TVL Football Preview: Escalon growing up as it looks to defend yet another section crown
Stanislaus District football teams went all out last season. There were seven league champions, 16 teams earning playoff spots, three section champions, two runners up and one NorCal Champion that all came from this area. With all that success, it might be hard to top the success we saw last year. But the beauty of sports is that every team is going to try.
The Bee will preview each league highlighting last season’s league winner along with notes on what to expect from teams this season.
Similar to the Valley Oak League, the Trans-Valley League had two teams match up for a Sac-Joaquin Section banner. Escalon and Hilmar faced off in the Division V title game, which Escalon won 20-13. Along with Escalon and its championship opponent, Ripon made the playoffs in Division V and Livingston and Hughson earned first-round byes in the Division VI playoffs.
2021 TVL Standings
Team (Overall record, League record)
Escalon (12-2, 6-0)
Ripon (8-5, 4-2)
Hilmar (11-3, 4-2)
Livingston (7-5, 3-3)
Hughson (7-4, 3-3)
Modesto Christian (1-9, 1-5)
Riverbank (0-9, 0-6)
The Cougars are looking to build. Not build a program, but build off the success they had last season.
Escalon went undefeated in the Trans-Valley League, one of the best small-school leagues in California, and won the Sac-Joaquin Section Division V championship over Hilmar. While most of the playoff teams were led by juniors and seniors, Escalon was different, starting four sophomores and one freshman, who all made plays when the Cougars needed them.
“Last year was a very pleasant surprise,” coach Andrew Beam said. “Having those five underclassmen on that team last year, we were surprised with their development after losing so many guys from the previous two years.”
Escalon returns eight players on offense and seven on defense from last year’s championship squad that looks to three-peat as section champions.
The Cougars open the season on the road playing Damonte Ranch in Reno, which advanced to the NIAA 5A Northern League regional semifinals.
“We were struggling to find some teams to play (us) and Damonte Ranch reached out,” Beam said. “This is a large school that’s very successful and if we can make it a fun road trip and go play out of state, I’m all about trying new things and doing new things for our kids.”
Escalon also plays Buchanan-Clovis, a top-30 team in the state at the end of last year; Windsor, the North Coast Section Division III champion and Northern California runner-up; and Kimball, which averaged nearly 50 points a game last season before entering TVL play.
“It’s gonna be a gauntlet for our guys, and it’s gonna be a heck of a test,” Beam said.
TVL Notes
Ripon replaces key players
Ripon graduated nearly all of its main contributors after finishing second in the league last year, but coach Chris Musseman is embracing the fact that his team is learning. Ripon has two returning starters on offense and two on defense. One returner plays both ways, so it has just three total returning starters. But all of the new players are coming together quickly.
“I like the fact that they’re coming together as a team,” Musseman said. “The chemistry is pretty good with them, it’s just the football stuff that’s coming along. We got a lot of work to do.”
One returner, Aiden Krupa, has taken more of a leadership role on offense and defense in preseason practices. He’ll change positions on defense, moving from outside linebacker to inside linebacker, and will continue his role as fullback on offense. He will most likely see his playing time expand after playing in just five games last season, producing 47 total yards and one touchdown on offense and seven tackles on defense. Luis Vargas will also be back and has had a good offseason.
“They’re gonna have to get used to the speed of the game and the strength of some of their opponents,” Musseman said of younger players’ adjustments. “Practice has really been about fundamentals and not so much about scheme. We’re not super fancy, scheme-wise, but we’re trying to get good at what we do.”
Hilmar celebrates 100 years
Hudson Azevedo was supposed to be the Yellowjackets’ starting quarterback last season, but a torn ACL in the second padded practice of the season forced him to sit out his junior year. This year, coach Frank Marques says Azevedo is back as Hilmar looks to return to the Sac-Joaquin Section championship.
He’ll have a big target to throw to in returning receiver Derek Taylor, who grew from 6-foot-3 last year to “a legit 6-foot-5” and has put on 20 pounds of muscle, according to Marques. He has received a scholarship offer from the University of Massachusetts and is receiving interest from others.
This season is special for the Hilmar football program as it celebrates 100 years. Every era of the school’s football history will be honored at home games throughout the season.
“It’s gonna be great seeing all the history of Hilmar football,” Marques said. “It’s one of those things that just runs through your veins and so I’m super excited to see all the old players coming back and alumni and coaches coming back.”
Modesto Christian’s unique prospect
Coach Jerry Grimshaw is very high on his team’s receivers. The Crusaders have athletes on the outside in captain Jeremiah Bernard and transfer Eli’Jah Cook, who will be available after sitting out due to transfer rules, and in the slot is 6-foot-4 senior Elmo Wartson. With all of the athletes for new quarterback Raymond Corral Jr. to throw to, Modesto Christian’s best prospect is on the line.
Manasse Itete is a 6-foot-6, 250-pound offensive and defensive lineman who has burst onto the recruiting scene this summer at college camps. Despite playing in just two games last year and not receiving any stars on national recruiting sites, Itete has picked up scholarship offers from UCLA, USC, Cal Berkeley, Oregon State and Vanderbilt.
“He’s new to the scene, but then these coaches saw him at the camps and were impressed,” Grimshaw said. “I’m sure the people in our league are like, ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ but we’re all gonna know Mana. ... I have no doubt good things are in store for him.”
Itete is entering his junior season, and though he is still a raw prospect, the future is bright for the lineman from the Congo, who picked up the sport just last season.
“It’s fun ... what I can tell you that he’s gonna be a handful,” Grimshaw said.
This story was originally published August 10, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
