Champagnat Catholic Is A True Success Story

Very few schools have burst onto the state football scene and have stayed there like Champagnat Catholic. Located in the City of Hialeah – a large community of Latins and baseball players – this was never intended to be a football factory. <img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-92444" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/01/OntheSideline-Logo-1-300x188.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="188" />The parents of current owner<strong> Isabel Alonso </strong>opened the school as a gateway to higher education within the largely Hispanic Miami-Dade and Hialeah communities.<strong> Mr. &amp; Mrs. Renaldo Alonso</strong> would never have imagined what has transpired for a football program that has been to the state title game seven times in the over a decade it has been around. Because of Alonso and others, Champagnat Catholic has remained what it was intended to be – a special facility for learning, but along the way, balance in the athletic arena was added. This amazing run on the football field, which was started by<strong> Mike Tunsil </strong>and a tremendous coaching staff,<strong> Dennis Marroquin </strong>and an equally-impressive group of assistant coaches – and current head coach<strong> Hector Clavijo, </strong>who has done an outstanding job – along with his very impressive staff, is something that movies are made from.. Where do you begin with someone who lost his best friend and defensive guru, his brother, Danny, to a tragic automobile accident. Covid, quarantine and faced with not being able to defend a state championship – a season in which was dedicated to<strong> Coach Danny Clavijo’s </strong>honor memory. Add to that, having to find practice space (many parks were closed) and the school has no defined football field, and the weightroom - is - well, that’s an entirely different story. <strong>GETTING EVERYONE’S ATTENTION</strong> With an impressive 41-27 win against Jacksonville University Christian in Tallahassee, the Lions cemented a place in history – that is still going! With four state titles in hand, many want to know what’s next. The answer is simple. Right now, this is a team loaded with underclassmen. If the veterans can lift this program up in 2021, and the coaching staff remains, this could be a dynasty like no other. Talent as far ahead as 2025 are in the building! The thing that will keep this train rolling into the future is a Class of 2022 group that includes prospects such as<strong> Jaden Belus</strong> (WR/DB), <strong>Xavier Ferguson</strong> (DL), <strong>Ryan Sutton </strong>(OLB/TE), <strong>Jaylin Terzado</strong> (WR), <strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/shayon-walton/">[player_tooltip player_id="50205" first="Shayon" last="Walton"]</a></strong> (WR) and the 2A state championship game standout receiver Benson Prosper. The place where this program has to be special for years to come is the underclassmen – starting with the impressive Class of 2023 sophomore class. Standouts such as<strong> Anthony McNeal</strong> (DT), <strong>Jaquntin Ford</strong> (OLB), <strong>Kelvin Blount</strong> (WR), <strong>Jose Aguirre</strong> (DL), <strong>Cormurry Butts </strong>(RB), <strong>Bryce Early</strong> (DE), <strong>Wilmer Mejia</strong> (DE) and outside linebacker Jar<strong>rod Young.</strong> While they were just players this past season, the Lions will certainly be looking for a lot of production from the Class of 2024. These current freshmen class begins with already two-year varsity starter <strong>Matthew Rubio</strong>, who has been a key for the back-to-back state titles. Others include <strong>Knowledge Barnett</strong> (LB), <strong>Berlin Campfort</strong> (CB), <strong>Jabari Dukes</strong> (DT), <strong>Ryan Jean-Felix</strong> (DE), <strong>Corey Gibson </strong>(S), <strong>Leroy James</strong> (S), <strong>Jordan Jones</strong> (RB), <strong>Kimothy Massie Jr</strong>. (WR), <strong>Damion Perez</strong> (CB), <strong>Donovan Philord</strong> (CB) and outside linebacker <strong>Johnathon Pierre</strong>. Then, you have the future of this offense – in 8^th grader <strong>Ennio Yapoor</strong>. This is one of those emerging talents who was  big part of this past season’s state title – and certainly holds the keys to the future. The facilities may not be among the best – and most up-to-date, but this is a school that has relied on faith, education and family to make some very big things happen in Hialeah. <strong><em>You Can Contact Larry Blustein with prospect or team information at: <a href="mailto:Foridakids1@aol.com">Foridakids1@aol.com</a>. We are also on Social Media on @PrepRedzonefl.</em></strong> &nbsp;