Prep column: Where Eagles bail

Barry Faulkner

Discussion of sports in the aftermath of Sept. 11 has often

included a qualifying statement about the insignificance of it all in the

grand scheme of things. And, who could argue.

In this grand scheme, and against a backdrop of a grieving nation,

does the fact that Estancia High canceled Saturday’s football game at

Aliso Niguel matter in the least?

One could argue, however, the grand scheme of things is precisely why

the Eagles, specifically first-year coach Jay Noonan, should not have

pulled the plug.

For a moment, allow me to divert the context of this debate away from

the one that raged nationally last week as to whether it was or was not

appropriate for professional and college teams to play games through

Sunday.

For, I believe, that context supplied merely a convenient out for

Noonan, who based his decision on other rationale, namely the inability

to compete at full strength.

Noonan said the Eagles 40-man roster would have been significantly

depleted for a Saturday game, due to job and family commitments by more

than a dozen of his players.

These Saturday scheduling conflicts would not have been an issue had

the game been played Friday night, as scheduled, before the Orange County

superintendents directed schools not to hold athletic contests on the

national day of prayer and remembrance.

Injuries that would have forced four additional Estancia players to

the sideline were also a factor.

But it’s hard to imagine the Eagles could not have put at least two

dozen players on a bus Saturday afternoon and fulfilled their scheduled

commitment. The fact that this limited contingent might have included

several backups was not sufficient cause not to compete.

Not competing, in fact, sent the wrong message to the Estancia

players, who, responding to the enthusiastic leadership Noonan had

displayed since taking the job, have shown admirable determination to

prove they in fact can compete against schools with more experience and

talent.

The cover of the Estancia program for the Sept. 6 season-opening home

game against Magnolia featured the catch phrase “strength and honor.”

By canceling Saturday’s game, the Eagles displayed a shortage of both.

Estancia was far from the only football program that didn’t play last

week. By my best count, 20 Orange County schools did not play scheduled

varsity games.

Football coaches at four Newport-Mesa high schools said players and

coaches alike were understandably dispirited during practice preparation,

following the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington D.C.

Corona del Mar Coach Dick Freeman said one of the most disconcerting

aspects of practicing last week was the absence of airplane traffic over

the campus practice field, located along the John Wayne Airport flight

path.

“We’re used to having to stop talking about every four minutes,

because you can’t hear anything over the jets,” Freeman said. “The quiet

last week was really strange.”

Both football games I attended Saturday featured a moment of silence

and the players from Costa Mesa and Westminster high schools met at

midfield for pregame handshakes after the playing of the National Anthem.

Centennial High, from the Canadian province of British Columbia, has

secured air travel for Friday’s 7 p.m. game against Costa Mesa at Newport

Harbor High.

But, the Centaurs, originally scheduled to arrive Wednesday morning,

which would have enabled them to practice locally that afternoon, will

not arrive until Wednesday night, according to Mesa Coach Dave Perkins.

They Canadian visitors will follow through on plans to spend Thursday

at Disneyland, then try to squeeze final preparation into a light

practice Friday morning, Perkins said.

For those confused, the XL in Battle of the Bay XL represents the

Roman numeral equivalent of 40. This year’s game features the No. 1

scoring defense in Orange County (Newport Harbor, yielding 3.5 points per

game) against a CdM offense that ranks No. 2 in the county in total

points scored (76).

The site of this year’s game, Orange Coast College, has a 7,600

seating capacity, more than a 50% increase over that of Newport Harbor’s

Davidson Field, where the game has been held before overflow crowds for

more than a decade.

Sage Hill, which has dotted its junior varsity football schedule with

two varsity opponents this fall, will visit Saddleback Valley Christian

Friday at 3:15 p.m. for the first varsity game in the Newport Coast-based

private school’s history.

The Lightning, coached by Newport Beach Police Officer Tom Monarch,

will also be making their 2001 debut, since last week’s JV game against

Francis Parker from San Diego was canceled.

Monarch’s coaching staff includes quarterbacks coach Brad Gossen, who

succeeded Drew Bledsoe as the starting signal caller at Washington State.