Alvarez football

 That promising 2-0 start that the Eagles got off to has hit a couple of road blocks.
 That will happen when you schedule a state ranked team and open league play against one of the elite teams in the Central Coast Section.
  It's not that Alvarez has played that badly. In fact, it was competitive in a season opening loss to 5-0 San Benito on Friday.
 Oh, there were two critical block punts that changed the complexion of the game.
 While mistakes are inevitable with a young group learning a new system, those are mistakes that can be avoidable.
 Would it have made a difference in a 17 point loss?
 Well, giving an undefeated team a short field certainly didn't help an Eagles defense that played its heart out.
 There's a big upside at Alvarez. First year coach Brad Mendes has installed a different culture that players are buying into. It's not going to change overnight.
 Surviving a stretch of five games against teams that were a combined 50-12 last fall is a test of will.