Late again. Sorry. I'll do better, I promise.

Today's preview takes us into the High Desert League, which is always a good race between some evenly matched schools. You rarely see the mismatches here that you do in the Yosemite Leagues around the Central Section, so it can be kind of fun to keep an eye on. Today we examine a team trying to stay towards the top of the heap and one that's looking to get there. We'll do a couple of non-desert High Desert teams tomorrow. Enjoy.

DESERT SCORPIONS

Coach: Chris Hinton (sixth year)

2008 record: 7-4 (2-2 High Desert League, 4-1 home)
Average points: 31.3
Average points allowed: 24.7
*Average rush yards: 310.3
*Average rush yards allowed: 284.4
*Average pass yards: 29.0
*Average pass yards allowed: 78.9
Best win: Desert 56, Boron 40
Worst loss: Frazier Mountain 19, Desert 16
*—yardage figures are from MaxPreps and are only used if at least half of games are available. Take them with a grain of salt. Figure could be skewed depending on which games, if any, are missing

Key players: Chris Buchanan, sr, RB/DB; Justin Kennett, sr, OL/LB; Brandon Taylor, jr, OL/DL; Carl Jacobsen, sr, WR/DL

Key losses: Terrence Wells, QB/DB; Steven Ronfeldt, OL/DL; Dorian Smith, WR/LB; Josh Villalobos, OL/LB

Outlook: Relax, Desert fans. The sky is not falling on the Scorpions football program just because all-everything quarterback Terrence Wells has graduated. Yes, Wells was a Division I caliber athlete (he had offers all over the place but went to Antelope Valley junior college because his grades weren’t quite good enough for D-I yet), yes, his team gave Frazier Mountain its only league win last year in the one game he missed with injury, and yes, this year’s Desert team has only three senior starters returning from last year’s squad. But there is good news. The two players charged with replacing Wells are junior Dannon Curry (spicy yogurt, as coach Chris Hinton joked) and sophomore Will Keene. Both can run, as the QB in a triple-option offense has to, though Curry is probably the more athletic of the two and Keene the better pure passer. Chris Buchanan, one of the three senior returning starters, rushed for 551 yards in half a season last year. But the big news is the offensive line where giants Malik Rivers (325 pounds) and Brandon Taylor (295) return to anchor a group that should give those skill players time to do their thing. If the Scorpions can get a young defense to gel, they’ll compete for their second High Desert League title in three years. And even if they’ve got to win shootouts, even without Wells, another playoff berth is well within reach.

Quotable: “Our expectations haven’t changed. Obviously we’re going to have to do it in different ways because we’re not going to have that one kid. We’re going to have to spread the ball around.” — Hinton

ROSAMOND ROADRUNNERS

Coach: George Esquer (first year)

2008 record: 2-8 (1-3 High Desert League, 1-4 home)
Average points: 15.3
Average points allowed: 27.3
*Average rush yards: N/A
*Average rush yards allowed: 236.1
*Average pass yards: N/A
*Average pass yards allowed: 84.4
Best win: Rosamond 22, Frazier Mountain 0
Worst loss: Bishop 30, Rosamond 10
*—yardage figures are from MaxPreps and are only used if at least half of games are available. Take them with a grain of salt. Figure could be skewed depending on which games, if any, are missing

Key players: Nick Lloyd, sr, RB/LB; Tyler Villanueva, sr, WR/DB; Victor Olmos, sr, WR/DB; Kevin Powers, sr, OL/DL — injured; George Mazun, sr, RB/DB; Curtis McCann, sr, RB/DB

Key losses: Marquiel Archibald, QB/LB; Vance Franco, RB; Courtney Quinton, OL/DL; Steven Porter, OL/DL; Matt Sanchez, DB

Outlook: It was one year and out the door for Doug South as athletic director and football coach at Rosamond. My sources tell me that there was some kind of disagreement with administration at the school, but I don’t have many details. The point is, the Roadrunners will have to adapt to a new coach and theoretically a new system for the third time in four years. That’s rough for a football team in a league as balanced as the High Desert, even if Rosamond has one of the HDL’s higher enrollments. Here’s the good news — based on first impressions, they’ve got a guy in George Esquer who can right the ship for the long term. Esquer comes with a defensive pedigree from bigger schools; he was the defensive coordinator at Lancaster last year and the DC at Lancaster-Paraclete prior to that. This is his first varsity head coaching gig. He’s optimistic, even going as far to say that the Roadrunners can challenge for a top-three league finish and playoff berth, but he has the realism needed too. Before Rosamond is ready to compete with the HDL’s big boys, it’s going to take some time and stability.

Quotable: “I like what I see a lot. We have a lot of dedicated young men eager to learn. It’s very encouraging. We should be very competitive and surprise some people.” — Esquer

HS FOOTBALL PREVIEW INDEX
July 29: Lighthouse Christian, Maricopa, Immanuel Christian
July 30: Mojave, Boron

TOMORROW: Climbing the peaks — Frazier Mountain and Kern Valley