he said, “they reveal it.”
I couldn’t agree more when it comes to a bunch of adults competing in the professional ranks. But when it comes to a group of high school football players, who were on my mind at the time, I realized the idea is overused and only half true.
Still developing their skills on the playing field, and their value systems in life, a close win doesn’t automatically show one team’s individuals have more heart, or more drive, or a superior ability to want wins.
If anything, a game like Friday’s – and the 2007 season as a whole, really – shows that sports can play a huge role in building character.
Many of the athletes on this year’s GHS squad had no idea what they could accomplish. They learned over the course of three months what was possible through hard work and being unselfish: A Tri-County Athletic League title, a Prune Bowl victory, a 10-win season and a first-time appearance for the football program in the CCS Championship.
Statistically, Gilroy’s Jamie Jensen had one of the best seasons any CCS quarterback has ever had. He threw for 4,205 yards and 41 touchdowns while completing 62 percent of his passes. But the number critics will point to is the four interceptions he had in the final game, two of which came at a critical juncture in the final contest.
Over the course of the year, I saw Jensen grow more confident with each game. He mumbled his words when I first spoke with him in the summer. By the end of league play he was making jokes and laughing in interviews.
Part of that confidence could be due to a coming of age or establishing a comfort level with a reporter. But I’m willing to bet the other part comes from handling success and failure with ten other guys on the field, and thousands in the crowd, watching to see how he responds.
It will be up to him and all the players returning to the team next year, to show if sports – win or lose – can build as well as reveal character.
Receiver Dante Fullard let me know after Friday’s game what role sports will play in his life the coming year.
“I’m not playing any other sports,” he said. “Just weight room, training, weight room, training…”
Minutes after the toughest loss in his football career, Fullard wanted nothing more than to bust his butt to get back to the CCS Championship next year. Maybe that simply says something about the person he is.
But it seems just as possible that in defeat, sport has given him the motivation he needs to build himself into something better.
5 Things I loved about this football season:
The tension right before kickoff.
Standing on the Gilroy sidelines this season, I loved the excitement players had as they were about to get on the field and pound opponents. When teams lined up for the opening kick, defensive tackle Jeremy Sabla would start pacing the sidelines and yell “Garlic City baby!” to pump himself up.
Each time, I couldn’t help but laugh as I wondered what must be running through the heads of another team’s players when hearing the word “garlic” come up before a game.
It was by far one of my favorite parts of this football season.
The beauty of Gilroy’s offense.
Combining excellent blocking (you deserve a ton of credit big fellas) with receivers that could run for days (four guys with over 50 catches) and a quarterback that set some ridiculous records, it’s safe to say no CCS passing attack has ever executed with as much precision, timing and chemistry as the 2007 Mustangs.
The defense playing the no-respect card.
Over the course of the year, players really stepped it up on this side of the ball. It was almost as if they were tired of hearing people (a certain sports writer) gush about how good the offense was and wanted to prove they had just as much of a role in the success the team had as the offense. The D played phenomenal in the final ten games of the year.
The enthusiasm of Coach Rich Hammond.
Win or lose, you could always tell he was having the time of his life. The yelling, screaming, joking, laughing and constant running around the sidelines was a boost of energy to anyone in his vicinity, making every game entertaining.
I can’t imagine him being anything other than a football coach for the rest of his life.
The way the community rallied around the team.
The die-hards were out in full force from the beginning to the end of the season. What was special was how, over the course of the season, people that might not be fans of football came out to support the team. Hours before kickoff Friday night, the stands at San Jose City were full. Gilroy supporters also showed plenty of class by sticking around to cheer for the team when the game was over.
The one thing I won’t miss about this football season:
The smell of four quarters of football.
Following a game, when you shake hands with five or six players before and after every interview, your hand smells somewhere in between a dirty clothes hamper and death.
By Josh Koehn
2007 Statistics
10-3 overall record, 6-0 in TCAL
OFFENSIVE
Passing
Name – Completions – Attempts – Yards – TDs – Int.
Jamie Jensen – 293 – 469 – 4,205 – 41 – 20
Dante Fullard – 5 – 7 – 135 – 1 – 0
Rushing
Name – Carries – Yards – TDs
Travis Reyes – 99 -707 – 12
Sean Hale – 54 – 325 – 3
Danny Contreras – 31 – 212 – 2
Dante Fullard – 16 – 134 – 4
Lelan Gettys – 7 – 68
Receiving
Name – Catches – Yards – TDs
Danny Contreras – 58 – 1,023 – 14
Dante Fullard – 63 – 1,006 – 7
Sean Hale – 60 – 814 – 8
Travis Reyes – 54 – 676 – 9
Marshad Johnson – 25 – 367 – 3
Lelan Gettys – 16 – 292
DEFENSIVE (Not Including playoffs)
Interceptions
Tony Travis – 4
Richie Sotelo – 3
Dennis Rathi – 1
Lukas Fortino – 1
Ryan Costa – 1
Sacks
Kevin Stewart – 3
Ethan Ogle – 3
Stephen Guitterez – 3
Michael Cano – 2
Nick Davis – 1
