Newport goes for another upset

After one Sunset League upset, the Newport Harbor High football team goes for another at home.

The Sailors (4-2, 1-0 in league) tonight at 7 play host to Edison (6-0, 1-0), ranked No. 1 in the CIF Southern Section Pac-5 Division poll.

Newport Harbor moved into the No. 10 spot after pulling off a 23-20 league victory against then-No. 6 Los Alamitos. The Sailors gave Coach Jeff Brinkley his 200th career victory at the school.

They will try to get Brinkley another huge win in league.

Newport Harbor and Edison are tied atop the league standings with Fountain Valley (6-0, 1-0). Edison and No. 6 Fountain Valley figured to be in the hunt for a league title, not Newport Harbor, which dropped back-to-back nonleague games going into last week’s league opener.

The Sailors put themselves back in contention for a second straight league crown thanks to quarterback Austin Rios engineering a game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter. Last year, five teams shared the championship, including Edison.

The Chargers are the one team Newport Harbor hasn’t beaten in the Sunset League since returning to it in 2006. Last year’s 14-7 loss at Orange Coast College is the closest the Sailors have come to prevailing against Edison.

Unlike Los Alamitos, which ran the ball on practically every down with one running back, Edison, ranked No. 5 in the state by CalHiSports.com, is diverse on offense. The Chargers can throw it with quarterback Matt Viles and run it with Wade Houston and Davion Orphey

Viles has thrown for 1,626 yards and 13 touchdowns. The senior spreads it around as four wide receivers have caught 18 or more passes.

Houston and Orphey have combined for 745 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground.

Newport Harbor’s defense is in for its toughest game of the year. The Sailors allowed 221 rushing yards last week, but stopped the Griffins when they had to in the game. Cornerback Parker Norton and linebacker Cecil Whiteside each intercepted passes.

With Edison’s high-powered balanced attack, Newport Harbor will need to control the clock with running back Cedric Whitaker (592 yards and six touchdowns) and Rios will need to keep defenses honest by completing passes.

The last time Newport Harbor defeated Edison was in 1979. For all of his 200 victories with the Sailors in 24 years, Brinkley has never led Newport Harbor past Edison.