Leverage lifts Sailor linemen

Rick Devereux

It is always the case in football.

The quarterback gets all the glory.

The receivers get all the praise.

The running backs get all the attention.

Those players even get complimentarily grouped together as the

“skill positions.”

But the grunt work of the machine never get their names called.

The only time the fans notice them is when they mess up and the

quarterback gets sacked or the running back gets stuffed at the line

of scrimmage.

But for the Newport Harbor High football team to advance to the

CIF Southern Section Division VI championship game Saturday at 2 p.m.

at Angel Stadium, a whole lot of credit needs to be thrown toward the

offensive line, tight ends and fullbacks that ensure the quarterback

has the time needed to throw the touchdown pass and the running back

has the hole to run for a first down.

“They have done a great job for us,” Coach Jeff Brinkley said. “I

always tell them that we will go only as far as they take us. We

can’t win without the linemen.”

Steve Joslin, Alex Flores, Chris Taylor, Efrain Castro and Charles

Schultz have been the unsung anchors for the Sailors (13-0-1) along

the offensive line while Jack Tracy (fullback), Billy Brown and Greg

Miner (tight ends) have also been critical in the blocking schemes.

“Our biggest thing is we keep it simple,” offensive line Coach

Mike Bargas said. “We’re not very big so we try to win the leverage

game.”

Joslin, Flores, Taylor, Castro and Schultz average less than 230

pounds each.

In order to take advantage of superior leverage, the line’s

three-point stance is lower than most teams.

“We get them real close to the ground, almost to where their butts

are touching the ground,” Bargas said. “It’s almost like a sumo

wrestle’s stance. That helps them get under the defender’s pads so

they can push [the opponents] around.”

It has worked so far this year.

The Sailors averaged an astounding 7.2 yards per carry in the five

Sea View League games. The team has rushed for 2,688 yards and 25

touchdowns on 461 carries through 13 games.

The blocking has also held up in the passing game.

Quarterback Kasey Peters has passed for 1,991 yards and 23

touchdowns this year on 250 attempts. He was sacked six times during

the regular season.

“[The offensive line] has been fantastic,” Peters said. “I was

sacked once during the league play and that was on a play-action pass

where we knew we were going to leave a guy unblocked. I was supposed

to throw the ball before the [defender] got to me, but I didn’t. That

sack wasn’t even [the offensive line’s] fault, so I guess they’ve

only given up five sacks [during the regular season].”

Heading into the season, Brinkley knew Newport had talent at wide

receiver, running back and quarterback on offense. He also knew the

defense was going to be strong. The one uncertainty was the offensive

line.

“We knew we had the potential to be pretty good,” Brinkley said.

“We had quite a few guys coming back, especially in the skill

positions. The only question mark was how our offensive line would

perform because we had some inexperienced guys.”

Bargas said the seniors in the trenches have been the leaders

along the line.

“Joslin, Taylor and Castro have taken the younger guys under their

wings and showed them the ropes,” Bargas said. “The juniors look up

to those guys, but it has been a group [effort]. You can tell these

guys really like playing together.”

And, unlike the rest of the team that was forced to shift

personnel around in the first weeks of the season due to injuries,

the offensive line has remained relatively healthy.

“[Center] Chris [Taylor] went down at the end of the Mira Costa

game [in Week 5] with a knee injury, but he was back in the lineup

the next week,” Bargas said. “[The offensive line] has progressively

gotten better each week.”

Heading into the Orange Lutheran game and its complex zone blitzes

and standout defensive tackle Pat Roxas, the Sailors will have their

hands full. Bargas suspects the previous two games have prepared the

Newport offensive line for a tough contest.

“They faced Charter Oak and Mayfair and both games were a street

fight,” he said. “They faced 300-plus pound defensive linemen. But

they’re just average, humble guys that work real hard. They don’t

expect biscuits for every block.”