It’s a new football season under new head coach Ryan Price and the Friday, Aug. 23 home game is against an opponent all returning Point Loma High players and fans will remember well.
The Pointers’ last game was on a rainy Nov. 20 night against tonight’s opponent. Del Norte High ended last year’s season with a hard-to-swallow 9-7 loss in a CIF Div. II semifinal game on the Nighthawks’ field. The Pointers lost leads of 7-0, 7-3, and 7-6 before the last of Del Norte placekicker Trey Coleman’s three field goals sailed through the uprights with less than one minute to play.
The Nighthawks went on to win the Div. II title but it’s a new year and a group of talented returning Pointer players would love to turn the tables on their North County rival and start the season with a ‘W.’
Many prep observers believe that seniors set the tone for each team and the Pointers list only 12 on their 44-person roster so much could depend on how these “Dozen Dogs” lead and perform. The roster shows 25 juniors and seven sophomores, an excellent nucleus for next season.
New Pointer head coach Ryan Price took his squad to scrimmage Patrick Henry High last week and assess his team’s progress against the Patriots. Overall, he was pleased with what he saw.
“I was happy with how we got the ball out on time and the run game,” he said as his players prepared to ride a bus back to campus. “The passing game – just a couple of little things to clean up and put in some new stuff these guys haven’t seen yet this year. Defensively we played the run pretty well overall, although we didn’t get a lot of looks. Overall, they did their job most of the time and created some turnovers. That’s what we want to do, stop the run and take the ball away.”
A look at each non-league team the Pointers will face. All games kick off at 7 p.m.
Aug. 23: DEL NORTE: HOME
Head Coach: Nick Barnett, second year. League: Palomar Last Year: 11-3 overall, 4-1 in league. How 2023 ended: Defeated Oceanside 26-11, Point Loma 9-7, La Jolla 31-15 for Div. II title lost to Birmingham of Lake Balboa 30-28 in state playoffs. 2024 CIF: Moved up to Div. I.
Aug. 30: OTAY RANCH: HOME
Head Coach: Brad Burton, third year. League: Metro-Mesa Last Year: 2-8 overall, 0-3 in the league. How 2023 ended: Did not make CIF playoffs. 2024 CIF: Div. III.
Sept. 6: RANCHO BERNARDO (HOMECOMING)
Head Coach: Eric Weddle, second year. League: Palomar Last Year: 6-6 overall, 2-3 in league. How 2023 ended: Beat Bishop’s 28-18, lost to La Jolla 42-14 in CIF Div. II semifinals. 2024 CIF: Moved up to Div. I.
WEEK 4: BYE WEEK (NO GAME)
Sept. 19: EASTLAKE (AWAY – THURSDAY)
Head Coach: Jose Mendoza, fifth year. League: Metro-Mesa Last Year: 4-7 overall, 2-1 in league. How 2023 ended: Lost a first-round CIF Div. II game at Central of El Centro. 2024 CIF: Div. II.
Sept. 27: STEELE CANYON (AWAY)
Head Coach: Scott Longerbone, 13th year. League: Grossmont-Hills Last Year: 5-6 overall, 2-3 in league. How 2023 ended: Lost 28-7 to Oceanside in a first-round CIF Div. II game. 2024 CIF: Div. II.
