Honkers digging for gold

Heading into the locker room following last year's 48-14 loss to Vanden in the first round of the Sac-Joaquin Section Division III playoffs, Yuba City High coach John Ithurburn had to know in the back of his mind that his team's best was yet to come.

They posted the school's first winning season in nearly a decade and with the return of almost every key player from last year's squad, the Honkers enter 2010 as a legitimate power in a highly-competitive Tri-County Conference.

And while a lengthy run in the playoffs is what the team is striving for, for Ithurburn, the goal is to run a program with class.

"Some people think it's all about winning, but I don't rate the program on wins and losses," the fourth-year coach said. "Everyone wants to win, but we want to do it the right way."

It all starts on offense, where the Honkers are loaded with weapons all over the field.

Leading the way is running back Taylor Rowe, who gashed opposing defenses for 1,546 yards and 14 touchdowns as a junior last season. The reigning Appeal-Democrat offensive MVP also added some muscle to his slender frame during the offseason and is looking to be the lynch-pin in Ithurburn's option running attack once again.

But he's not alone.

Right behind Rowe is senior speedburner Raul Lozano, who ran his way around and through defenses for 799 yards and seven scores, while splitting time at quarterback and half back.

Also returning is senior signal caller David Schroeder, who will have a pair of weapons on the outside with Bernell Barmore and Max Flores at wide receivers.

Barmore, a big-play wideout, posted team-highs with 626 yards receiving and six touchdowns last season, while averaging a monster 23 yards per catch and 10 yards per carry.

All of that firepower gives the coach a bit of a problem.

"We've got a bunch of thoroughbreds that can run," Ithurburn said. "Right now, we don't have enough footballs to go around."

The offensive line looks to be strong as well with junior Davis Harper (5-11, 250) at center, seniors Kyle Sanchez (5-9, 225) and Brett Gillming (5-10, 230) at guards and junior Christian Diaz (6-5, 275) and senior Andrew Mallen (6-2, 240) at tackles. Senior Sanjit Toor (5-11, 210) will also see time along the offensive front.

"You win with the kids," Ithurburn said. "If you have better kids than someone else, you're more likely to beat them."

Senior captain Josh Wallace gives the Honkers another power runner in the backfield and will start at inside linebacker along with Hank Kirby, while Josh Slaughter, Victoy Ly, Indy Kalkat, Julian Saavedra and Ryan Coxe will man the trenches along the defensive line.

Frank Franco will play all over the defense, from nose guard to linebacker, and Flores, Barmore and Lozano make up a secondary that may be second to none in the Mid-Valley.

"The defense is a work in progress. We still have to solidify some spots, but that's what the preseason is for," Ithurburn said. "We'll know what we got by the second or third week, but we have great team speed, so I think we'll be good on that side of the ball."

Ithurburn added that his defense is likely to change week by week, depending on what the opposition is trying to do.

"It all depends on what we see. We play some teams that want to pound it and some teams that want to spread it out," the coach said. "We see the spread a lot and you've got to change your defense and be smart."

That said, Ithurburn knows that playing the game of football is more than just wins and losses. It's about building character and turning boys into men.

"I have different expectations than people think. I want to run a classy program and teach them about football and life," he said. "It's like the way my dad raised me. He put you out there and you had to figure it out yourself. And you better figure it out or you're not going to make it."

"Failure is a part of life," Ithurburn continued. "But it's what you do with it that's important."