San Diego Program Preview: El Camino Wildcats

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>El Camino's coming off a strong 9-4 season that ended in a 28-21 loss to Mission Hills in the third round of D-I Section Playoffs. They return their starting QB and RB from a season ago, along with a talented core of juniors on defense. They open the season with a difficult test against the #5 team in the state- Mission Viejo- before finishing the season with San Diego power programs- Mission Hills and Carlsbad. </em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Schedule</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>8/18 <strong>@ </strong>Mission Viejo&nbsp;</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>8/25 vs. Tafuna</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>9/2 <strong>@ </strong>Rancho Buena Vista</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>9/15 vs. Mt. Carmel&nbsp;</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>9/22 vs. Oceanside&nbsp;</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>9/29 vs. Torrey Pines&nbsp;</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>10/6 <strong>@ </strong>La Costa Canyon&nbsp;</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>10/13 <strong>@ </strong>Poway</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>10/20 vs. Mission Hills&nbsp;</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>10/27 <strong>@ </strong>Carlsbad</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Offense</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior QB <strong>Carson Howard</strong> returns to the offense after throwing for over 1500 yards and 9 TDs as a junior. He's a mobile pocket passer that can extend and improvise with his legs- totaled 10 rushing TDs last season. 2022 leading rusher, [player_tooltip player_id='943015' first='Devin' last='Cerda'], committed to Cal Poly in June. He's a powerful downhill back with the contact balance to run through defenders. Senior WR <strong>Lucas Uzcategui </strong>just picked up his first offer from Adams St. in May- he's a sure-handed receiver that excels in the short-intermediate area. Seniors <strong>Zeke</strong> <strong>Vallez</strong>, <strong>Mikey</strong> <strong>Tinoisamoa</strong>, and <strong>Apisaloma</strong> <strong>Tinoisamoa</strong> are OL/DL to watch on both sides of the trenches. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/devin_cerda5/status/1673824899574673409?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/devin_cerda5/status/1673824899574673409?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Defense</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Along with the two-way OL/DL (Vallez and the Tinoisamoa brothers) is senior DE <strong>Quintin Johnson </strong>who posted 47 tackles and 12 TFLs as a junior. The 6'4"/220 DE just picked up his first offer from Adams St. in May. Junior DE Alii Letuli is another DE prospect to keep an eye on this fall. Junior DB [player_tooltip player_id='723870' first='Caleb' last='Reese'] has drawn interest from several D-I programs for his athleticism and coverage skills. He can press the LOS as a man defender, keep pace with WRs when turning and running, and time his breaks to produce PBUs or INTs. Junior LB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='689931' first='Jake' last='Williams']</strong> is a physical tackler in the run game that posted 46 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and TFLs as a sophomore. Two-way ATH <strong>Leonidas Bell</strong> is another to junior to watch at LB. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/QuintinJ51/status/1664117768759947264?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/QuintinJ51/status/1664117768759947264?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed -->