Savoring final Sea View swing

Entering the 20th season of a highly successful reign at the helm of

the Newport Harbor High football program, Coach Jeff Brinkley said he

plans to continue to lead the Sailors for many years to come.

But with a move to the Sunset League and CIF Southern Section

Division I set for the fall of 2006, the 2005 campaign clearly

represents somewhat of a farewell tour.

Newport Harbor, which reached the CIF Division VI championship

game last fall -- its sixth trip to a final in the last 13 seasons in

Divisions IV, V or VI -- will attempt to make one more run at a

Division VI crown.

But, looming in the future is an annual battle with Sunset League

bullies Los Alamitos, Esperanza and Edison just to get into the

playoffs. Then, should a playoff berth be obtained, the Division I

postseason may include potential matchups with nationally renowned

powerhouses such as Long Beach Poly, Mater Dei and Loyola.

In short, the Tars must get to gettin’ while the gettin’ is good.

For now, however, any talk of 2006 is more than buzz kill to

Brinkley. It is, the bane of his existence: a distraction.

“I don’t know about that,” Brinkley said of any last hurrah in the

Sea View League, where the Sailors figure to battle Foothill, Aliso

Niguel and Irvine to defend their title.

What Brinkley does know, and what others have come to know about

Newport football, is that high expectations are as much a part of the

game-night atmosphere at Davidson Field as the Sailor band blaring

“Anchors Aweigh.”

The Sailors have been to the playoffs six straight seasons and 14

of the last 16 years.

There is ample cause for such optimism this season, despite the

graduation of 14 all-league players from a team that went 12-1-1, the

third-most single-season wins in the program’s 74-year history.

Four starters return on offense and two on defense, but the

45-player roster appears to have no shortage of talent.

The strength of the team could be the offensive line, while the

offensive skill positions should be in the capable hands of seniors

Tom Jackson (quarterback), Ryan Rippon (tailback) and James Coder (a

returning starter at receiver).

Jackson, a two-year starter in the secondary, steps in for Sea

View League Offensive Player of the Year Kasey Peters (now at

Saddleback College).

Jackson threw just two passes last season, completing both, but

amassed 739 yards and eight TDs as a sophomore when he took over for

four-plus games after Peters broke his collarbone in Week 7.

Also leaving big shoes to fill was CIF Co-Offensive Player of the

Year, Newport-Mesa Dream Team Player of the Year and Sea View League

MVP Trevor Theriot, a running back-linebacker who is now a walk-on at

UCLA.

Departed middle linebacker Thomas Martin, the Sea View League

Defensive Player of the Year, will also be missed, as will fellow

All-CIF performers Alex Orth, Spencer Link, Steve Joslin, and Saami

Khalifian.

Rippon might not make his first appearance until the league

opener, after venturing to Austria for an experimental reconstructive

procedure on a left ACL ruptured in a summer passing league

scrimmage.

Rippon, who sought out the relatively new procedure that is not

yet FDA approved in the United States, said the only thing slowing

his rehabilitation is a willingness not to rush back until completely

healthy.

Rippon, who injured his right knee in preseason and missed the

better part of seven games last season, could eventually benefit from

an offensive front anchored by returning staters Charles Schultz, a

6-foot-4, 332-pound tackle, and guard Alex Flores (6-2, 206).

“We’re big and capable up front,” said Brinkley, who mentions

seniors Lou Truxton (6-1, 211), Billy Munce (6-0, 259) and Matt

McCullough (6-5, 275) as the original projected starters, though

Munce will miss up to six weeks with a broken arm.

Brinkley also said junior Frank Muscatello (6-1, 383) and senior

Chris Ridgeway (6-3, 261) could also find playing time, if not wait

in the wings as backups.

Coder, a senior returning starter, suffered cracked ribs during a

collision in a passing league game.

But Coder, who had 31 catches last season, should open the season

healthy as the leader of an ample receiving corps.

“Our offense is more of a question mark since Rippon got hurt,”

Brinkley said. “Ryan had a great spring and so did our offensive

line. I thought, coming out of spring, we really were going to run

the ball extremely well.”

Defensively, Jackson is penciled in to resume his duties at free

safety, while senior Ryan Uhl (6-0, 270) anchors the front four as a

returning starter at tackle. Uhl squats more than 500 pounds,

Brinkley said, which is roughly the equivalent of two blockers.

“I think we’re pretty physical up front, defensively, and our

linebackers are bigger than they are fast,” Brinkley said. “And I

think we have some guys in the secondary who can play.”

If Brinkley has one big concern, it is depth, a luxury that paid

off last season, when injuries felled several key veterans for

extended stretches. That depth also helped the Tars junior varsity go

10-0 and claim the Sea View crown.

“We’re not as deep as we’ve been in the past,” Brinkley said. “If

we do get guys hurt, we may have to move some guys around [to fill

in], because we don’t have guys sitting there like we have in the

past.”

The Sailors, unlike Costa Mesa, Corona del Mar and Estancia, will

not play a zero-week opener. Instead, they will scrimmage Trabuco

Hills Friday to help them prepare for the Sept. 8 nonleague opener

against visiting Fountain Valley.

The schedule includes the annual Battle of the Bay against Corona

del Mar, Sept. 23, as well as nonleague clashes with Marina, Dana

Hills and Mira Costa.

The league season is set to debut Oct. 14 against Woodbridge.

Colors: Blue and white.

League: Sea View.

2004 record: 12-1-1, 4-0-1 in league.

Type of offense: Pro style.

Type of defense: Multiple four-three.

Head coach: Jeff Brinkley (20th year, 164-64-3).

Staff: Brinkley (offensive coordinator, quarterbacks); Tony

Ciarelli (defensive coordinator, secondary); Bill Brown (running

backs); Mike Bargas (defensive line); Matt Burns (linebackers); Bill

Calloway (receivers); Zaverio Brenner (off. line).

Returning starters: Four offense, two defense.

Returning lettermen: 40.

Returning with honors: OT Charles Schultz, FS Tom Jackson.

2004 results

*--*

20 Fountain Valley 7

35 Marina 0

21 Corona del Mar 17

35 Dana Hills 20

28 Mira Costa 14

10 Foothill* 10

21 Aliso Niguel* 7

35 Irvine* 0

55 Laguna Hills* 0

63 Woodbridge* 20

o7CIF Div. VI playoffsf7

35 El Dorado 10

14 Charter Oak 7

24 Mayfair 17

6 Orange Lutheran 35

*--*

2005 schedule

Thursday, Sept. 8 -- Fountain Valley (home), 7

Friday, Sept. 16 -- Marina (at Westminster), 7

Friday, Sept. 23 -- Corona del Mar (at OCC), 7

Friday, Sept. 30 -- at Dana Hills, 7:30

Friday, Oct. 7 -- Mira Costa (home), 7

Friday, Oct. 14 -- Woodbridge* (home), 7

Friday, Oct. 21 -- Foothill* (home), 7

Friday, Oct. 28 -- at Aliso Niguel*, 7

Thursday, Nov. 3 -- Irvine* (home), 7

Thursday, Nov. 10 -- Laguna Hills* (at Mission Viejo), 7

* denotes league game.