Wildcats making adjustments heading into season opener

Junior Blake Hauser will take over as starting quarterback for Paloma Valley High School this season. Menifee 24/7 photos by Doug Spoon

By Doug Spoon, Editor

Change is constant in high school football, with players coming and going due to graduation over the years. Yet as many have shown, it is possible to build and maintain a winning tradition with a young cast that has constant transitions.

The Paloma Valley High School football team will try to return to its form of two years ago, when the Wildcats were 10-3 in Tom Tello's first year as head coach. The players will try to forget about last season, when they lost their last four games on the way to a 5-6 overall record.

And they will try to do it without Mason Carvalho, who did everything on offense last season with his speed and deceptiveness. Starting at quarterback and rushing for 1,750 yards, Carvalho provided a spark the Wildcats must replace this season.

They will begin to face that challenge Thursday night, when their season opens with a 7 p.m. game at Norte Vista High in Riverside. After playing a Braves team that was 9-3 last season, the Wildcats play their home opener Aug. 30 against another tough opponent, Murrieta Valley.

One of the focal points will be at quarterback, where junior Blake Hauser takes over the starting job. Hauser's freshman and JV teams lost just one game each under his leadership. He also got into parts of five games with the varsity last year, completing 5 of 6 passes.

"The pace of everything is much faster," Hauser said about the adjustment he is making to the varsity level. "I did get some experience last year when we were blowing out teams, but this is different. We have a good receiving corps, so that is a big help."

One of Hauser's primary targets will be senior Cody Cerasaro, who caught 13 passes for 129 yards last season. Cerasaro will become more of a scoring threat now with Carvalho gone.

"My junior year we were mainly a running team, so I did a lot of blocking, helping Mason get around the corner," said Cerasaro. "That was pretty much my whole season – blocking for Mason."

The Hauser-Cerasaro connection could be a key for the Wildcats' passing game, and both have been working hard to be ready for Thursday's opener.

"I worked a lot in the summer on my throwing accuracy," Hauser said. "That’s always been a strength. I'm also working on reading defenses better. I've been training every weekend and working with a 7 on 7 team."

Guard Randy Ruple (extreme right) is one of the leaders of the Wildcats' offensive line.

The anchor of the offensive line is Randy Ruple, a 6-foot, 230-pound senior. Ruple switched from center to guard last season and the move has paid off for the Wildcats.

"We went to a different type of offense and the guard was needed more for speed," Ruple said. "I like being guard better."

Ruple also is an accomplished long snapper -- another role that doesn't get a lot of publicity. Ruple said it was inspiring last year when Paloma Valley graduate Matt Orzech visited the campus after signing a free agent contract with the Baltimore Ravens of the NFL as a long snapper.

"I take my pride from other people getting scores," Ruple said about the relative anonymity of his positions. "Others get all the cameras and stuff, but we’re the ones [linemen] who help make it happen. The players all know that."

Cerasaro will also be a factor on defense at the cornerback position. He said the emphasis is on consistency and reducing mistakes. Last season, the Wildcats allowed 30.8 points per game.

"This year we’ve been focusing a lot more on forcing turnovers," Cerasaro said. "We've been practicing driving to the ball and swarming the player."

After their season opener on the road Thursday, the Wildcats play three consecutive games at home against Murrieta Valley, King and Knight.

Head coach Tom Tello addresses the Paloma Valley football players after a recent practice.