Afforded the rare opportunity to observe a Bishop’s football team workout for nearly two hours recently, a journalist could come up with certain thoughts:

— The practice surface at Bishop’s is literally an “earth-shaking” experience as running backs and defenders pound the turf – the playing field sits atop the roof of the underground parking lot off La Jolla Boulevard.

— The day this visitor went by, 27 players participated in varsity drills, with two standing by (at least one injured). The Knights definitely squeeze the best results out of their small, tight-knit squad.

— Head coach Shane Walton, as do other area coaches, introduces his team members to advanced concepts and intricate offensive options that only years ago would have seemed unthinkable.

After the two-hour exercise, topped off by additional conditioning (wind sprints) at the end, senior captain and 260-pound linebacker Tyler Boynton was waxing eloquent about one of his favorite subjects, history, and specifically the Cold War, during an interview: “So much was going on between the two ideologies (Soviet Communism and Western democracy). There were no shots fired between the two sides. They fought (wars) through other countries, like Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan.

“What can we learn from it? Fear goes a long way. Think for yourself. Propaganda is a big thing. Study things for yourself, read the news, things like that.”

Turning to the 2023 Knights, Boynton commented, “We have a dog at quarterback (Cash Herrera, a sophomore). He’s young right now, and I want to see him when he’s developed because he can only get better.”

Herrera, who commutes from Escondido, threw for 237 yards, completing 19 of 35 passes in the season opener against La Jolla on Aug. 18. Bishop’s roared back from a 27-0 halftime deficit to threaten early in the fourth quarter, 34-19, before giving up a final TD. Cash connected for two touchdowns — one to junior receiver Ian Browne, who took a screen pass 80 yards to start the second half and shocked the crowd. The other went to Tom Lowe, a sophomore.

Distribution was among Browne, with six catches for 142 yards, senior Colin Fagan, who had five receptions for 45 yards, and Ruben Gutierrez III, a compact runner out of the backfield with three catches for 18 yards.

“We’ll increase that,” said Walton, who took over for the departed Joel Allen three years ago. The coach articulates his philosophy: “(Each game the question is) how do you compete? Sometimes you can’t control the outcome, but you can control whether you compete or not.” Boynton and Herrera reflect their coach’s view: “It means no excuses.”

Browne, the junior receiver, breaks down the play that opened the second half against La Jolla: “I line up outside and I take three hard steps to try to sell another play, like something deep. I come up behind the line of scrimmage. The ball was there for me and I caught it. I have a block. I try and get outside.”