HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL PREVIEW : St. Genevieve Making Major Adjustments

Jeff Trovatten walked into the St. Genevieve High football office for the first time this summer and didn’t like what he discovered.

The videotapes of every Valiants game last season were gone. Forty sets of knee braces and 22 new footballs had disappeared. The place looked deserted.

The school’s former coach, Richard Fong--who was named The Times’ Valley Coach of the Year after he led the Valiants to a 9-3 record and a league championship--had resigned to take an assistant job on Crespi.

Trovatten, 40, had applied for several head-coaching jobs. St. Genevieve was the only school to request an interview.

Shortly after accepting the position on June 20, Trovatten learned that three others had turned the job down. Suddenly, he wondered what kind of mess he’d stepped into.

“I think everybody wondered what was going on here,” Trovatten said. “The players, I think, were in kind of a daze.”

The defending Santa Fe League champions said they were stunned by the departure of Fong, who reportedly promised this year’s senior class that he would make a four-year commitment.

The Valiants, who have seven returning starters and some big linemen, are again considered one of the teams to beat in the league, which has expanded to eight teams with the addition of Pius X and Mary Star of the Sea.

But St. Genevieve will be tested to repeat. Trovatten, who has served as an assistant at Hart, Saugus, Crespi and Cleveland, brings a new system that the players have yet to learn.

Because Trovatten was hired after the spring semester ended, most of the players had no knowledge during the summer that Fong had been replaced.

“I think the players were disappointed in the way everything was handled,” Trovatten said. “They were really down (when they reported for two-a-day practices in August).

Most of them were out of shape. Some weren’t sure if they wanted to play football again.

“With all the tapes missing, I haven’t been able to see what these players can do. We’re going in cold. But that’s life.”

Fong said he left St. Genevieve because the school failed to support his program. He purchased the video tapes, and so he kept them. He has since dubbed copies of the 1993 games for Trovatten.

The footballs and knee braces must have been stolen, he said. Theft of athletic department goods was a frequent problem during his three-year tenure as coach and athletic director.

“I wanted to stay, but I think I accomplished everything I could there,” Fong said.

“I wish all the luck to Jeff Trovatten. I’m sure they’ll have a very good season.”

The Valiants won only one of 19 games in two seasons under Fong before last season’s turnaround.

Discouraged by his departure, the players say they will have to work extra hard to keep their program headed in a positive direction.

“We were real mad about Fong leaving,” said wide receiver Joe Muller, who caught 48 passes last season.

“We lost our whole coaching staff.”

“A lot of us took (Fong’s departure) personally,” said Randy Iaccino, a standout receiver who has switched to quarterback this season. “I guess it was better for himself. So this is kind of a crisis. To repeat is going to be awfully hard. We’ve just got to adjust.”

Iaccino, wide receiver Joe Muller and two first-team all-leaguers from 1993, tackle Mike Hanson and linebacker-turned-fullback Rickey Estrada, give St. Genevieve a strong nucleus. But the Valiants, at the outset, won’t be as strong as last year.

The players, however, feel pressure to continue winning.

“Our future depends on this year,” Muller said. “It’ll have a total negative effect if we don’t win. But we have to work a lot harder than we are right now. The seniors have to step up and be leaders.”

Wednesday: Mission and Tri-Valley Leagues

Santa Fe League at a Glance

1993 STANDINGS OVERALL LEAGUE PROJECTED FINISH St. Genevieve 9-3 5-0 Murphy Murphy 5-5-1 3-1-1 St. Genevieve Cathedral 5-5-1 2-2-1 Bell-Jeff Bell-Jeff 2-7-1 2-2-1 Pius X Salesian 2-5-2 1-3-1 Cathedral LaSalle 0-9 0-5 Mary Star Salesian LaSalle

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Player School Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr. Tim Esquivel LaSalle WR 5-11 160 Sr. Ricky Estrada St. Genevieve RB 5-7 176 Sr. Mike Hanson St. Genevieve OL 6-2 185 Sr. Kory Lombard Murphy DL 6-2 250 Sr. Joe Muller St. Genevieve WR 6-1 175 Sr. John Pawlik Bell-Jeff RB 5-11 195 Sr. Danny Ragsdale Murphy QB 5-10 150 Sr. Mike Reyes Bell-Jeff TE 6-4 240 Sr. James Santos Mary Star OL 6-1 255 Sr. Dolphin Tillman Pius X LB 6-3 225 Sr.