Mt. Eden’s coach is impressed with his players’ resolve
Paul Perenon had coached 44 consecutive football seasons, but he had doubts about No. 45.
“Honestly, I thought we were done for sure,” said the Mt. EdenHayward head coach.
State coronavirus guidelines delayed the start of practice until late February, but most teams were able to work out in small groups since June. That wasn’t the case in Hayward, according to Perenon, because of stricter precautions mandated by the Hayward Unified School District.
That’s what made Saturday’s 4832 openingnight win at Newark Memorial so remarkable, he said. In his 12th year at Mt. Eden after 25 as head coach at Bishop O’DowdOakland (he assisted before that), Perenon said he hadn’t seen all 53 players (31 on varsity) together for 55 weeks until they all gathered March 3.
“We had not played a game for 505 days,” Perenon said. “Yet not one of the kids tapped their helmets Saturday to come out. To line up under those circumstances, and score 48 points, and win is one of the biggest highlights of my high school coaching career for sure.
“We didn’t have to have a season. But these 50some kids wanted this. They told our administration how important the game of football is to them. Their passion and commitment to the game and each other was proof that if you want something bad enough, you’ll be rewarded.”
One of the standouts was starting senior quarterback Alejandro Villanueva, who accounted for 343 yards and four touchdowns and converted six of seven PATs. He completed 17 of 21 passes for 215 yards and rushed 20 times for 128 yards and three touchdowns.
“This kid is totally under the radar,” Perenon said. “He’s as good as any of those great quarterbacks I had at O’Dowd. He’s coachable, loves to play, loves to lead and he can really run.”
Other quick football takes/ notes from last week:
⏩ Watch out for HeritageBrentwood. The Patriots are one of five new teams in The Chronicle Top 25 rankings after a 316 Bay Valley Athletic League win over Deer ValleyAntioch. They have outscored two foes by a count of 7714. Sophomore Devon Rivers, son of former NFL running back Ron Rivers and younger brother of Fresno State back Ronnie Rivers, has 340 rushing yards and five touchdowns.
The Patriots will be tested Friday when they host No. 3 Pittsburg.
⏩ New No. 20 VintageNapa (20) has lived up to its nickname. The Crushers have averaged nearly 500 yards of offense per game, while outscoring opponents 1106. Junior running backs Dylan Smith (309 yards rushing, five TDs) and Mosaati Schaumkel (181 yards) average 25.8 and 20.1 yards per carry, respectively. Eight completions have resulted in five touchdowns and a 33.5yard percatch average.
⏩ Secondranked Serra’s 3327 win at No. 4 Valley Christian Friday lived up to its billing as a matchup of quarterbacks. Serra junior Dominque Lampkin, The Chronicle’s Peninsula CoPlayer of the Year last season, accounted for 287 yards and had four TD passes, two to Hassan Mahasin (six catches, 104 yards). Jakson Berman, the Warriors’ firstyear starter, accounted for 243 total yards and three TDs.
⏩ AcalanesLafayette senior QB Brady Huchingson on Saturday led his team on a 66yard drive capped by a 17yard TD run by Nick Rossi with six seconds left to break a 2828 tie. The Dons travel to No. 16 CampolindoMoraga (20) on Friday.