View from the Sidelines

 EDITOR’S NOTE: For the third straight year, we’ve tracked down a North Coast Section football coach whose team’s season has already ended, and asked him to break down the top three divisions as they head into semifinal games on Nov. 23. Here’s what he gave us. 

DIVISION I

“¢ THE FAVORITE: It seems too routine to pick De La Salle-Concord, but until someone proves they can topple the Spartans, they have to be the pick here. Tiapepe Vitale is the kind of back that can once again pace a championship-caliber ground game, and quarterback Chris Williams showed against Pittsburg that he can add an extra dimension to their offensive attack. Defensively, they have the usual cast of athletes who can shut down any type of offensive attack. Austin Hooper, Victor Egu, Andrew Buckley, and Michael Hutchings are all top-notch defensive weapons who will play large roles in the big games. And as usual, the only way someone is going to truly challenge the Spartans is if they can match their line play for 48 minutes, and that is a tall task for anyone in the section.

“¢ THE CONTENDER: I don’t know whether to go with California-San Ramon or James Logan-Union City here, but only one of them will remain standing for a showdown with the Spartans. James Logan really impressed me with their quarterfinal win over Freedom-Oakley, and reminded of the team that throttled San Ramon Valley-Danville 35-0 early in the year. Throw in the fact that Del Oro-Loomis, the one team to beat the Colts, is still alive in the Sac-Joaquin Section, and they have a real impressive resume.  Their defense has the athletes to slow down any offense, and the backfield tandem of Warren Miles-Long and Jeff Prothro can move the ball on the ground. 

Cal’s balanced rushing attack, meanwhile, can also keep their defense off the field, something they did with amazing efficiency against Foothill. Cal also played tough with De La Salle a few weeks ago, so they should be prepared up front for another challenge. That is the one big question mark with Logan “” can its line play match the get-off that both Cal and De La Salle feature up front? I still favor the Colts here, though.

“¢ THE GAME-CHANGER: No disrespect to Vitale, Amador Valley’s Kyle Moreno, or Cal’s Karris Johnson, but the wild card in these playoffs has got to be Miles-Long. After shredding Freedom’s defense for 290 yards in the quarterfinals, the Colts have to feel good about their ability to ride their pistol-based rushing attack into the finals, and control the clock against two physical teams.    

“¢ SEMIFINALS: De La Salle over Amador Valley; James Logan over California

“¢ FINALS: De La Salle 28 James Logan 20

DIVISION II

“¢ THE FAVORITE: Rancho Cotate-Rohnert Park may be undefeated, but it really feels like Clayton Valley Charter-Concord can control any game right now. Joe Protheroe is as solid as they get in the backfield, evidenced by his amazing performance against Dublin in the quarterfinals, and their offensive line just seems to be so much faster than the defenses they are facing. They are physical as well, and fullback-linebacker Jesse Medrano gives them a confidence level that can take them to a title. They have the mentality of a team who is bringing the proverbial lunch pail to work, just a tough group of talented athletes who have bought into coach Tim Murphy’s style and mentality.    

“¢ THE CONTENDER: Rancho Cotate has been knocking on the door for a couple years now, and has yet to be beaten this season. They feature a potent ground game of their own, and have an impressive win over Cardinal Newman-Santa Rosa towards the end of the season. They did a good job of forcing turnovers during the regular season, but turned it over a couple times themselves in a quarterfinal win over Las Lomas-Walnut Creek. They will need to protect the ball and get a couple turnovers with their defense to control the tempo of the game against Clayton Valley, provided they can get past a peaking Northgate-Walnut Creek team in the semis.

“¢ THE GAME-CHANGER: If Rancho Cotate is going to challenge Protheroe and the Eagles, they will need another huge performance from Jalon Luque. Luque put up 184 yards on the ground in tough conditions against Las Lomas, and will need to go beyond that effort to keep pace with Protheroe.

“¢ SEMIFINALS: Clayton Valley over Concord; Rancho Cotate over Northgate.

“¢ FINALS: Clayton Valley 42, Rancho Cotate 21

DIVISION III

“¢ THE FAVORITE: This division again lives up to its hype as the most balanced and competitive division, top to bottom. Defending champion Campolindo is out after a classic game with Analy-Sebastopol, and four very capable teams remain. I’m going with Marin Catholic-Kentfield, though. Cardinal Newman was super efficient in its win over Encinal-Alameda, but the Wildcats seem to be playing out of this world right now, and QB Jared Goff has the big-game experience needed to succeed in this environment.

“¢ THE CONTENDER: El Cerrito may be the undefeated top seed, but I’m going with Analy as the surprise pick. They are also undefeated, and feature a pitch-and-catch tandem of Darin Newman and Aaron Maher which is a step above anything the Gauchos have seen recently. They have the potential to make things interesting with Marin Catholic as well, though the Wildcats just shut down a solid passing attack from Miramonte-Orinda.  

“¢ THE GAME-CHANGER: If El Cerrito is going to get to the final, they will need a big game from Adarius Pickett. It will be his job to keep the ball out of the hands of Newman and Maher. But the Marin Catholic holds the real game-changer “” the Cal-bound Goff, who is looking to shake off the disappointment of last season’s bitter loss to Campolindo.

“¢ SEMIFINALS: Analy over El Cerrito, Marin Catholic over Cardinal Newman

“¢ FINALS: Marin Catholic 38, Analy 20