Don’t expect coach Mike Garrity to make any bold declarations about this year’s Los Altos High football team. Although optimistic about the season that awaits the Eagles, he’s not looking too far ahead.
“I don’t know,” he said when asked about expectations for 2023. “It’s week to week, game to game.”
The first week is here: Los Altos is scheduled to host Monte Vista Christian at 3 p.m. Saturday in non-league play.
Garrity last week anticipated opening the season with 35 players, 17 of whom were on the 2022 team that finished 4-6.
“We were fortunate to hold our own last year in league,” said Garrity, whose squad placed third in the PAL El Camino Division at 3-2.
Hired in June 2022, he didn’t have a lot of time to prepare the Eagles for the season. This year, Garrity was able to oversee the entire offseason program.
“The program is building,” he said of Los Altos football. “We had 50 kids come out for JV.”
While that could pay dividends in the future, Garrity’s primary focus is on this year’s varsity team. So far, he likes what he sees.
“I think we have good football players and good coaches,” he said. “I feel good about where we’re at.”
Especially on the offensive line, which the coach listed as the strength of the team. Four starters are back, led by center Juan Lopez Jr., whom Garrity called “a tough kid.”
Noah Beedon returns as the quarterback, though fellow senior Drew Rafferty will also spend time under center.
“They’re both getting reps,” Garrity said. “They’re both talented.”
Even when he’s not at QB, Rafferty will be on the field.
“Drew is our Swiss Army Knife,” Garrity said. “He’s an elite receiver who can also play running back – he can do it all. On defense, he’ll be at safety or cornerback.”
Senior Harry Sayers is another versatile player; the coach said he will see action at running back and linebacker.
Max Morelle, the MVP of last year’s frosh-soph team, is another multi-position player. Garrity said the sophomore will line up at tight end, running back and fullback on offense, and serve as a hybrid lineman/linebacker on defense.
Julian Jones, also a sophomore, has impressed the coach with his play at cornerback and receiver.
“He’s flying around out there,” Garrity said.
No Eagle flew faster than Zach Fagin last season, but the El Camino Division Utility Player of the Year has graduated. Losing the team’s top offensive weapon might make Garrity’s goal of improving the offense more challenging.
“Our objective is to score more points than last year,” Garrity said. “We want to be good on defense and score points on offense.”
Spartans eye return to CCS semis
The final six minutes of last fall’s Central Coast Section Division IV semifinal game still sticks in the mind of Mountain View High coach Tim Lugo. That’s when his Spartans lost the lead for good against Branham, which rallied for a 68-45 road victory.
Don’t think Mountain View’s 20 returning players have forgotten it, either.
“The goal is to get back to the CCS semis and finish the job,” Lugo said.
The Spartans first must navigate the treacherous Peninsula Athletic League Bay Division, which appears to be even more formidable than the PAL De Anza Division they placed fifth in last year. It includes Los Gatos, Wilcox, Sacred Heart Prep, Menlo-Atherton and Burlingame – all playoff teams in 2022.
“Someone had to go in that league, and we were clearly No. 5 on the board, if you believe the data – and I do,” Lugo said. “But I see it no different than the old De Anza; the top four teams will beat each other up. We’ll take the same approach as last year: If we can steal one from the big four, we’re in good shape.”
It took only one league win last year, coupled with a pair of victories outside the division, to propel Mountain View into the playoffs because it received bonus points for playing such a daunting schedule. That should help the Spartans again this year, even if their non-league slate isn’t as challenging.
“We’re playing more teams that look like us,” Lugo said.
That starts with The King’s Academy in Friday’s season opener, set to kick off at 7 p.m. in Sunnyvale.
Mountain View enters the 2023 campaign with a seasoned squad, returning seven starters on offense and six on defense.
“We have a lot of three-year varsity starters,” said Lugo, in his second season at the helm. “There’s a lot of experience, and that brings a lot of confidence.”
He’s seen that in quarterback Kevin Conway, in particular.
“Last year was difficult for him early in the season, but now he has a year under his belt and is a lot more confident,” Lugo said.
It doesn’t hurt that Conway has fellow senior Lex Silver to throw the ball to; Lugo called him “the best receiver in the league last year.”
The Spartans have no shortage of solid running backs – all-leaguer Arturo Hernandez, Dillon Daniels and Diego Ortega-Gerow all return. Three of the five starters on the offensive line are also back.
Defensively, all-league linebacker Alex Bocchieri, a senior, leads the way.
Liam Tyler “has looked really good” at defensive end, Lugo said, and the junior will also play tight end.
