Mike Sciacca
Try to limit an all-area high school football team to 24 members.
Just try.
In an attempt to do so, we sorted through numerous statistics, coaches
comments, and actually game performances, to come up with a list of 24.
It wasn't easy spreading the wealth among the five local schools, and
the list could have expanded to nearly 30 deserving players.
Several factors and, naturally, several players, made the 2000 prep
football season special.
Marina High surprised nearly everyone by going 5-0 in nonleague play,
only to be decimated by injuries the final five weeks of the regular
season. Inoke Tukia and Aaron Williams, two key players in the Marina
lineup, were sidelined by injuries. Another, Kenny Weber, was a versatile
player. He filled in extremely well for Tukia at linebacker, and finished
the season with 92 tackles, two interceptions, two blocked field goals,
and a safety.
Ocean View returned to the playoffs for a second consecutive year -- a
first for the school. The Seahawks did it, too, behind a new quarterback,
Patrick Campbell, a wide receiver in 1999, running back Jason Rhoads, and
linebacker Alex Balderas. Campbell threw for 1,574 yards and 18
touchdowns and also started in the defensive backfield for a second
straight year, where the junior finished with 60 tackles and six
interceptions. Rhoads, a senior, ended the season with two school single
season records for touchdowns (eight) and most carries (154). He also set
career marks for total yards (1,856) and most carries (355). Balderas
finished with 51 tackles and three interceptions.
Fountain Valley returned to the playoffs for a sixth consecutive year
behind players such as Chuck Tegantvoort, Paris Moore, Manuel Diaz and
Vince Nguyen. Teganvoort played both ways, with three touchdowns as a
receiver, and had five sacks and 49 tackles at linebacker. Moore rushed
for 706 yards and was in on 45 tackles defensively, Diaz had 351
receiving yards and had a 10-yard average on seven punt returns, and
Nguyen had five interceptions (one for a touchdown), one blocked punt,
and one blocked field goal.
Although there was no postseason for Huntington Beach, the Oilers
received strong defensive play from senior defensive lineman John
Niutapuai (35 tackles), senior linebacker Justin Keadle (77 tackles,
three caused fumbles, two fumble recoveries), and junior linebacker Josh
Morales (75 tackles, two sacks, six pass breakups).
Then there's Edison, which returned to the playoffs following a
