June 8, 2007

New chief for Warriors football

New Westmont head coach Jake Redmond looks to build on
pieces already in place for the upcoming 2007 season

By Diego Abeloos
Sports Editor

When Jake Redmond accepted the head football coaching position at Westmont, he knew he had big shoes to fill.

So, prior to accepting the job, he respectfully gave former Westmont head coach Tony Santos a call with one purpose in mind—a final blessing.

New Westmont head coach Jake Redmond

“It’s hard to replace a person like Tony Santos,” said Redmond, who took over the reigns of the Westmont football program in late April. “He’s done an excellent job here over the last few years, taking the team to CCS (Playoffs) several times. He’s a great guy. It’s one of those things where I spoke to him briefly and he gave me his blessing, so I took the opportunity to come over here. It’s been an awesome experience so far.”

Redmond spent the last year as Santa Teresa’s wide receiver and defensive back coach, and has coaching experience at the high school level dating back to 1998, when he began his career at his alma mater, Piedmont Hills, as the frosh/soph team offensive coordinator.

Redmond, a quarterback during his years at Piedmont Hills, played two seasons of college football at San Jose State University, where he played safety. Since his initial coaching job at Piedmont Hills, Redmond has also held the defensive coordinator position at Piedmont Hills in 2002, and also served as the head coach at Overfelt High for two seasons, 2003-04.

Redmond inherits a Warriors team that is coming off arguably its’ toughest season in recent memory, having finished the 2006 season at 2-7-1 overall, as well as 2-4-1 in Santa Teresa Division play. Still, Redmond said numbers don’t tell the whole tale, noting that the Warriors’ roster is full of talent.

“I’ve walked into a situation where a lot of things are already in place and in front of me. I just have to put all the pieces together,” Redmond said. “…This is already a pretty good team. It’s just putting all the pieces in the right places and making sure that we’re a family over here.”

To that end, Redmond noted the return of several key players on offense next year, including quarterback Cannon Bernarding, who as a sophomore last season, passed for 1,538 yards to go with 9 touchdowns while completing 58 percent of his passes. In terms of the running game, Redmond will see the return of running backs D.J. Gregg and Trevor Vlay, who combined for 829 yards rushing last season in Santos’ pass-heavy offense. In addition, Dominik Arbet, a standout running back/wide receiver on the Westmont frosh/soph team last season, also joins the fray at the varsity level for this coming season.

“We want to be explosive,” Redmond said of the offense. “We want to get the ball downfield as much as possible, put the ball in our playmakers’ hands and let them make plays.”

A former quarterback and defensive back, Redmond admits that he likes to see the ball thrown downfield often, but will temper his preferences for whatever is working during any particular game.

New Westmont Warriors head football coach Jake Redmond makes the rounds during warm-ups at spring practice. Redmond replaced Tony Santos in late April after spending the 2006 season as an assistant coach at Santa Teresa.

“I like the ball in the air, but at the same time, I want an even balance because I believe we can run the ball and pass the ball,” Redmond said. “Having that balance helps us tremendously.”

Still, with a promising quarterback in Bernarding and ample speed on the team’s receiving corps, the offense will not be shy about passing the ball.

“We’re looking for some handoffs, but there’s the passing game also,” said Vlay, who rushed for 324 yards last season. “We’re pretty much built for speed this year.”

However, if there’s one concern for Redmond this season, it’s up front on both offensive and defensive. Redmond said he’s a firm believer that the foundation to a good football team begins with both the offensive and defensive lines, and enlisted the help of good friend and former Piedmont Hills center Erik Ybarra to coach the lines.

“If we don’t have an offensive and defensive line, we won’t win too many games,” Redmond said. “…It’s like we had to go in there and do a lot, but they are buying into what we’re trying to do, a different approach. We’re getting them to believe that it all starts with the line.”

Defensively, Redmond said the Warriors should be solid, noting the return of linebacker Matt Bradley, who led the team with 79 tackles last season, as well as defensive lineman Kevin Fowler, who led the Warriors with 9.5 sacks in 2006.

“Whenever you have two players like that, you have a lot of opportunities to put a lot of pressure on other teams’ offenses,” Redmond said of Bradley and Fowler. “…We want to make things happen and give the offense the opportunity to get on the field a little bit more.”

To that end, Bradley agreed, noting that the majority of the team’s starting defense is returning this coming season, this time with more experience under their collective belts.

“We have nine returning starters from last year, so we should be pretty solid,” Bradley said of the defense. “…I think we’re ready to go.”

Sports Briefs

Cambrian Valley Longhorns Sign Ups
Pop Warner Youth Football and Cheerleading sign-ups are going on NOW! Ages 5-15 years only! For more information, call Julie Gilbert at 408-279-2265 or visit our web site at CVYF.org.


Summer Field Hockey Camp at Leigh High School
Leigh High School will be holding a Field Hockey Camp July 9th through 12th. Boys and girls entering 1st through 9th grade are welcome. The cost is $125 per participant and includes instruction, t-shirt, field hockey stick and ball. Registration forms are available at http://www.leigh.cuhsd.org/News/LEIGH_FIELD_HOCKEY_CAMP.pdf. For more information, contact Karin Mirassou at kmirassou@hotmail.com.


Girls in Motion Summer Conditioning Camp
Girls in Motion Summer Conditioning Camp is a total fitness training program that offers female athletes ages 13-18 a unique opportunity to elevate their performance and improve their self-confidence.

Experts agree that if female athletes want to achieve elite performance, they must insure that comprehensive strength training is covered in their conditioning regimens - Girls in Motion is designed to do just that!

Session Start/End Dates: June 18-July 16; July 23-Aug.17. Cost: $270-375 - Full scholarships and group discounts available. Girls in Motion Conditioning Camp is located at San Jose Community College. For more information, phone 425-9475 or contact Mary Beth Gonzales at marybeth@bayareabootcamp.com or Nicole Leonard at nicole@bayareabootcamp.com.


FitCamp Sign-Ups Going On Now
TotalFit Solutions is registering participants for their Summer FitCamp programs at Evergreen College, Los Gatos and Mt. Pleasant High School.  You can sign up for a 6 week session, or chose 2 or 3 day a week programming.  You can get started today!

FitCamp is a fun filled exercise program that is open to all ages and abilities.  FitCamp meets everyday and is designed to be a total fitness solution for kids and parents alike. Every day has a different workout which not only keeps our participants excited and challenged, it keeps your body moving in a way that guarantees results.

Whether you are looking to better your sports conditioning, lose weight or just get in shape; FitCamp is a great alternative to commercial fitness centers and gyms.

At FitCamp you can always try a class for FREE!  For more information, contact TotalFit  Solutions at (408) 227 – 2216 or on the web at www.totalfitsolutions.com.

TotalFit Solutions offers wellness coaching, personal training, corporate wellness packages and adventure travel for individuals and families.  Contact us today!


Relay For Life at the Campbell Community Center July 14 – 15
The American Cancer Society invites everyone to its Relay For Life of Campbell scheduled for July 14 - 15, 2007. Event hours are from 10am Saturday to 10am Sunday at the Campbell Community Center, 1 W Campbell Ave.

This fun-filled overnight event is designed to bring together those who have been touched by cancer in our community. At the event, we celebrate survivorship and raise money to help the American Cancer Society in its mission to save lives, help those who have been impacted by cancer, and empower individuals to fight back.

There’s still time to form a team, participate as a survivor and/or make a donation towards a luminaria in honor of someone you know who has fought cancer.

For more information, please call 408-688-0087, email laura.clark@cancer.org or visit www.acsevents.org/relay/ca/campbell.


EMQ Children & Family Services Tennis Marathon Begins 24th Season
Registration has begun for the annual EMQ Children & Family Services September, 2007 to May, 2008 tennis season fundraiser. This event allows participating groups to play one match per month beginning in September with the scheduling of time and location set at the convenience of the players.  A $50 fully tax deductible fee is required by all participants for the entire season.  Individuals can play in more than one group at $50 per group fee.  

Registration Deadlines: July 2 for singles, July 15 for doubles. All player levels are welcome and participants are encouraged to form their own group or participants can be placed in a group. Doubles must provide a partner at the time of registration. A schedule and set of rules is sent to each group with the roster and group leader name prior to September, 2007.

An end-of-the-season celebration will be held on Friday, May 16, 2008 at the Almaden Valley Athletic Club (AVAC) with Round Robin Tennis followed by lunch and awards. For more information and to sign up, contact Lois Machado (408-268-1306; loistennis@aol.com) for singles and Jean Knofler (408-269-1492; jbknofler@comcast.net) for doubles. 

Sports Briefs listings are subject to the following fee structure: $25 per month, per publication for the Evergreen and Almaden Times; $10 per month, per publication for the monthly newspapers. Indicate publication placement at the time the listing/payment is submitted. Sports Briefs accepts checks – payable to Times Media, Inc – VISA or MC. To charge your payments call Sonia Pineda at 494-7000 x205. Be sure to reference your team/organization with your payment. Listings appear once payments are received. TMI sponsored events and full-proceed charity fundraisers exempted. Email, fax or mail listing text to: candy@timesmediainc.com 1310 Tully Road, Suite 107, San Jose, CA 95122.