Arena Bowl draft results
By School House Zach
As promised, I have the full results from the inaugural player draft for this year's Arena Bowl. But before we get to the seniors who will be playing in the 10th edition of Kern County's annual high school football indoor all-star game, a couple of notes need to be mentioned:
• Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. April 1 in Rabobank Arena. I'll share ticket information when we get closer to game day.
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• There are a handful of high-level players, all Division I commits, who weren't drafted, either because their colleges asked them not to play or because they've enrolled early in college: Centennial QB Cody Kessler, Stockdale K/P Andre Heidari, Liberty OL/DL Cody Temple, Liberty OL Doug Blacksill and Centennial LB Jared Norris.
• A couple of others were drafted but still might not play, depending on how their college choices respond. Those include Bakersfield DB Mercy Maston and Stockdale LB Hank Hobson, and that's why you saw those guys (Hobson especially) drafted a little lower than you'd expect. If they end up playing or not playing, that obvioulsy could affect the outcome of this one.
• Finally, I advise you to hide your eyes, your women and children, because I'm tentatively planning on making my football coaching debut as an assistant on Rick Van Horne's Gold team. 1230 AM radio personality Corey Costelloe will do the same for Eric Mahanke's Black squad. Let it be noted here and forevermore that I did not play high school football, nor do I have any coaching experience in the sport. I have watched and studied it pretty extensively, but this most certainly will be an adventure.
Without any further ado, here's how the draft shook out:
Round, Gold pick; Black pick
1. Brian Burrell, Bakersfield QB; Shawn Johnson, Centennial RB
2. Chris Brown, Golden Valley WR; Josh Legoretta, Frontier QB
3. Grant Campbell, Garces RB/LB; Fred Wilson, West WR/DB
4. Kyrie Wilson, Ridgeview LB; Alex Trujillo, Centennial OL/DL
5. David Williams, Bakersfield DL/LB; Michael Dunn, West WR/DB
6. Jalen Sykes, Garces RB/DB; Mike Kuntz, Golden Valley LB
7. Maxx Heflin, Bakersfield OL/DL; Brandon Johnson, Bakersfield RB/DB
8. Mercy Maston, Bakersfield WR/DB; Darrik Martin, Golden Valley QB
9. Bryson Keeton, Ridgeview DB; DeShaunte Webber, Frontier RB
10. Frankie Hurtado, Liberty OL/DL; Bryan Wilmert, Liberty OL
11. Akkeli Holley, East ATH; Andrew Garcia, Stockdale TE/DL
12. Ricardo Figueroa, Golden Valley OL; Walter Hunt, Bakersfield RB
13. Drew Schilhabel, Independence LB; Bryson Lockwood, Frontier RB/DB
14. Niko Taliulu, Tehachapi OL/DL; Erick Black, West OL/DL
15. Mark Van Kopp, Bakersfield OL/DL; Blake Burnard, Frontier DL
16. Bert Flores, East OL/DL; Tim Martinez, Centennial WR/DB
17. Travis Farewell, Tehachapi TE/LB; Alex DeHoog, Bak. Christian OL/DL
18. Quentin Cheatham, Wasco RB; Carson Moyer, Liberty RB
19. Tyler Jano, Highland OL/DL; Max Davis, Golden Valley DL
20. Blake Campbell, Garces QB; Mason Otten, Liberty DB
21. Donte Malloy, Ridgeview ATH; Chantz Williams, South DL/LB
22. Tyler Schleicher, Stockdale K; Daniel Watts, Taft ATH
23. Joe Ceja, Ridgeview ATH; Mitch Johnson, Frontier TE/LB
24. Josh Ringer, North LB; Angel Caraballo, Bakersfield OL
25. Jr Lueleu, Highland OL/DL; Eric Garcia, Liberty K
26. Dontay Carrillo, North RB; Christian Lopez, Arvin ATH
27. Phil Rhodes, Tehachapi RB; Hank Hobson, Stockdale LB
28. Jess Visser, Bak. Christian LB; Justin Smith, Mira Monte OL/DL
29. Ryan Salinas, East ATH; Martin Duarte, Delano WR/DB
30. Nick Franco, Foothill LB; Fernando Saucedo, Shafter RB/DB
My initital thought: I like the Gold team's draft, naturally, considering I advised Van Horne and fellow coach Jerald Pierucci. Burrell's dual-threat capablitiy and short passing game should be tailor-made for the arena game, and it'll be tough to match up with Chris Brown on the outside. Tyler Schleicher ought to give the Gold an edge in the kicking game, too.
The Black team has its assets, though, starting with Shawn Johnson, who is the biggest threat to take over the annual run-the-opening-kickoff-back duties. Some good sleepers out there, too, including Mason Otten, Daniel Watts and Hank Hobson — if he happens to play.
And clearly, the running game doesn't have the same emphasis in the indoor game: How else do you explain two 1,500-yard rushers dropping to the 18th round?
Discuss and enjoy.
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