A battle to stay perfect

The cell phone rang before Pete Anderson could turn his attention to the scouting reports in his hands.

The calls are coming in for the first-year Sage Hill School coach. Success is bringing attention to the school’s football program.

Off to a 4-0 start. Anderson has seen it before, been a part of it. Two years ago, back then as an assistant, a conditioning coaching role he calls it now, the Lightning struck fast.

Eight games, eight wins.

Behind that hot start a kid named Jamie McGee and a couple of other key contributors. He doesn’t know all their names, having left Sage Hill for a year, but not the teaching ranks, just coaching.

Before returning in April and taking over for Tom Monarch, the school’s first coach, Anderson understands why the team is on the fast track. Don’t read too much into the coaching change. It’s sort of like the FasTrak device on the tolls on the 73 Freeway, where it reads who has paid their dues.

Anderson looks for those players on a roster, counting 14 names. Fourteen out of a possible 25 varsity players were a part of the 2005 team that finished 9-2 and claimed the school its first playoff victory in the varsity program’s six-year history.

“Now that’s the reason. We were a young program, a lot of kids seeing a lot of time,” Anderson said. “They were sophomores. Now they’re seniors and ready. They remember that team very well.”

Bettering that season is on those players’ minds, the coaching staff, too. They’ll get a shot to improve on it tonight when Sage Hill, ranked No. 8 in the CIF Southern Section Northeast Division, plays host to another undefeated team in Bakersfield Christian (4-0) at 7. It will be a battle of two high-scoring teams. Sage Hill averages 40.2 points per game. Bakersfield Christian is right there at 39.7. Whose defense will survive?

The Eagles, ranked No. 1 in the Central Section’s Division V, haven’t been tested so far. Only once has a team scored in double digits, the others zero, seven and six points. The same can almost be said of the Lightning, with only two teams hitting double figures. What will give?

McGee is a gunslinger for Sage Hill. The senior quarterback has thrown for 1,247 yards and 17 touchdowns. The yards are 403 shy of passing last year’s total. The touchdown mark, he’s already surpassed it by one and the Academy League has yet to start.

“I kind of owe a lot of it to our quarterback coach [Brad Gossen] and we also have one of the best receiving groups,” said McGee, whose top receivers are Nick Witte and Michael Higgins, who have combined for 48 catches for 863 yards and eight touchdowns. “If we can play to our potential, I think we can beat them.”

This will be the four-year varsity player’s biggest challenge. The Eagles use a lot of man coverage, stick eight in the box and send multiple players to chase the quarterback. Anderson said the Lightning will be ready.

“If you’re sending a lot of guys, you’re taking chances,” he said. “We feel pretty confident and we know how to pick up that extra pressure.”

When Sage Hill isn’t protecting, it will try to harass Bakersfield Christian’s balanced offense. The Eagles are young at quarterback with junior Jake Peterson, who’s not posting McGee-jaw dropping-type stats. He’s completing 53% of his passes, below McGee’s 72% ratio.

The workhorse so far for the Eagles is running back Christian Taylor. A nine yards per carry, almost a first down every time, is something you can’t beat. Sage Hill running back Max Torres is close to six.

Still, Anderson knows what drives the Eagles.

“Their defense is what keeps them in the game,” said Anderson before cutting the conversation to focus on what’s in his hands.

Those scouting reports show a lot, three defenders with three or more sacks, the list goes on and on.

DAVID CARRILLO PEÑALOZA may be reached at (714) 966-4612 or at david.carrillo@latimes.com.