A last hurrah

Mike Sciacca

In the hot summer months most students take advantage of the three

month vacation from school by heading for the beach, taking in a movie,

or hanging out with their friends.

But for Ryan Keating the break between the just completed school year

and the impending one, has not altered his work ethic one bit.

“I’m still working hard on my game,” said the 18-year-old, who graduated in June from Edison High. “There hasn’t really been time for a

break, but I enjoy what I’m doing.”

Keating is one of four local athletes who will play Friday night

against the North in the 43rd annual Orange County North/South Prep

All-Star Football Game at Orange Coast College’s LeBard Stadium.

He will be joined on the South squad by his Edison teammate, Jonathan

Miller, Huntington Beach defensive lineman Brian Ruziecki and running

back Turill Engelman of Marina, in what will be the final hurrah of their

prep careers.

The foursome are going through today’s final practice at Mission Viejo

High in preparation for Friday’s 7:15 p.m. kickoff.

“It’s my last chance to play in front of a lot of my family and

friends,” Keating said. “I’m just hoping to put on a good show.”

Keating, at 6-foot-4, 310 pounds, is what you might call a gentle

giant. He plays with passion and speaks passionately when discussing his

family, friends and his playing days at Edison.

“I had a great time playing at Edison,” he said. “It went by very fast

and now that I’ve graduated, I’m sure I will be thinking back and recall

some really great times.”

Keating played at the varsity level for three years and started his

final two years with the Chargers. To say that he accomplished quite a

bit in those two years would be an understatement for a young man who

never played football before entering high school.

“I was always told I was too big for Pop Warner -- that I weighed too

much,” he explained. “They told me to lose 40 pounds. I couldn’t play,

and watched from the sidelines.”

To fill the void, Keating said he took up basketball and credits the

sport for helping him with his footwork.

“Kyle Murphy, my line coach at Edison, told me that I have some of the

best footwork that he’s seen on a 300-pound lineman,” Keating said

proudly.

Once he began playing football at Edison, Keating went to work on his

technique and hit the weight room hard.

“Ryan had a great career here,” Edison Coach Dave White said.

In a season that saw Edison finish runner-up in Division I, Keating

was All-Sunset League, All-Orange County, All-CIF Division I and All-CIF,

for all divisions. He also was named Edison’s offensive lineman of the

year.

He earned a scholarship to Boise State, where he has been told by the

Broncos coaching staff that he will play left guard or center.

Keating departs for Boise Aug. 4 to attend camp.

Although he played offensive tackle at Edison, he has been asked by

the South coaching staff to play left guard. And, true to his work ethic,

Keating went to work learning the new position in a short time.

“The first couple of practices were somewhat tough and very different,

but now, I feel very comfortable playing at guard,” he said. “Playing

this new position should give me a head start when I report to Boise next

month.”

While Keating keyed Edison’s offensive line, Jonathan Miller, starred

in the defensive backfield.

“Jonathan is awesome. I think he’s the best linebacker around,”

Keating said of his Charger teammate.

The 6-foot-2, 240-pound Miller, a linebacker, also received top

accolades as a senior, garnering Defensive Back of the Year in the Sunset

League, All-Orange County and All-CIF Division I.

In his final season with Edison, he had one interception, 122 tackles,

one caused fumble, two fumble recoveries and seven sacks.

Miller, 19, will play in the defensive backfield for the South. He has

balanced All-Star practices with taking fire science classes this summer

at El Camino College.

He aspires to become a firefighter.

In the fall, Miller will attend Long Beach City College where he will

play football.

“This should really be a fun game,” Miller said of Friday’s All-Star

event. “It will be fun to play with Ryan one more time and with guys that

I’ve played against in high school. This is it, before we all move on.”

* MIKE SCIACCA covers sports and features. He can be reached at (714)

965-7171 or by e-mail at michael.sciacca@latimes.com.