Football: Not your everyday Peeples

Tony Altobelli

COSTA MESA - When you’re a 5-foot-9 defensive back and you’re asked

to play a one-on-one position against guys who are four to seven inches

taller than you, how is success achieved?

It helps to be a stellar athlete like Orange Coast College sophomore

defensive back Johnnie Peeples.

“He may be only 5-9, but he’s an exceptional athlete,” Coach Mike

Taylor said. “Any time you can high jump 6-6 and long jump 22 feet,

you’re doing something right.

Peeples was named OCC’s Top Defensive Back after his freshman season

in which he deflected 13 passes and had one interception.

His one pickoff came in the Pirates’ marathon battle with Long Beach

City. After intercepting Chad Munson’s pass in the first half of the

sixth overtime, OCC put the game away with a touchdown in the 48-42 win.

“He’s worked hard in the off-season and he’s in great shape,” Taylor

said. “We’re excited to see what he can do this year.”

Peeples is not the only Pirate ready for the upcoming season. Here’s a

look at the 2000 Bucs.

Quarterback: Trying to replace record-holder Jared Flint will not be

easy.

Getting the first crack will be redshirt sophomore Justin Simons. The

6-foot, 180-pounder from Vancouver, Washington backed up Flint two years

ago.

“He’s very mature, which will help a ton,” Taylor said. “He runs

better than Flint does and he has adequate skills as a pass-thrower. He

may not have the arm strength like Jared, but not many people do. He

looks to be the leading guy at the moment.”

If Simons struggles, look for sophomore punter Eddie Johnson (Newport

Harbor) to follow. Johnson was used sparingly as Flint’s backup last

season, but at 6-4, 230, Taylor knows there is another bullet in the gun

if he needs it.

“Eddie has improved tremendously from last year,” Taylor said. “Both

as a punter and as a passer.”

Running backs: The names may have changed, but the bulk and size

remains the same.

Gone are 250-pounders Jimmie Banks and 240-pound Devon Griffin. Enter

5-11, 250-pound Eddie Vailolo and 5-10, 210-pound Anthony Campo.

Vailolo was a standout back for Garden Grove High, while Campo rumbled

for Mater Dei.

“They will do a great job of getting those tough yards as well as open

up some holes for our running backs,” Taylor said. “They each possess

size as well as the ability to run and catch.”

The running backs assigned to run through those Vailolo and Campo-made

holes will be sophomore James Dawkins (Estancia High) and freshman Jared

Kemp.

Dawkins was a second-team, All-Mission Conference choice for his

special teams play last season. He averaged nearly 30 yards per kickoff

return, including a 92-yard return for a touchdown against Santa Ana.

Tight ends: “A reporter once said to me that Orange Coast has always

been a tight-end type of school,” Taylor said. This year will be no

exception.

Leading the way will be 6-3, 248-pound Ben Fredrickson, one of Flint’s

more popular targets.

Last season, Fredrickson caught 30 passes for 413 yards and scored

five touchdowns.

“He’s the prototypical tight end,” Taylor said. “He’s got the size to

block well and he has surprising speed and good hands to go out and catch

some passes. He’ll be a big weapon for us.”

Joining Fredrickson will be 6-2, 215-pound sophomore Gerard Fane and

6-4, 220-pound freshman Brandon Hall.

“Hey you recruit what you get and we’ve got three solid tight ends,”

Taylor said. “That will give us loads of options that the other schools

will have to keep an eye on.”

Wide receivers: With a combination of speed, hands and physical size,

Taylor has plenty of weapons at receiver.

Sophomore returners Justin Dale (5-9, 175) and Anthony Valanos (6-2,

195) each came up with some big catches for the Pirates last season and

will be called on to provide veteran leadership.

“Justin has worked hard in the off-season and with his experience and

hands, he’ll be getting some opportunities,” Taylor said.

On the speed side, Vince Strang III (5-8, 145) will be called upon to

spread out the defense. “He’s got 4.3 speed and has a tremendous burst

off the line,” Taylor said.

A transfer from Kent, Wash., freshman Brian Killpatrick provides 4.5

speed along with a solid 6-1 frame for a target.

Freshman Jonathan Jackson (6-1, 175) and sophomore Arthur Odden (6-5,

195) will provide Taylor with some much-needed depth in the receiver

position.

“Arthur can jump 6-4 in the high jump and with his size, can out-jump

most cornerbacks for the ball,” Taylor said.

Offensive line: All the offensive weapons in the world, however cannot

function properly without the guys in the middle providing blocking or

allowing time for passes to be thrown.

“This is where we will win or lose games this season,” Taylor said.

“If we can keep our front five or six guys healthy, we will be able to do

a lot of things offensively.”

The anchor to the Pirates’ line is sophomore guard Anthony Knutson. He

was a second-team, all-conference selection for OCC last season and

despite off-season knee surgery, should be ready to go for this year.

Joining Knutson on the line is 31-year-old Gary Lewellyn (6-4, 300).

After taking some time off the field, Lewellyn has returned with some

much-needed maturity for OCC’s front force.

“He can really get after it,” Taylor said. “He’s got a size 18 foot

and he’s an enforcer.”

Adding some much-needed size to the front will be Cal transfer Adam

Fisher (6-6, 300) and Corona del Mar product Zach Wald (6-4, 350).

One guy that Taylor was excited to have back is sophomore center Lance

Chavez (Newport Harbor). “He’s spent a ton of time hitting the weights,”

Taylor said. “He’s upped his weight to 258 and we’re happy to have him

back.”

Rounding out the line with be Santa Ana College transfer Ethello Hall

(6-3, 270).

Defensive line: Just as the success of the offense runs through the

line, so does the success of OCC’s defense.

“We’ve got a couple of guys returning and we’re two-deep in all

positions,” Taylor said. “What they may lack in size, they make up with

in speed and natural ability.”

Taylor’s returners include all-conference standout James Guglielmana

(6-4, 213) and 6-4, 270-pound Vance Babin.

Of the new faces, Taylor likes the play of freshman Dan Stringer (6-1,

220). “He’s got a nice mixture of quickness as well as being a physical

type of player,” said Taylor.

Other new faces to the Pirates line include Saddleback College

transfer Perry DiIorio (6-1, 245), Greg Smith (6-2, 220) and James

Furtsch (6-1, 245).

Linebackers: Perhaps the most experienced part of Taylor’s defense

comes at the linebacker position.

Returning are two all-conference choices Dustin Davis (6-1, 230) and

Justin Blackard (6-2, 240).

Davis was named as OCC’s Linebacker of the Year, while Blackard was

the team’s Most Improved Player.

The third returner to the Pirates’ linebacker corps is 6-2, 220-pound

Martin Janzon.

“We’re going to be very tough in the middle of the defense,” Taylor

said. “I would put our linebackers among the rest of the conference.”

Two bright additions to the linebacker group include freshman Clay

Busch from Littleton, Colo. and Thousand Oaks product John Freeth.

“Clay is one strong individual,” Taylor said. “John is more of a

traditional safety, but we’ve put him up with the linebackers this year.

He’s a real hard-nosed kid.”

Secondary: Leading the last line of defense is Peeples, while Manny

Adams (6-2, 200) will also be called upon to provide leadership in the

secondary.

“He’s played a little and he’s been through the wars,” Taylor said.

“That will help him out big time for this year.”

Freshman Tim Ogo (5-10, 170), Joe Arroyo (Estancia High), Richie

Kukuia (6-0, 190) and Jimmy Thorson (5-8, 165) will need to be prepared

for battle right from the get-go, according to Taylor.

At the safety position, Taylor has three freshmen in David Gonzalez,

Brandon Thornton and Barret Burkett. “They’ve all been schooled well,

which is important coming up to this level from high school,” Taylor

said.

Kicking game: A major weapon will be Johnson’s leg. He averaged 38

yards per punt last year and has improved on that for this season.

Johnson consistently pinned the opposition back last season for OCC

and Taylor expects the same this year.

“I think he’s got an NFL leg,” Taylor said. “He’s consistently hitting

the ball 41, 42, 43 yards each time.”

Doing the place kicking will be freshman Steve Terwiske. “He’s got a

real strong leg,” Taylor said. “He went to Saddleback for a little while

but didn’t play, so he’s an older freshman, which might help in crunch

time.”