The Cupertino Courier

Sports

It hasn't been easy for Pioneers, but things may be changing

By Mike Barnhart

When talking wins and losses, nothing has been easy for Cupertino High School's football team the past three seasons. Times have been tough, with no more than two wins in a season since 2003.

But, when talking about attitude, now, that's another story.

"We made some real positive strides last year toward building a winning attitude, and already this season's team has done a lot of team bonding, more so than last season," explained head coach Kyle Fitzpatrick, who was a frosh-soph assistant prior to taking the varsity reins from Al Diaz prior to last season.

For the record, the Pioneers posted a win and a tie in their first two games last season, but then struggled to score points while losing their last eight games. Other than a 26-6 victory over Yerba Buena in the season opener, the Pioneers reached 14 points just twice and were held scoreless three times.

In both 2004 and 2005, under Diaz, Cupertino finished 1-5 in the El Camino Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League and 2-8 overall.

With just eight players returning from 2006 and 22 underclassmen on the current 34-man roster, Fitzpatrick has an eye toward the future. "There is a ton of potential," he said.

Leading the handful of holdovers are seniors Reid Sakino (5-foot-10, 220 pounds) and Trevor Criddle (5-foot-9, 205). Sakino, a three-year starter, will play on both lines, while Criddle will play fullback on offense and linebacker on defense. Criddle was an offensive lineman last year, but an influx of bigger linemen allowed him to switch positions.

"Success on the field has a lot to do with the line play," Fitzpatrick noted, "and our average size up front is bigger than it has been. If the linemen stay healthy then we will be OK."

While Sakino and junior center Derek Parada (5-foot-9, 265) are locks for two of the line spots, senior newcomers Scott Marvin (6-foot, 221) and Sadiq Hai (5-foot-8, 231) and juniors Danny Connelly (5-foot-10, 215), Trevor Jeppesen (6-foot-2, 205) and Tyler Stenson (6-foot-4, 284) are competing for the other line positions.

The linemen will be responsible for opening running lanes for Criddle, junior running backs Kyle Moyles and David Nguyen and senior fullback Zahrae Koushawn, as well as providing pass protection for quarterbacks Travis Carter-Kneer and Michael Cortez-Duran.

Carter-Kneer, a senior, was the team's free safety last season, but now is competing for the role of starting signal-caller. Cortez-Duran, a left-handed junior, played for the frosh-soph team last season.

"Both guys have been battling for the position, and they are pretty close," observed Fitzpatrick, who planned to play both quarterbacks in the season opener Aug. 31 against visiting Yerba Buena.

Potential pass-catchers are junior Sean Dickson (5-foot-10, 140) and senior Nate Smith (6-foot-1, 156), wide receivers with varsity experience, and junior tight end Chris Gutierrez.

Defensively, juniors Michael Mardan and Terence Tang are likely starters in their first varsity season, according to Fitzpatrick. Mardan would play linebacker, while Tang would play cornerback.

Smith is expected to handle the punting duties, after he recovers from a concussion suffered in a recent practice session, and junior Sahand Reiisieh will handle the place-kicking chores.

Three players who Fitzpatrick expects to make significant contributions when they regain their eligibility are seniors Ben Foreman (RB/LB) and Corey Quinto (RB/DB) and junior Eric Kim (WR/DB).