Laguna Beach football enjoys first CIF press luncheon
PASADENA — Laguna Beach High seniors Micah Chavez, Sam Garwal and Jeremy Kanter all consider themselves fans of the USC football team.
Less than 48 hours after the Trojans earned a big road win against cross-town rival UCLA, the three captains for the Breakers football team got to set foot on the same field at the Rose Bowl.
The CIF Southern Section held its 46th annual football press conference luncheon in Pasadena on Monday, with coaches, administrators and players from each of the section’s finals games invited to attend. It was held in the east locker room.
“Pretty cool, right?” Laguna Beach coach John Shanahan said, leaning over to Chavez at one point during the luncheon.
The Breakers’ nose tackle quickly nodded.
“This is so cool,” he said.
Laguna Beach’s last CIF finals appearance actually predates the luncheon. The Breakers advanced to their first CIF title game in 60 years with last week’s 42-35 home win over Riverside Norte Vista.
Laguna Beach (10-3) will play for its second CIF crown, and first since 1946, when it plays at Diamond Bar (12-1) on Friday at 7 p.m. in the Division 9 title game.
“I think this is a really special moment that I’ll remember for the rest of my life,” said Garwal, a receiver and safety who caught a 46-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Jackson Kollock on Friday night. “I’m just trying to take it all in, for sure.”
The Breakers were forced to deal with adversity early in the season. Garwal started as the Breakers’ quarterback, before injuring his shoulder in the team’s season-opening loss at Homedale (Id.) on Aug. 19.
Because Kollock, a transfer from Santa Margarita, had a sit-out period to open the season, Laguna was forced to roll with third-string quarterback Ethan Das. He held his own, but the Breakers started just 2-3 before their current eight-game winning streak.
“The team has come a long way chemistry-wise,” Garwal said. “We came out as a really special team, and that’s clear with us being in the championship.”
Added Chavez: “Everyone didn’t expect us to be at where we are right now. Over the past 14 weeks, I feel like we’ve grown to be a way better and tougher team than we were.”
Tom Telesco, general manager of the Los Angeles Chargers, wished all of the teams best of luck, though he had a bit of a tough weekend on the gridiron. He said he has two sons in the Corona del Mar football program, which lost at Yorba Linda in a Division 3 semifinal game Friday night.
On Sunday night, the Chargers lost at home to the divisional rival Kansas City Chiefs.
“I’ve been in your shoes,” Telesco said, adding that he played high school football in upstate New York before working 28 years in the NFL. “There’s a lot of reasons why I love high school football, but the main reason is that there’s so many lessons you learn and traits you develop in this game that you can’t find anywhere else ... The work ethic, the accountability, the physical and mental toughness, time management skills.”
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