When you score 85 points in two games its obvious Culver City high school’s football team can score. They lost to West Torrance two weeks ago 34-33 and they beat Torrance 52-14 last week in their home opener. Now the Centaurs need to find out if they can stop other good teams from finding the end zone.
The 1-1 Centaurs will battle North Torrance and their explosive offense Friday at 7 p.m. inside the Jerry Chabola Stadium on the Culver City high school campus. North comes into the game with a record of 2-1 and they have several outstanding offensive weapons. Quarterback Glen Searcy and wide receiver Malik Welch or just a few of Saxons the Centaurs will need to keep their eye on.
Culver City has its own collection of great offensive players so the game should come down to defense against offense. “Scoring a lot of points against Torrance tonight will hopefully give us some momentum going into the game against North Torrance,” said Culver City head coach Jahmal Wright after their win over Torrance. “If we expect to beat North Torrance we need to cut down on our turnovers and be more consistent in our running game. Our receivers are doing a good job right now but we are still working hard to get better.”
The Centaurs offense is led by junior quarterback Jonathan Martin who has thrown for over 600 yards in two games. Although Martin is one of the best players in his CIF division, he seems to keep both feet on the ground. “We need to keep executing our assignments and keep working hard and the wins will come,” said Martin after the Torrance game. “Getting our first win of the season tonight was great especially because it was on our home field. It’s a wonderful experience.”
Martin is getting a lot of help on offense this year from receivers Kevin McGuire, Charles Ross, Robert Simon and Deven Osborne. Running back Brandon Oum, who scored on a 87 yards run against Torrance is another speedster that Martin can rely on. The offensive line is also doing a good job of protecting Martin and backup quarterback Bryce Lewis- Wolfe.
The Centaurs have a lot of young players this year and they have some outstanding young assistant coaches. One of the coaches is Derrick Huezo Sr. Huezo works with the defensive backs and he is also the one of Culver City’s Eye in the Sky coaches that watches the game from an elevated platform and relates information down to the field to help the ground coaches make good decisions.
Huezo, who also coaches track and basketball, knows the Centaurs need to improve if they expect to contend for football championships. “We need to be more consistent on defense and we need to make sure we hold other teams to three plays and a punt instead of letting them drive down the field.”
Veteran assistant coach Cornell Myles was excited that all the players on the sideline saw action against Torrance. “Having everyone get into the game means a lot. It makes the players feel good about themselves and that will help us have better practices.”
Myles also knows the Centaurs better be ready for North Torrance. “They are fast and they have a lot of good athletes on their team. They will be a tough opponent. We are going to have to go out there and win the game. They are not going to hand us a victory. We are going to have to earn it.”
