Time machine: 2003 football: Napa at Vacaville

Sometimes you remember a game for being misleadingly closer than the score indicated but the winning team dominated the contest more than the final score suggested.

The Napa High football team’s 28-16 road win over the Vacaville Bulldogs at Youngblood Stadium in 2003 had exactly that feeling.

I also remember that game because it turned out to be the early stages of a Monticello Empire League rivalry. True, both teams have their rivalry on a local level. Napa has Vintage and Vacaville has Will C. Wood. However, since 2002, Napa vs. Vacaville has been the game people circle on their calendar in terms of the MEL race.

Setting the stage: For close to two decades (mid-1980s to early 2000s), Vacaville, Fairfield and Vallejo were the most consistently successful MEL programs. In that span, Napa and Vintage also had its share of success but also had some valleys to go along with the peaks. Fairfield and Vallejo are now in the Solano County Athletic Conference.

The Napa Indians experienced their valleys from 1998-2001, going 12-24-4 in that span. Napa closed the 1997 campaign with a 32-0 loss to the crosstown rival Vintage Crushers and were not the same team for a few years. Was that loss a result of what transpired in the ensuing four years? Who knows but it was a symptom of their struggles if nothing else.

Napa, however, enjoyed a renaissance in 2002, going 8-3 overall and 4-1 in the MEL I before losing 21-20 in the first round of the CIF Sac Joaquin Section Division I playoffs to Woodland. That season, the MEL was divided into I and II.

The Indians had a talented roster returning that included but was not limited to future NFL offensive lineman Mike Gibson. Was the success Napa attained in 2002 a mirage or a sign of things to come?

The two teams would start the MEL season head-to-head. The Indians were 3-1-1 with a 24-24 tie against Las Lomas (Walnut Creek). Napa then won its next three games (42-34 over Buhach Colony-Atwater; 40-6 over Vallejo; 21-20 over Hayward). Napa entered its titanic matchup against Vacaville with a 26-23 loss to Eureka.

As for the Bulldogs, they were 4-1 entering the contest. Vacaville defeated Yuba City (45-21), Ygancia Valley-Concord (49-27), Vallejo (35-20), and Fairfield (49-18) to go along with a 38-21 loss to Laguna Creek (Elk Grove).

The schedule might have suggested that this game was simply one out of five in the MEL. The winner of this contest, however, would have an early leg up in the MEL race.

Thumbnail sketch of the game: Thomas Sims led the way for Napa's offense with 131 yards rushing on 24 carries and a trio of touchdowns.

On the defensive end, the Indians took a “unleash the hounds” approach. Napa limited the Bulldogs to 62 yards rushing, producing six quarterback sacks and forcing three turnovers.

Vacaville scored first when it recovered a fumble at the Napa 37-yard line but had to settle for a 36-yard Tony Fracchia field goal to go in front 3-0 with 2:44 left in the opening period.

The Indians dominated the proceedings from that point forward. Sims scored on an 8-yard run up the middle with center Sam Valencia and Gibson leading the way, giving Napa a 7-3 advantage. The Indians went in front 14-3 on a Sims 4-yard run behind right tackle Kyle Tasher and tight end Ryan Stewart with 8:32 left in the first half.

Sims sacked backup quarterback Johnathon Sandopadre to set up the next score, forcing him to fumble and Arthur McHenry pounced on the loose ball at the Vacaville 28.

Napa quarterback Jesus Martinez, who completed all seven of his passes, rolled right and connected with an open Kevin Robledo for a 15-yard scoring strike with 4:45 left in the second quarter. Vacaville cut the Napa lead to 21-10 on Logan Murphy's 1-yard quarterback sneak.

The Indians went in front 28-10 when Sims ran for an 8-yard touchdown between Gibson and Tasher. Vacaville's David Warfield connected with Darren Lobb for a 27-yard touchdown on a halfback option for the final margin of victory.

In a strange twist of fate, Napa head coach Jerry Dunlap decided to show his team the film from the 2002 win over Vacaville (42-7) as opposed to the previous week's 26-23 loss to Eureka in the waning seconds.

The Indians put the clamps on Vacaville’s offense and the players seemed to apply what they learned from the former tape, and for the second year in a row, put the clamps on the Bulldogs offense.

Napa held Vacaville to a mere 62 yards rushing on 36 carries. Ten of those attempts produced negative yardage while 25 totaled less than four yards. The Indians also held Vacaville running back Evan Williams to 14 yards on 10 carries. Williams had broken the 100-yard mark in four of his previous five games, gaining 97 in the other.

Napa's defense also produced five quarterback sacks with linebacker Thomas Sims getting two of them while Chris Harris, Arthur McHenry and Kyle Tasher had one apiece. McHenry, Austin Pridmore and Kevin Robledo each added fumble recoveries. Sims had two tackles for lost yardage while Mike Gibson added one.

The "points allowed" category will show that Napa permitted 16 points but the defense was only truly responsible for six of them. Ten of Vacaville's points came when it started a drive on the Napa side of the field after the Indians' offense turned the ball over, a position that lends itself to an easy scoring opportunity for the offense. The Indians' defense, meanwhile, produced three turnovers.

What it meant: Since 2003, and I use that season as the benchmark because in 2002 the MEL was split into MEL I and MEL II -- sounds like an original and a sequel, the league crown has been either won or shared by either of these two clubs.

Since 2002, the two teams have gone to virtually a dead heat in the win-loss column. In that span, Napa has gone 115-38-1 overall, 55-10 in MEL with one CIF Sac Joaquin Section Div. I title (coming in 2007). Vacaville has gone 116-37-1 overall, 56-9 against MEL clubs with a SJS Div. I title in 2006. The head-to-head matchups in that span are 7-6 in Napa’s favor.

It’s the Big Game between Napa and Vintage that has lost its luster. Napa has won 12 of the last 13, outscoring Vintage by an average score of 34.1-to-12.4.

LaRocco looks to keep ship on course as Braves new gridiron coach

In a matter of less than 48 hours, the Justin-Siena High (Napa) football program has undergone a significant shakeup.

No sooner do they mutually part ways with Rich Cotruvo. Gee, that sounds like a Jed York/Trent Baalke euphemism after the San Francisco 49ers mutually agreed to part ways with head coach Jim Harbaugh.

Cotruvo has been hired as the new head coach at Terra Linda and less than 48 hours later, Brandon LaRocco is named Cotruvo’s replacement. LaRocco’s hiring was confirmed in Friday’s online edition of the Napa Valley Register.

Well, those Justin-Terra Linda matchups just became much more compelling. I only know LaRocco in passing but I don’t get the feeling that he will be the Braves version of Jim Tomsula. LaRocco speaks in complete sentences so that’s already an improvement. LaRocco also has more leadership ability in his left toe than Tomsula has in his whole body but I digress.

Though he is a Fairfield native and Vacaville resident, LaRocco has been a Justin-Siena football lifer. He graduated from Justin in 1998. LaRocco’s senior year as a player was Cotruvo’s first as the Braves head coach for what turned out to be an enormously successful 19-year stint. LaRocco was a JV assistant for three seasons and a varsity assistant for eight seasons, coaching both offensive and defensive lines along with special teams. LaRocco was also the freshmen head man in 2014.

LaRocco was described in the Register by athletic director George Nessman as a highly respected faculty member. That statement might sound like hyperbole but I can give evidence that it is not. LaRocco was the Braves track and field head coach from 2009-2013. In that span, Justin went from having 30 kids in the program to 95 four years later. The 2013 team finished second in MCAL dual meets. The boys finished second at the league championships and won the CIF North Coast Section Class A title. The Justin girls were section runner-ups, missing first place by a mere two points. The Braves qualified 18 athletes for the NCS Meet of Champions, most in school history in a single season.

So you might be asking, how does that translate to LaRocco as a football coach? You hear the term “buy in” get thrown around like candy. However, any coach that gets numbers to increase that dramatically on his watch, brings instant credibility in his leadership.

Make no mistake, going from assistant coach to head coach is an adjustment. You get both the glory and the headaches. I know track is a different sport than football but the fact that LaRocco has experience leading a program will serve him well.

In replacing Cotruvo, LaRocco is “the guy that followed the guy.” Cotruvo’s resume has been well-documented: Six NCS titles and a 144-74 record from 1997-2015. You also have to realize that before Cotruvo arrived, the program was a hot mess going 27-67 from 1987-1996 under four different head coaches (Randall McClure, Robbie Gomes, G.L. Siner and Rob Parker). LaRocco has seen both the highs and lows, the former as a coach and mostly the latter as a player.

Justin’s administration moved very quickly, so quickly that LaRocco looked like he was the imminent successor the moment Cotruvo stepped aside. There are two ways to look at that. On the downside, you could say, did Justin move too fast without looking at other options? On the plus side, you could say, Justin knew what it wanted, saw that its ideal choice was right under its nose so why not move fast to snatch him up?

The easy angle for saying this is a good hire is that LaRocco is an alum. That quality is an easy sell to initially get parents, alums, boosters, etc. on board but that alone does not make someone a good hire.

Replacing a coach with a decorated resume like Cotruvo is hard but kids are more resilient than you think. The fact that LaRocco is stepping in, is a good sign because while he may be different than Cotruvo in certain areas, the program is not likely to undergo wholesale changes.

LaRocco will double as the defensive coordinator and have former Braves quarterback Tyler Streblow as the offensive coordinator running a version of the Houston split-back veer offense.

The key will be who he surrounds himself with as assistant coaches.

I have no doubt that LaRocco is ready to be a head coach after nearly two decades of laboring in the vines as an assistant. Since my beats were outside of the City of Napa, I only saw and/or interacted with LaRocco occasionally but I know the man well enough to say that he leads and speaks with conviction. That quality will serve him well.

The wild card is which assistant coaches does he add to his staff? Though most people fixate on head coaches, assistant coaches are vital. On a local level, I know you won’t get any argument on the matter from the active Napa Valley football head coaches: Troy Mott (Napa), Larry Singer (American Canyon), Brandon Farrell (St. Helena) and Mike Ervin (Calistoga).

Cotruvo built the ship, LaRocco’s role is to keep it on course.

Cotruvo's departure from Justin gives reason for pause

Do you ever have those times where you get news you least expected? I got that news on Thursday night as I was sitting on my couch watching the NFL Draft. I get a text message from Marty James, who is the senior sports reporter for the Napa Valley Register. I worked with Marty for 14 years before I changed careers.

Marty informed me that Rich Cotruvo and Justin-Siena High School (Napa) will be “parting ways” after 19 years. So I get up at 4:30 a.m. on Friday morning before work to have my coffee and read my headlines. Sure enough, I see a story that Marty wrote on the Register’s website.

The 61-year old Cotruvo, however, is not getting out of coaching. Cotruvo has been hired as the new head coach at Terra Linda, which is a fellow Marin County Athletic League foe of the Braves.

Longtime assistant and 1998 Justin-Siena graduate Brandon LaRocco has been named Cotruvo’s replacement. More on that shortly in a separate blog entry.

Justin president and CEO Robert Jordan told the Register that he and Cotruvo had ongoing meetings for several weeks concerning the direction of the program. There was certainly nothing wrong with the direction on the field. In Cotruvo’s 19 seasons, the Braves went 144-74 with six CIF North Coast Section titles and were twice the runner-up.

The Register also reported that in a letter sent Wednesday to parents of Justin-Siena football players, Athletic Director George Nessman said, “Coach Cotruvo has discussed with the administration the many important programmatic transitions taking place, and all agree that the appropriate time for new leadership to emerge is now.”

Jordan told the Register “It is a private personnel matter that was professionally and mutually discussed between Coach Cotruvo and myself with respect and admiration for each other.”

“It’s a personal matter between Rich and myself, and I really want to leave it at that out of respect for Coach Cotruvo and for the school. I am proud of him. I am grateful for everything that he’s done.”

Jordan said he and Cotruvo “discussed a program change,” which they came to an agreement on.

“Thankfully, it’s been a mutual decision and we’ve handled it like gentlemen. I’m very honored to work with Coach Cotruvo,” said Jordan.

Cotruvo’s quote to the Register by all appearances is one who is taking the high road: “The program isn’t anything to me – the people are, and the kids,” he said. “I’ve been so honored and so blessed to have incredible families all through the years. I can’t remember the last time I had a parent complaint. I’ve been so supported here and blessed, that it’s just overwhelming.

“That’s what I’m most proud of, is that people understand that it’s more than just a game. It’s more about trying to move these gentlemen to a place where they can be counted on in society and be better citizens for themselves.”

In reading through the story, I can’t help but think the relationship was not amicable.

Granted, at the high school level, you don’t expect people in this situation to air their dirty laundry in public. Honestly, it’s nobody’s business and there is no benefit to such but we’re all human and can pose the question, which is essentially what I am doing. This is high school, not college or the pros. In a sense, you can say all parties involved were as honest as can be without being honest.

The fact that Cotruvo is going to Terra Linda is reason enough to wonder. I don’t mean that as a slight against Terra Linda but Cotruvo has been commuting from Walnut Creek to Napa since 1997. Going to Terra Linda means he is lengthening that commute.

I get that wins and losses are not everything. Did every player that suited up for the Braves like Cotruvo? Probably not but that’s true with every coach. However, ask most any player that was blessed to have Cotruvo as their coach and they would tell you he impacted their lives on and off the field.

Cotruvo’s role goes beyond his win-loss record at Justin. Sure, he was blessed with a brilliant coaching staff led by defensive coordinator Steve Vargus. However, all good head coaches know the value of having quality assistants.

To understand Cotruvo’s success, you have to understand the program he inherited. Let me tell you, it was a hot mess from 1987-1996. Dave Shipp resigned about a month before the start of the 1987 season. In that span, the Braves went 27-67. Yours truly graduated from Justin in 1991 and played for those teams. You have no idea what it was like going into every game where it felt like you had no shot at winning.

Cotruvo changed that mindset the moment he got there.

All signs point to Calistoga playing 8-man football for the foreseeable future

Calistoga High football fans have long needed a GPS to track which league the program was headed. Depending on one’s outlook, the Wildcats might actually get to stay in one place for the foreseeable future. The question becomes, is 8-man football what they covet or do they accept it as reality of their situation?

Here’s the primer for the paint:

If you count the upcoming season in 2016, Calistoga has been smack-dab in the middle of a league realignment seven times in 17 seasons since 1994. The Wildcats most recent change came after 2014. The North Central League II dissolved with St. Vincent (Petaluma) joining the Bay Football League and Calistoga, Tomales and Upper Lake joining the NCL III (8-man football). Calistoga had little trouble adapting to the change in head coach Mike Ervin’s return to the program. The Wildcats went 6-2. Ervin coached Calistoga from 2006-2010 before giving way to Paul Harrell, who resigned after 2014.

After the the 2014 season ended, Calistoga to be moved to the NCL III with Tomales and Upper Lake also making the same move. St. Vincent (Petaluma) moved to the Bay Football League but in 2016 will compete in NCL I, just for football. St. Vincent competed in that league from 2005 to 2010, but the only sticking point is that the NCL I would have an odd number of teams (nine).

In 2014, Calistoga had to forfeit its last four JV football games because of academic ineligibility severely limiting the team. Tomales had no JV team because there were only 14 kids in the entire football program. Upper Lake and St. Vincent each had JV teams but the former had to pull up three players from the JV team to have 11 players on varsity.

Then Calistoga High athletic director D.J. Hein said at the time that the premise of the move at the time was eligibility based but made sense based on enrollment.

OK, the primer is dry, time for the paint:

The NCL III consists of Anderson Valley, Rincon Valley Christian, Laytonville, Round Valley, Potter Valley, Point Arena and Mendocino to go along with the addition of Calistoga, Tomales and Upper Lake.

In the past, Calistoga football had the option from game to game of playing 9-man or 11-man football. That option ended the year Harrell took over for Mike Ervin in 2011.

Other factors have also contributed to hastening Calistoga’s move to the NCL III in that Div. V in the CIF North Coast Section became much more loaded with the addition of Middletown, Salesian (Richmond), John Swett (Crockett), St. Helena and St. Patrick’s (Vallejo), to name a few. Some of those schools have enrollments of 500 and change.

The permanency of being in a league for an extended period of time would be new, and perhaps welcome, for Calistoga.

Calistoga, however, is in that ‘tweener stage. The Wildcats would get housed on a regular basis in the NCL I but the NCL III is too limiting on a long-term basis. On a given year, Calistoga has enough numbers to fill a JV and varsity team but the rest of the NCL III with the exception of Upper Lake does not have that luxury. In a recent e-mail, Ervin told me that last season the Wildcats had enough players for two teams. The problem was, there were no games to play so as a result, the JV kids’ best playing time was after the varsity youngsters contributed to building big leads.

However, given the overall decline in football participation throughout the United States, Calistoga football remaining in the NCL III for 8-man football is not such a far-fetched notion.

The only viable option if Calistoga wants to return to 11-man football is the BFL, where the Wildcats competed in 2012 and 2013.

It’s just a matter of how much do the Wildcats covet a return to 11-man football.

Vintage High football digs into its past to lead the future

There is a commonly uttered adage of “you can never go home again.”

Just don’t tell that to newly hired Vintage High varsity football head coach Dylan Leach. Vintage’s hiring of the 42-year old Leach was confirmed in Sunday’s online edition of the Napa Valley Register. On March 30, Kyle Hofmann resigned after three seasons amid allegations that he provided supplements (specifically Creatine) to players that can legally be purchased at stores but per the California Interscholastic Federation, coaches are prohibited to provide to players.

Though I like Hofmann personally and wish him the best, I do not want to get into why he is no longer there because I don’t believe that is my place. The coaching vacancy was advertised on EdJoin.com. Leach’s hiring did not become official even sooner because it was pending Napa Valley Unified School District school board approval. The job closed on April 12. The board approved the hire at a meeting on Thursday evening, April 21. The Register also reported that Vintage High principal Mike Pearson hopes to have a teaching position available for Leach this fall.  

Though he has donned the Blue & Gold of archrival Napa the past five years as the Indians defensive coordinator under head coach Troy Mott, Leach has Burgundy & Gold coursing through his veins. Leach graduated from Vintage in 1992. He was on the varsity coaching staff from 2003-2009 under Les Franco and Billy Smith. Leach served as defensive coordinator, special teams coordinator, strength and conditioning coordinator and defensive backs coach. He was also the JV defensive coordinator for three seasons.

As a player, Leach was All-Monticello Empire League, All-Napa County, most inspirational player, team MVP and captain in 1991 for Vintage as an outside linebacker-tight end. He played two years for Solano Community College at inside linebacker, was a team captain and All-Bay Valley Conference.

Vintage High’s administration appeared to have their guy in mind all along and he was the leader in the clubhouse. There are two ways to look at that. On the downside, you could say, did Vintage move too fast without looking at other options? On the plus side, you could say, Vintage knew what it wanted, saw that its ideal choice was right under its nose so why not move fast to snatch him up?

The easy angle for saying this is a good hire is that Leach is an alum. That quality is an easy sell to initially get parents, alums, boosters, etc. on board but that alone does not make someone a good hire.

Leach will have his challenges. Some parents expressed their displeasure with Hofmann’s departure on social media and presumably some kids echoed those sentiments. However, I would not view that as a concern because a) Kids are more resilient than you think and b) Leach knows Vintage High football history. He could tell you about Crusher legends like David Illsley, Steve Buccellato, Sean LaChapelle and Conrad Alvarez just to name a few. That knowledge alone is worth credibility points.

He steps into to lead a program that has been middling for most of the past decade and a half. As far as the Monticello Empire League hierarchy, the Crushers have been a ‘tweener: not good enough to be Napa or Vacaville but not bad enough to be Armijo. Vintage has not won a playoff game since 1986, when Leach was a ball-boy.

Vintage has tried numerous approaches in its coaching hires. They went with the experienced approach three times: Dave Shipp (1991 and 2011) and Les Franco (2000). Jim Costan (1995) was the younger, fresh face from outside the program. Smith was promoted after years of being the JV coach after Franco stepped down in 2006. Hofmann was technically an outsider from Arizona but was a Crusher by osmosis. Hofmann and his family lived in Napa and grew up going to Vintage games before moving to Arizona when he was 11.

The good news is that Leach does not inherit a program that needs reconstructive surgery. However, it is important for Vintage followers to remember that it is going to take time and stability to reach Napa and Vacaville’s level. Hofmann appeared to be the man to give them the latter but because of certain events, things played out differently. I would also contend that when and if (hopefully the former) Vintage becomes elite, Hofmann will have had some sweat equity in the Crushers’ future success.

Leach’s hiring also makes the Napa-Vintage football rivalry more compelling, something it hasn’t been on the field lately. Napa has won all but one head-to-head meeting since 2002, most have been in decisive fashion. The lone Crusher win came in 2005.

I have no doubt that Leach is ready to be a head coach after nearly two decades of laboring in the vines as an assistant. Since my beats were outside of the City of Napa, I only saw and/or interacted with Leach occasionally but I know the man well enough to say that he leads and speaks with conviction. That quality will serve him well.

The wild card is which assistant coaches does he add to his staff? I can’t speak for him but surely he would covet members of the Napa staff he is leaving. The question is, would anyone of them join him? How much of Hofmann’s staff does he keep?

Though most people fixate on head coaches, assistant coaches are vital. On a local level, I know you won’t get any argument on the matter from the active Napa Valley football head coaches: Troy Mott (Napa), Rich Cotruvo (Justin-Siena), Larry Singer (American Canyon), Brandon Farrell (St. Helena) and Mike Ervin (Calistoga).

Looking back at Vintage Crusher history, look no further than the man that pioneered the program, Burl Autry. Talk to any ardent Crusher fan and they will tell you how much Autry valued having quality assistants.

Welcome home, Dylan. The same room you once had in the house is still yours.

Time machine: high school baseball: Vanden at Justin-Siena

Though one does not normally view baseball as an emotion-driven sport, especially in the regular season, I remember a game where the opposite was true.

While the Justin-Siena (Napa) High baseball team did not engage in dogpiling on the mound or dousing its head coach, Allen Rossi, with water, one could easily tell the elation of the Braves 9-8 win over the Vanden (Travis Air Force Base) Vikings. This game was more emotion-driven than many football games I covered in my 18-year career.

Setting the stage: Rossi took over for Steve Meyer before the 1999 season. The Braves made the CIF Sac Joaquin Section Div. IV playoffs in 1989 but had not returned since that time. Justin went 17-9 in Rossi’s first season, returning to the postseason only to lose 3-1 to Mesa Verde (Sacramento) in the first round. The back-story to the matchup against Vanden is that before the 1999 season began, Rossi asked every one of his players their goals. Many said, “beat St. Helena.”

At the time, St. Helena and Justin had an intense rivalry that resonated in most every sport. Rossi, however, scoffed at the idea of beating the Saints because he had bigger visions from the program, such as winning Superior California Athletic League and SJS Div. IV titles. To that point, Rossi wanted to turn the Braves attention to Vanden and St. Patrick’s (Vallejo) because those clubs were the dominant ones in the SCAL.

Justin and Vanden would meet in Napa for the first of three matchups. The winner would get an early leg up in the SCAL race.

Thumbnail sketch of the game: The term “heavyweight fight” is often used loosely. This game acted the part with Justin relief pitcher Steven Pauls and catcher Rick Carpenter delivering the final blow.

Justin led 9-5 entering the seventh inning before the Vikings cut the lead to 9-7 on consecutive RBI singles by David Colip and Doug Farnham against Braves reliever Matt Hamilton. Vanden then loaded the bases with no outs on Eric Dakin’s single. Pauls uncorked a wild pitch that bounced about 10 feet away from Carpenter. At that distance, most runners from third base are not going to try to score, especially with no outs. Tim Sutherland, who was pinch-running for Colip, broke for the plate and tried a head-first slide. Carpenter recovered and tagged out Sutherland with authority.

Farnham scored on a wild pitch, making it 9-8. Pauls then struck out Chris Grimm and induced Jason Dean to foul out to Carpenter to end the contest.

The irony was that Justin looked poised to make this game a blowout when taking a 5-1 lead in the fourth inning on the strength of Steve Andres and Eduardo Borrego RBI singles. Carpenter added an RBI double and bases-loaded walk. Ron Duvall also walked with the bases drunk.

The Vikings scored two runs to make it 5-3 before Carpenter’s RBI groundout to score A.J. Paniagua made it 6-3 Braves. Vanden cut the lead to 6-4 on Ruben Moreno’s RBI double. Justin then widened the advantage to 9-4 with a three-run fifth inning. The rally started with two outs and no one on base. Paniagua and Borrego each had RBI singles while Andres followed with an RBI double.

On the mound, starting pitcher Jon Foreman weaved his way out of trouble for 5 ⅓ innings with five strikeouts. The Braves, who were known for outstanding defense, had to overcome four errors which led to four unearned runs.

Another reason why Carpenter’s tag with authority still stands out to this day is because the Braves’ catcher was a throwback. I know that term gets used loosely. I covered players that were far more talented than Carpenter but few had the intangibles he had. If there was an All-Madden high school baseball team, he would be on it. Carpenter had everything from the eye-black to the lamb-chop sideburns. He never shied away from getting dirty by blocking pitches in the dirt or blocking the plate.

What it meant: The two teams met two more times. In the next meeting at Vanden, the Vikings handed the Braves their only loss of the season, 10-9 after Justin led 9-3. In the third meeting at Justin, the Braves beat Vanden 10-0 in six innings via the 10-rule rule with Andres hitting a walkoff grand-slam.

Rossi continued to coach until 2006 before resigning to care for his wife, who had been injured in an automobile accident. The Braves would appear in five consecutive NCS title games, winning three straight from 2003-2005 including an undefeated ‘05 campaign. Justin reached the ‘02 and ‘06 title games before falling to St. Bernard (Eureka) and John Swett (Crockett) respectively.

Scott Wright took over as the Braves coach from 2007-2012. Justin was successful on some level in going 76-58-2 including an NCS D-IV runner-up finish in 2007 under Wright but filling Rossi’s shoes is a tall order. Wright was dismissed after the 2011 season. Rossi returned in 2012, guiding Justin to the NCS D-IV semifinals followed by consecutive section titles in 2014-2015. In 2012-2013, the Braves immediately returned to prominence only to lose in the NCS D-IV semifinals.

Rossi decided to resign after compiling an overall record of 252-72 at Justin-Siena after the 2015 campaign.

Time Machine: 2006 high school football: St. Helena at Upper Lake

Isn’t it strange how you remember some games because the winning team is relieved more so than happy that they won?

The St. Helena High football team’s 28-27 win over the Upper Lake Cougars on an unseasonably warm late October day in Northern Lake County had exactly that feeling. Very seldom do you ever see a team nearly snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

Setting the stage: It was generally assumed that St. Helena and Clear Lake would be the top combatants for the North Central League I South title. One week earlier, St. Helena defeated Clear Lake 18-8 in a game that had the grace of a bare-knuckles brawl. That’s not a bad thing, it’s just how it played out.

There was no reason to think Upper Lake would be a threat before that season. Because of its enrollment bordering on 400 students, Upper Lake opted to move up from NCL II to NCL I in 2005. The Cougars’ move to NCL I seemed like a good idea at the time because their travel time would to other schools would decrease based on proximity of other schools within the league.

The Saints, however, had three more NCL I South hurdles to clear (Upper Lake, Cloverdale and St. Vincent) before claiming their first league crown since 1978. The Cougars entered the game 3-3 after having snapped a three-game losing skid the previous week with 40-0 whitewash over Cloverdale. St. Vincent (Petaluma), like the Cougars, also joined the NCL I after years of being an annual powerhouse in the NCL II. The Mustangs won the CIF North Coast Section Class B title in 2005.

Thumbnail sketch of the game: The Saints players and coaches (including head coach Ian MacMillan) had the body language of, “OK, we won, now let’s get out of town.”

The Cougars pulled to within 28-27 at the 2:44 mark of the fourth quarter. Upper Lake opted to go for the two-point conversion instead of kicking the extra point and having a potential overtime game, which would have been an option since it is a league contest.

Cougars quarterback Billy Binns, however, fumbled the shotgun on the conversion as he retreated to pass. Binns fell on the ball and the Saints prevented the go-ahead two-pointer. The Saints’ Billy Joe Paulisich recovered the ensuing onside kick — one of two for the game — and St. Helena ran out the clock for the victory.

The Saints appeared to have the game salted away when quarterback Jake Holguin connected with Chris Yeakey on a wide receiver screen for a 46-yard catch-and-run score aided by a Kendall Sanders block.

Holguin connected with Yeakey for the two-point conversion to make it 28-13 St. Helena with 5:29 left in the game, but the Cougars’ Robert McCutcheon returned the ensuing kickoff 73 yards to paydirt. Binns connected with Jayce Meri for the two-point conversion, making it 28-21 St. Helena.

The two teams went back and forth in the first half. The Saints’ first two scores came courtesy of Holguin, who finished with 13 carries for 96 yards.

Holguin scored on an 18-yard touchdown run, and with 40.7 seconds left in the first half, he hit Yeakey for 34-yard strike.

St. Helena’s David Fanucci (27 carries, 113 yards) scored from 2 yards out midway through the third quarter. John Hudson added 86 yards on 14 carries while Yeakey tallied 85 yards receiving on three grabs.

On the defensive side, Upper Lake hurt the Saints on third down in converting 5-of-9 attempts to keep St. Helena from putting the game out of reach sooner.

Fanucci recovered a fumble while Alex Seyve added a quarterback sack.Sanders and Gino Trinchero each recorded tackles for lost yardage.

What it meant: St. Helena lost at home one week later to Middletown (20-0) before cementing the NCL I South title with wins over Cloverdale (57-7) and St. Vincent (40-0) before losing to Ferndale in the CIF North Coast Section Class A playoffs. MacMillan resigned after the season. The ill-fated Dave Collinsworth era ensued, lasting just one season. Brandon Farrell has been the program’s head coach since 2008. The Saints have gone 70-26 under him.

Upper Lake and St. Vincent’s tenure in the NCL I lasted just five years (2005-2010) with mixed results. Upper Lake, which now competes in the NCL III (8-man football), went 14-47 overall and 3-21 in NCL I South in that span. The Cougars had 26 losses of 28 points or more. St. Vincent, which competed in the Bay Football League in 2015, will play in the NCL I this coming season in football. The Mustangs went 44-27 overall and 16-8 against NCL I South clubs. St. Vincent had 18 wins of 28 points or more in that span.

The irony to the 2006 season was that the Cougars went 5-5 overall and 2-2 in league play. Conversely, St. Vincent went 2-8 overall and 1-3 in league.

Side note: Since I am no longer reporting for a family newspaper, I can tell this story. Behind the visitors’ football bleachers at Upper Lake, there is a cemetery that is on a slope.

On this unseasonably warm day in late October, there was a fellow heckling St. Helena, specifically its fans throughout the day. How can I put it charitably but this heckler was drinking adult moisture throughout the day.

When Binns’ fumbled the two-point conversion, a Saints’ fan yelled at the heckler, “How do you like that Grave Boy!” The heckler proceeded to moon (as in pull down his pants to show his rearend) the St. Helena fans. One of the Saints parents responded by saying, “Say no to crack!”