Spread Offense

Satiated, briefly, by its season-opening victory over Fountain Valley High, the Newport Harbor football team will now hope to devour what Coach Jeff Brinkley called the flavor of the month. Brinkley was referring to the spread offense that, thanks to Coach Urban Meyer's breakout success with the University of Utah, has become wildly popular with both college and high school programs nationwide. Marina (0-2), which visits for a nonleague clash Friday at 7 p.m., will employ the no-huddle spread that typically features four receivers, a single back and the quarterback lined up in the shotgun.

Orange Coast College quarterbacks ran for their lives and often threw under duress last football season, hoping to connect with someone wearing the same-colored jersey. The result was 41 sacks, 22 interceptions, a 49% completion rate, an impotent offense and a 2-8 record. This season, the Pirates' trigger man will run by design, when not sitting in the shotgun, picking over receiving choices as part of the newly installed spread offense. The new scheme comes with a new coordinator, though Jack Wigmore is familiar to OCC Coach Mike Taylor, who enters his 13th season at the helm, having produced just two winning records in the last 10 seasons.

Orange Coast College football coach Mike Taylor has had enough trouble navigating the annual mine field known as his schedule. In recent years, however, he has been increasingly plagued by the pitfalls, mostly academics, that have posed too great an opposition for his would-be returning players. The recent off-season proved perilous, indeed, as Taylor lost 2011 All-American running back Domenic Betts, outside linebacker Aaron Jones, who led the team in tackles as a freshman, and a handful of other 2011 contributors to obstacles having nothing to do with an on-field opponent.

Where/when: 6 p.m. Saturday at Saddleback Key Pirates: Fr. QB Alex Cappellini; Fr. TB Domenic Betts; Fr. TB Dylan Chynoweth; So. DL Ross Pitsenberger; So. CB Evan Law. Key Gauchos: So. RB Donnell Dickerson (753 rushing yards, nine TDs last season); So. WR Rodney Woodland (43 receptions for 488 yards and five TDs last season). Breakdown: The Pirates are coming off a 2-8 season, while the Gauchos, ranked No. 5 in California and No. 10 in one national preseason poll, were 8-3 a year ago … Cappallini beat out two other freshmen to earn the nod at quarterback for OCC, for which Andrew Young and Dalton Gervais are also expected to see action … Also debuting for the Pirates is first-year offensive coordinator Jack Wigmore, who guides the newly installed spread offense … Betts, a scat back with impressive credentials at Banning High of Banning, gets his first game action since his senior prep season in 2008 … Saddleback has won four straight in the series and outscored OCC, 89-20, the last two seasons … Law and Pitsenberger are the only two starters returning from an OCC defense that ranked third against the run and ninth overall among 37 schools in the Southern California Football Assn.

Rick Devereux Two league losses in a row have not dampened Corona del Mar High football coach Dick Freeman's outlook on the future for the Sea Kings. "If we win the next two weeks, we should be the third-place team [in the Pacific Coast League]," Freeman said. The top three teams in the league earn automatic CIF Southern Section Division IX playoff berths. First on the schedule for CdM (4-4, 1-2 in league) is University (1-6-1, 0-3) at 7 p.m. tonight at Newport Harbor High.

When: Tonight, 7 Where: Davidson Field Key Dolphins: Sr. RB Brett Giesen (39 carries for 365 yards and five TDs); Sr. QB Sean Schroeder (50 for 75 passing for 872 yards and nine TDs and one interception); WR Dylan Denso (17 catches for 409 yards and four TDs) Key Sailors: Sr. RB Michael Helfrich (31 carries for 185 yards and two TDs); Sr. WR JB Green (10 catches for 117 yards and two TDs); Sr. QB Andrew McDonald (27 for 46 passing for 331 yards and three TDs and three interceptions)

Newport Harbor vs. San Clemente When/where: Tonight, 7 at Newport Harbor High Key Sailors: Sr. RB Buzzy Yokoyama (670 yards and seven TDs on 76 carries); Sr. LT-DT JB Salem; Jr. DE Steve Michaelsen Key Tritons: QB Travis Wilson (1,109 yards and 10 TDs on 62 of 104 passing); WR Terrell Johnson (15 catches for 256 yards and three TDs); WR Jordan Micalef (20 catches for 338 yards and one TD) Breakdown: Newport Harbor (3-0), ranked No. 5 in the CIF Southern Section Pac-5 Division poll, is attempting to start the season at 4-0 for the first time in six years … Newport Harbor and San Clemente (4-1)

Cayman Carter said he would never forget how it felt to rush the football field after Corona del Mar High last won the Battle of the Bay. It happened six years ago, when Carter was a sixth-grader. It hasn't happened since, CdM beating rival Newport Harbor. Carter can help change that Friday night as the Sea Kings travel to Newport Harbor to play at 7. The field is the same one Carter charged as a middle school student. "Any time CdM beats Harbor, it's a pretty big win," said Carter, who's well aware of Newport Harbor's dominance, a 37-13 record, in the series.

The Jay Johnson era for Costa Mesa High football begins Friday at 7 p.m. when the Mustangs open the season with a visit to Brea Olinda. Johnson, 26-45 in seven seasons as a head coach, most recently at Fairmont Prep, makes his debut at the helm of the Mustangs, who are coming off a 2-8 season. Johnson has installed a no-huddle spread offense and will deploy the scheme with five returning starters. Included among the returners are senior quarterback Ryan French and senior tailback Tyler Legg.

Orange Coast vs. Moorpark When/where: Saturday, 6 p.m. at OCC Key Pirates: So. LB Nick Cody; So. TB Robert Penny; So. OL Kyle Finney; Fr. QB Jon Newsome. Key Raiders: Fr. QB Ben Conlin; So. LB Travis Key; So. CB Victor Fermin; Fr. DE Jayce Foster. Breakdown: OCC comes off a 4-6 season and is on a one-game winning streak, while Moorpark, ranked No. 19 in Southern California, was 6-4 and lost its finale in 2011 ... It's the first meeting between the two schools, both of which lost their opener in 2011 ... Newsome triggers OCC's new no-huddle, spread offense under first-year coordinator Rudy Caamano ... Penny, academically ineligible last season, rushed for 627 yards and was second-team all-conference in 2010 ... Moorpark has 12 players returning, while OCC has only 19 ... Mike Frank, a returning starter at quarterback for OCC but the No. 3 QB after fall practices, quit the team last week ... OCC led the state in rushing last season, while Moorpark ranked No. 2 in SoCal in total defense ... Will Thurston begins his first season as head coach after 34 seasons as a Raiders' assistant ... Foster, a 5-foot-10, 195-pounder, had 19 sacks as a senior at Moorpark High in 2011 ... The Raiders have played in 18 bowl games in 26 years, while OCC has three bowl appearances the last 18 years ... OCC has lost its last two openers, but is 8-3 in its last 11 season debuts.

COSTA MESA - With eight wins in the previous nine meetings, in which it built combined 283-111 scoring margin, it could be argued that Palomar Community College had taken ownership of the Orange Coast football program's dignity. So it was sweet indeed for the Pirates when they emerged with not only a 35-28 upset victory to open Southern Conference play Saturday, but also paraded off the field with a sizable portion of Palomar's collective will. "It feels good," OCC sophomore guard Kyle Finney said after the Pirates (3-1, 1-0 in conference)

Cayman Carter said he would never forget how it felt to rush the football field after Corona del Mar High last won the Battle of the Bay. It happened six years ago, when Carter was a sixth-grader. It hasn't happened since, CdM beating rival Newport Harbor. Carter can help change that Friday night as the Sea Kings travel to Newport Harbor to play at 7. The field is the same one Carter charged as a middle school student. "Any time CdM beats Harbor, it's a pretty big win," said Carter, who's well aware of Newport Harbor's dominance, a 37-13 record, in the series.

Orange Coast vs. Moorpark When/where: Saturday, 6 p.m. at OCC Key Pirates: So. LB Nick Cody; So. TB Robert Penny; So. OL Kyle Finney; Fr. QB Jon Newsome. Key Raiders: Fr. QB Ben Conlin; So. LB Travis Key; So. CB Victor Fermin; Fr. DE Jayce Foster. Breakdown: OCC comes off a 4-6 season and is on a one-game winning streak, while Moorpark, ranked No. 19 in Southern California, was 6-4 and lost its finale in 2011 ... It's the first meeting between the two schools, both of which lost their opener in 2011 ... Newsome triggers OCC's new no-huddle, spread offense under first-year coordinator Rudy Caamano ... Penny, academically ineligible last season, rushed for 627 yards and was second-team all-conference in 2010 ... Moorpark has 12 players returning, while OCC has only 19 ... Mike Frank, a returning starter at quarterback for OCC but the No. 3 QB after fall practices, quit the team last week ... OCC led the state in rushing last season, while Moorpark ranked No. 2 in SoCal in total defense ... Will Thurston begins his first season as head coach after 34 seasons as a Raiders' assistant ... Foster, a 5-foot-10, 195-pounder, had 19 sacks as a senior at Moorpark High in 2011 ... The Raiders have played in 18 bowl games in 26 years, while OCC has three bowl appearances the last 18 years ... OCC has lost its last two openers, but is 8-3 in its last 11 season debuts.

Orange Coast College football coach Mike Taylor has had enough trouble navigating the annual mine field known as his schedule. In recent years, however, he has been increasingly plagued by the pitfalls, mostly academics, that have posed too great an opposition for his would-be returning players. The recent off-season proved perilous, indeed, as Taylor lost 2011 All-American running back Domenic Betts, outside linebacker Aaron Jones, who led the team in tackles as a freshman, and a handful of other 2011 contributors to obstacles having nothing to do with an on-field opponent.

Where/when: 6 p.m. Saturday at Saddleback Key Pirates: Fr. QB Alex Cappellini; Fr. TB Domenic Betts; Fr. TB Dylan Chynoweth; So. DL Ross Pitsenberger; So. CB Evan Law. Key Gauchos: So. RB Donnell Dickerson (753 rushing yards, nine TDs last season); So. WR Rodney Woodland (43 receptions for 488 yards and five TDs last season). Breakdown: The Pirates are coming off a 2-8 season, while the Gauchos, ranked No. 5 in California and No. 10 in one national preseason poll, were 8-3 a year ago … Cappallini beat out two other freshmen to earn the nod at quarterback for OCC, for which Andrew Young and Dalton Gervais are also expected to see action … Also debuting for the Pirates is first-year offensive coordinator Jack Wigmore, who guides the newly installed spread offense … Betts, a scat back with impressive credentials at Banning High of Banning, gets his first game action since his senior prep season in 2008 … Saddleback has won four straight in the series and outscored OCC, 89-20, the last two seasons … Law and Pitsenberger are the only two starters returning from an OCC defense that ranked third against the run and ninth overall among 37 schools in the Southern California Football Assn.

When Wally Grant was named interim coach for the 2011 Costa Mesa High football season, he introduced his players to three rules. There is the time-honored Golden Rule. Then, there is majority rule (if the majority of the program is expected to do something, everyone else must comply in a timely fashion). The third rule is: everyone must protect the team. The result of the first three rules, mostly the majority rule that centers around commitment to practice and weight training, soon led to a dwindling roster … and the formation of a fourth rule.

Orange Coast College quarterbacks ran for their lives and often threw under duress last football season, hoping to connect with someone wearing the same-colored jersey. The result was 41 sacks, 22 interceptions, a 49% completion rate, an impotent offense and a 2-8 record. This season, the Pirates' trigger man will run by design, when not sitting in the shotgun, picking over receiving choices as part of the newly installed spread offense. The new scheme comes with a new coordinator, though Jack Wigmore is familiar to OCC Coach Mike Taylor, who enters his 13th season at the helm, having produced just two winning records in the last 10 seasons.

Newport Harbor vs. San Clemente When/where: Tonight, 7 at Newport Harbor High Key Sailors: Sr. RB Buzzy Yokoyama (670 yards and seven TDs on 76 carries); Sr. LT-DT JB Salem; Jr. DE Steve Michaelsen Key Tritons: QB Travis Wilson (1,109 yards and 10 TDs on 62 of 104 passing); WR Terrell Johnson (15 catches for 256 yards and three TDs); WR Jordan Micalef (20 catches for 338 yards and one TD) Breakdown: Newport Harbor (3-0), ranked No. 5 in the CIF Southern Section Pac-5 Division poll, is attempting to start the season at 4-0 for the first time in six years … Newport Harbor and San Clemente (4-1)

When: Tonight, 7 Where: Davidson Field Key Dolphins: Sr. RB Brett Giesen (39 carries for 365 yards and five TDs); Sr. QB Sean Schroeder (50 for 75 passing for 872 yards and nine TDs and one interception); WR Dylan Denso (17 catches for 409 yards and four TDs) Key Sailors: Sr. RB Michael Helfrich (31 carries for 185 yards and two TDs); Sr. WR JB Green (10 catches for 117 yards and two TDs); Sr. QB Andrew McDonald (27 for 46 passing for 331 yards and three TDs and three interceptions)

At least the Estancia High football team is playing in Costa Mesa this time. Three weeks from competing on the road, Garden Grove, Buena Park and the latest Mission Viejo, the Eagles are in need of a home football game. “It seems like we’re always away,” said Coach Mike Bargas, referring to not having a field on site and having to play home games at Newport Harbor and Orange Coast College. OCC will be Estancia’s home tonight at 7 against La Quinta (0-3)