Two teams looking to put last season behind them are the La Jolla and University City (UC) high football teams. For both, it was a year of great efforts but few wins on the field. At La Jolla High, Rey Hernandez, who has guided the defense for the Vikings for a number of years, takes over the head coaching duties from Dave Ponsford. La Jolla finished 4-7 (2-3 Western League) a season ago, losing in the opening round of the CIF’s to Madison. Hernandez will look this season to Zac Zlatic (quarterback), Taylor Davis (tight end/linebacker), Matt Petch (fullback, linebacker), Jose Aviles (offensive and defensive line), Braden Fudge (wide receiver/kicker), Andy Jones (linebacker/tight end) and Mario Saldana (running back/defensive back) to lead the way. “We have had a good fall camp so far,” Hernandez noted. “Our offense has progressed really well and our defense has also made some gains. We will have to replace quite a few graduating seniors but we have a chance to be a competitive team.” According to Hernandez, the team’s immediate goal for this season is to leave the practice field every day a little better than they were when they stepped on it. As for a long-range goal, Hernandez said the Vikings want to play well enough to put themselves in a position to win a league title and a CIF championship. La Jolla will open play at home on Sept. 4 versus Clairemont. At neighboring University City High, the Centurions under head coach Noel Looney are also looking for better results this season, finishing 1-9 (0-5 Western League) last fall. UC, which had 26 seniors on its roster a year ago, opens its season Sept. 4 at El Capitan.