Escalon’s Loureiro directing Mountain Misery football camp

Mark Loureiro is having a miserable week – if you consider riding around a football facility in a plush golf cart misery.

The Escalon coach has doubled as director for the sixth annual Mountain Misery football camp at Central Catholic, which finishes Saturday with team scrimmages.

Loureiro was asked by Raiders coach, and longtime friend, Roger Canepa to coordinate three days of practices and scrimmages between Central Catholic and camp companions Sonora, Calaveras and Ripon Christian.

Loureiro was happy to volunteer his time.

For starters, it has offered a slight reprieve from the searing temperatures. Loureiro has been given full use of Central Catholic’s golf cart, which came equipped with padded seats and a cooler full of refreshments. He’s also used the time to study the diverse offenses in camp. For instance, Sonora runs a triple-option, while Ripon Christian fancies multiple receiver sets. He has kept a clipboard close, jotting down notes like a kid in class.

“When you think you know everything,” Loureiro said, “then maybe it’s time for you to get out of the game. I’m always learning new stuff. I love being a student. I don’t know everything there is to know about football.”

He does know this: Being a camp director hasn’t been as easy as he makes it look. Loureiro has had to fight the urge to coach up kids that aren’t his own.

“I just want to coach,” he growled, pacing near the 50-yard line. “I’m having a hard time not saying stuff.”

Oh, the misery.

If it ain’t broke … – Don’t be fooled by Canepa’s moments of rage. Central Catholic is on track for its season opener against Atwater on Sept. 4.

Quarterback Hunter Petlansky’s throws whistled about the field, finding the hands of his receivers. Running back Justin Rice showed no ill-effects from offseason knee surgery. And linebacker/fullback Kekupa’a Freehauf cut an intimidating presence – in pads and out.

“Everything’s going good so far. We haven’t lost a game and we haven’t won a game. That’s what I tell people: Games, they’re not lost in the summer,” Canepa said. “It’s just you need to get to where you need to be, and right now we’re right where we have been the last three or four years. We’re doing the same things we’ve done and hopefully they work out like they did last year.”

Byrd watch in Calaveras – With experience in its corner, Calaveras will look to start a new streak this fall.

The Redskins return eight starters on both offense and defense from a team that missed the postseason by one game. Calaveras was beaten by Amador on the final day of Mother Lode League play, snapping a string of 17 consecutive playoff appearances. It was the second-longest streak in the Sac-Joaquin Section, trailing only Grant of Sacramento.

Head coach Jason Weatherby won’t have the luxury of Connor Hamilton, a plow of a running back who graduated in the spring. Hamilton set the tone for the Calaveras offense, rushing for 1,440 yards and 21 touchdowns. Instead, Weatherby expects quarterback Dylan Byrd (737 yards, three touchdowns, eight interceptions) to pick up the slack in his second season in the offense.

Byrd appeared up to task Wednesday against Central Catholic, the three-time CIF State champion, dialing up a 45-yard touchdown pass on the first play of their scrimmage.

Kamps drawing interest – Ripon Christian sack master Will Kamps is drawing interest from Sacramento State, Fresno State and Azusa Pacific.

Kamps has 36 1/2 sacks the last two seasons, 201/2 coming in 13 games during his sophomore campaign in 2013. In addition to 16 sacks in 11 games last year, he also had 88 tackles, 24 for of which went for a loss, four forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries while playing every position on the defensive line.

Primarily a defensive end, head coach Trey Ozenbaugh believes the 6-foot-1, 220-pound Kamps projects as a linebacker at the next level.

While Kamps will let the recruitment process play itself out, Ozenbaugh hopes the reigning Southern League Defensive Player of the Year chooses a school that will give him a chance to see the field right away.

On the mend – While one Petlansky appeared in midseason form, another might not be too far behind.

Hunter’s younger brother, 6-foot-1 junior wide receiver Cole Petlansky, jokingly said he’ll be back for the Raiders’ Week 2 rivalry game against St. Mary’s on Sept. 11. That might be wishful thinking, since the coaching staff has been talking about a Week 8 return.

Cole shredded the ACL in one of his knees at an Oregon State camp after getting tangled up with a defensive back. He wore a heavy brace while watching the action from the sideline at David Patton Field.

In Travis they trust – Senior Travis Zuidervaart will take the reins of the Ripon Christian offense, filling the void left by all-Southern League gunslinger Billy Marr, now a redshirt freshman at Western State Colorado.

Marr gave the Knights the ability to stretch the field with his big arm. He was a pure pocket passer who rarely tucked the ball.

Zuidervaart may remind some fans of Danny Vos, Marr’s predecessor. Vos was a dual-threat quarterback adept at creating with his feet and finishing with his arm.

Zuidervaart, a former wide receiver, has some of those qualities. He completed several passes against Sonora on Wednesday while rolling out to his left and right.

“He’s a shifty guy who worked really hard in the weight room, and obviously had a great mentor in Billy Marr last year,” Ozenbaugh said. “So we have high expectations for Travis.”

Misery belongs to Wildcats – The phrase “Mountain Misery” was originally bestowed upon the defensive unit for the 1994 Sonora Wildcats by Bee columnist Jeff Jardine.

The Wildcats coaching staff liked it so much they adopted it for their banner 1995 season. Sonora went 13-0 and defeated three-time defending champion Del Oro handily in the Division II final, the only football section final in school history.

The defense gave up only three touchdowns in league and had T-shirts made that read “Mountain Misery.” The defensive coordinator of that group: Canepa. His star linebacker: Billy Hylla, defensive coordinator and athletic director at Central Catholic.

“When the starters were in on defense, it was outrageous how good we were,” Canepa told The Union Democrat.

This story was originally published July 17, 2015 at 5:37 PM with the headline "Escalon’s Loureiro directing Mountain Misery football camp."