Top-ranked Bishop Diego begins the meat of it pre-league schedule Friday with a CIF-SS Northwest Division showdown against eighth-ranked La Salle of Pasadena at La Playa Stadium.
Cardinals’ coach Tom Crawford said he intentionally made the schedule challenging for his team to prepare for Tri-Valley League play.
Following La Salle, Bishop plays Division 4 team Inglewood and San Diego Section power Santa Fe Christian.
“All the opponents ahead are solid squads with good athletes and each will present different challenges for us,” said Crawford.
In other action Friday, Carpinteria plays its home opener against Nipomo and Santa Barbara travels to Atascadero.
No. 8 LaSalle (1-1) at No. 1 Bishop Diego (2-0), at SBCC, 7:30 — “We expect them to be fast across the board with a couple of exceptional athletes in their running back and wide receiver,” Bishop coach Tom Crawford said of the LaSalle. Jared Akins, a 6-2 wide receiver, has received offers from Pac-12 schools. La Salle shut out Pasadena, 28-0, last week. “Obviously, La Salle is big in the sense they are in our division and are favored to win their league,” Crawford noted. “It will be a good barometer of where we are.” Bishop got a boost this week when the CIF-SS, after a review of video, rescinded the ejection of running back Aidan Williams from last week’s win over Santa Ynez. The pick: Bishop Diego.
Santa Barbara (1-1) at Atascadero (2-0) 7 p.m. — The Dons bounced back nicely after getting routed in their season opener. “It was much needed,” coach Doug Caines said of the 42-6 win over Beverly Hills. “We wanted to execute at a high level and we did that, We really only played the main guys the first half and we were able to perform well. We still have a lot of work to do but it was important to establish that we could win, This group needs to know that they can actually do that, especially after a tough loss.” The Dons face a physical Atascadero team that favors to run the ball. “It will be a hostile environment; we will need to play all three phases well and have no stupid mistakes. We like our chances if we do that,” said Caines. The pick: Santa Barbara
Nipomo (1-1) at No. 4 Carpinteria (2-0), 7:30 p.m. — The Warriors play their first home game after two wins on the road. The offense has developed into a high-octane attack with speedster Bryson Frazer. He’s dangerous as a receiver and punt returner. Quarterback Ian Craddock has been solid. Nipomo is coming off a 42-6 loss against Arroyo Grande. The Titans have a strong passing attack behind quarterback Matt Albright, who’s completed 56 percent of his passes. The Pick: Carpinteria.
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