Another week, another big test, South Pasadena High’s football team plays the third of three straight home games Friday night as unbeaten Golden Valley out of Santa Clarita pays a visit.
“We’ve got another tough game coming up,” said Tigers’ coach Jeff Chi, who has his team looking to go 3-1 on the season after a 28-0 opening season loss to Schurr before rebounding with a pair of victories over Arcadia (21-6) and Crescenta Valley (29-23).
Last week’s win not only pitted the Tigers against a formidable opponent in the Falcons, but the blistering weather as well. Following a high of 108 degrees earlier in the day on Friday, both teams were forced to play under difficult conditions with the temperature hovering around the 90-mark at game time. Kickoff was delayed a half-hour, from the usual 7 p.m. to 7:30, and night time practices were held throughout the week to help avoid the scorching heat.
While the weather isn’t expected to be a factor this week, Chi is well aware his club will be facing a team on a hot streak. The Grizzlies opened the season with a 19-14 win over Westlake, ahead of overwhelming Antelope Valley 41-6 and narrowly getting past Lancaster 7-6 last Friday.
The big assignment for Chi’s defense will be stopping Jamison Torres, who has rushed for 393 yards on 75 carries for a 5.2 average and three touchdowns over the past three weeks. He also has seven catches for 74 yards and two touchdowns.
“He’s something like 70 to 80 percent of their offensive production,” said Chi, sizing up the Tigers next opponent. “So, we have to do our best to slow him down. That’s our goal. We need to stop him. If we can, I think we’ve got a shot. We’re going to have to put together a solid game plan to stop them.”
South Pasadena will counter with Junior Trey Freking, who has carried the ball for 246 yards on 49 carries for a 5.0 average per carry and three touchdowns in the trio of contests up to now. Teammate David Ortega, a senior, has another 219 yards on 29 carries in the same period for a 7.6 average and two touchdowns. Both played pivotal roles against Crescenta Valley.
“What I like about Freking, was that he was very patient with his runs, looking for the openings behind his line, waiting for the right moment, lowering his shoulder to pound the ball and get the key yardage for us on the ground,” Chi said. “He’s going to be a force to be reckoned with as the season rolls on.”
And when it comes to Ortega, the Tigers coach added: “He’s just a brute. He outruns people, has the speed to get outside and score.”
At one point in the second half against the Falcons, Ortega broke loose on an apparent 60-yard score, only to have it called back as a result of a blocking in the back penalty.
“That one play kind of defined him as to what kind of running back he is,” Chi said. “He’s tough, pounds it, bounces off the line, goes down the sideline and outruns the defense.”
The Tigers’ coach likes to say, “We have a good one-two combo,” in Freking and Ortega, adding: “”They compliment each other very well.”
South Pasadena has other key weapons. Senior James Dowd is the team leader in receptions with four for 79 yards, his longest going of 49 yards in two contests up to now. He’s also proven to be a destructive force on defense with four sacks at defensive end.
Guiding the Tigers’ offense last week, sophomore quarterback Andrew Nott completed 4 of his 5 passes for 77 yards, and tossed one touchdown in his first start.
Going up against solid teams like Golden Valley is part of South Pasadena’s strategy as it gears up for the start of another rugged Rio Hondo League season in early October. “The tough games early on will benefit our kids in the long run,” said Chi, whose team a year ago was 9-2 overall, tied for the league title with San Marino and Monrovia at 4-1, and was eliminated in the first round of the CIF playoffs, losing to Los Osos of Rancho Cucamonga 30-27.
“We’d like to get to the post-season again this year and go much further,” he insisted.
Chi likes the idea of his team is 2-1 after a slow start and played some of its best football against La Crescenta. The Tigers closed out last week’s win getting key yardage on a fourth and one near the finish. “We told our guys we need to get this done now and run the clock out, telling them they need to be accountable and toughen up and see who is better, gut it out,” said the coach. “They ran it, got it done and sealed the deal. It was a big play for us.”
Chi now hopes other wins will follow as the season reaches its fourth week. Following Friday’s game, the Tigers travel to Alhambra on September 20 for their final non-league game ahead of the Rio Hondo League action. After a bye, Pasadena Poly comes to South Pasadena on October 4 before the Tigers play rival San Marino on the road October 11. South Pasadena is home to Monrovia and Temple City October 17 and 25, respectively, and heads for La Canada November 1 to wind up the regular season.
“We’re going to keep working hard, hopefully improve every week and continue to win,” said Chi.
