September 26 Players of the Week:

WHAT A GAME! Tehachapi, defending Div III Valley Champions, hung in with the Burros for three quarters, finally gaining the advantage on a long drive in the 4th quarter. Scoring the go-ahead TD with only 32 seconds remaining, Tehachapi only had to kick the ball into the end zone on the ensuing kickoff and let their tough defense do the rest in order to seal the come-from-behind victory at 21-17.

"Hey Stephen!" called Coach Gracey as Stephen Harlow retreated into the end zone to take the kick. "Big time players make big tiime plays!" Stephen then proved that he is a big time player. Taking the kick on the run at his own two yard line, Harlow headed left, then veered right. Taking advantage of a great blocking wall (including a crushing block thrown by Stephen Alva), Harlow sailed past the Tehachapi defenders and into the end zone 98 yards away. Burros 23, Tehachapi 21.

The excitement wasn't over yet, though. After Kyle Smith nailed his 4th touchback out of 5 kickoffs in the game (thus denying Tehachapi the chance of duplicating Harlow's feat), Tehachapi's QB put up a long pass into the teeth of a prevent defense. Watching game film, it's apparent that either Harlow or QB-turned-DB Derrick Dison could have made the pick, but it was Stephen who came away with the game-sealing interception.

Overall Player of the Game: Stephen Harlow, #10

Stephen led the team in reception yards and had a receiving TD, had a defensive pick, punted for a 42 yard average, and had a couple of key pass deflections from his defensive spot. Oh yes: He also had what Coach Gracey termed, "The biggest clutch kick-off return I've ever seen."

Offensive Player of the Week: Eddie Thomas, # 3

Eddie had 50+ yards on the ground and 1 TD. If not for a couple of costly penalties, he would have had over 100 yards and 2 TDs. A hard runner with quick moves, Eddie is waiting to break one loose every time he touches the ball. As Coach Gracey put it, "Eddie is a great player who has toiled in obscurity so far this year." The way he runs, that obscurity thing won't last long, and opponents who don't notice him on the game films will have a rude awakening.

Defensive Player of the Week: Blaine Graham, #35

In the words of Coach Gracey, "Really, this award could have gone to any of the three linebackers playing tonight. They all did their jobs well. We have three great linebackers; a really solid linebacker corps. Blaine got the award tonight because he played a solid game." It appears Coach has forgiven Blaine for that big hit that cost a personal foul late in the game (but what a hit it was!) There's not much better than a bone-crushing linebacker.

Special Teams Player of the Week: Kyle Smith, #12

Kyle was perfect on his field goal and PAT attempts tonight, providing 5 of the team's 23 total points. Perhaps as important, Kyle put 4 of his 5 kick-offs into the end zone, negating any chance for Tehachapi to bust a long return. On the kick that did not reach the goal line, Coach Gracey remarked, "It was so high, Tehachapi was only able to run it out to about their own 22 before their return guy was swarmed." A long leg like Kyle's is a valuable weapon, offensively and defensively.

Big Hit/Block of the Week: Stephen Alva, #22

While there were a ton of big hits and blocks all game long, none was more important (or more evident) than Stephen Alva's when he blew up the defender on Stephen Harlow's kickoff return for the winning TD. There was only one Tehachapi player who had a good shot at the fleet-footed Harlow as he cut back across the field, and Stephen Alva destroyed him. Ouch!

Scrap Metal Player of the Week:
The Entire Scrap Metal team

"Every one of our scrap metal players worked hard for us this past week. Without their dedication, we wouldn't have been prepared to keep coming back against this tough Tehachapi team. It's our scrap metal players who keep us honest in practice" stated Coach Gracey as he gave praise to all of his Scrap Metal players this week.

September 19 Players of the Week:

What a great game, and a great way to start the season. This is the Burros' first 2-0 start since 2003, which seems appropriate. There are a lot of young firebrands on this team, and you can see in their eyes that they're having fun. They throw themselves into the game with reckless abandon, expecting to make something big happen. Apple Valley was, man for man, bigger than the Burros, but the Burros showed skill and stamina beat size in this particular match-up. From a 3rd quarter score of 27-26, the Burros outscored their opponent 21-6 in the final quarter to win 48-32.

Offensive Player of the Week: Stephen Harlow, #10

Although selected Offensive player of the Week, Stephen Harlow shows his skills at "blocking" downfield. The next photo in the set shows him with his hands in the air,showing the line judge, "no harm, no foul"

Stephen sets a high standard for himself, whether he's playing offense or defense. Against Apple Valley, he had 4 receptions for 215 yards and 3 touchdowns - on a night when five different Burros crossed the goal line.

Defensive Player of the Week: Kyle Smith, #12

Kyle had 16 (yes 16) tackles from his safety position, "hitting everybody that moved" according to Coach Gracey. Kyle is more to this team than a very accurate PAT/FG kicker; he's anxious to get the ball back into the hands of his quarterback. It's pretty clear that he likes being where the action is.

Special Teams Player of the Week: Ron Douglas, #7

As can be seen by the bone-crunching hit laid on Apple Valley's punter, Ron knows how to make big hits. In addition to blocking this punt, Coach reports that Ron was "in on every tackle made by the kickoff team tonight." Considering the number of kickoffs on a night your offense scores 48 points, that's a lot of tackles to be in on!

Offensive Lineman of the Week: # 74, JJ Flack

Watching the game, it would have been impossible to tell that this was JJ's first-ever start at the center position. "He had a perfect game," stated Coach Gracey. "He had their best defensive lineman right on top of his, and he handled him all night long without a misstep." Considering how challanging the shotgun snap is for a high school player to begin with, to have no missnaps under those conditions is remarkable. Great game, JJ!

Big Hit/Block of the Week: Angel Lieva, #21

Coach Gracey wanted the team to know that there were "so many big hits going on, it was hard to choose the biggest one." Several players nominated the Apple Valley player for the lick he laid on his own man in the 3rd quarter. Coach added, "Six guys could have had this, but Angel had several big hits."

Scrap Metal Player of the Week: Daril Manns, #7

Daril greatly impressed the coaches on the run-up to the Apple Valley game. In addition to taking his reps on defense, he was invaluable playing the tailback position on the scout team. "When most guys are taking a blow between reps, Daril came rightover from the defense to run offensive tailback for us." That's the kind of team dedication that pays off for everyone.

September 13 Players of the Week:

What an exciting week of football! After a dominating performance from the Junior Varsity that featured Tony Sween completing four touchdown passes and a defense that allowed only one score on the way to a 37-6 blowout, the Burros Varsity took the field and made an attitude statement during their first win of the year. Although plagued by holding penalties, the offensive line gave a yeoman's performance by staying focused and getting the job done - resulting in the Burros outscoring the Paraclete Knights 26-20. The defense played with aggression the entire night, with very few lapses in execution.

Offensive Player of the Week: Derrick Dison

Passing for 198 yards and two touchdowns, and adding another 104 yards and two touchdowns running the ball, Derrick had the defense reacting all night long. An overall dominant performance.

Defensive Player of the Week: Ethan Greene

In on a total of 15 tackles, Ethan Greene (#54) seemed to be everywhere the football was Saturday night. This is a young man who enjoys knocking people down, and showed a special sense on where the ball was going during the Paraclete game.

Special Teams Player of the Week: Stephen Harlow

As noted last week, Stephen has to be dragged off of the field. In addition to his work as a receiver, Stephen punts and returns punts and kickoffs. Saturday night, Stephen averaged over 37 yards per punt, with a long of 73 yards. He returned two punts and a kickoff for a total of 47 yards, to go along with his 51 receiving yards. Stephen also holds for kicker Kyle Smith.

Offensive Lineman of the Week: # 58, David Benson

When naming David Benson, #58, as his Offensive Lineman of the Week, Coach Gracey had difficulty finding enough superlatives to describe his character and his play. "David did a tremendous job for us all night long. He was matched up against one of the best defensive linemen we're going to face all season, and even on a sprained ankle he didn't give an inch. He was an absolute monster on the line tonight. When he realized that we needed him to perform, he sucked up the pain and played like a man." It was this kind of tenacity in the face of adversity that lifted the offense during the third quarter when questionable penalties had the OLine on its heels. Players like David are what championships are made of.

Big Hit/Block of the Week: Daril Manns

In addition to hauling in four passes for 121 yards and the 57 yard TD that salted away the game, Daril devastated Paraclete's #35 with a downfield block on a carry by Derrick Dison (see the lead blocking exhibited by Daril at the top of today's "Players" section). Daril is a big man who makes big hits on both sides of the line. No doubt #35 woke up Sunday wondering what hit him so hard.

Scrap Iron Player of the Week: Cory Phillips

When talking about this Scrap Iron player, Coach Gracey speaks with appreciation. "This is one of those young men who goes out during practice and gives it his all every day. Cory helped us get ready for this win, and proved he was ready to take his reps. He got into the game because he earned it during the week"

September 7 Players of the Week:

On a personal note, I have to say that it has been several years since I have seen so many kids just enjoying physical contact with the opposing team - not just by the defense, but the offense, too. Linemen making pancake blocks, backs running through defense backs, wide receivers taking on tacklers. It was so much fun to see players pop up with grins on their faces. Whether we end up with a winning record or not remains to be seen, but I am excited by what I've seen so far. That said:

Offensive Player of the Week: Stephen Harlow

This kid has hands like hooks. When he tells the coach, "Throw me the ball; I'll make the catch", he's not bragging - that's the kind of determination and focus he possesses.

When he's not dominating defenders on pass patterns, Stephen's trying to sneak into the game on the defensive side of the ball.

Defensive Player of the Week: Dominic Sween

You would think that Eastside's running backs would have gotten tired of being knocked down by Dom on Friday, and would have asked for more sweeps. Dominic owned the middle of the field, and made sure Eastside's offense knew it.