Trinity football

Trinity Christian Prep (7-3, 4-1)
 No one is hiding from the fact that Trinity wants to become an 11-man football program and join the Monterey Bay League in the future.
 The school is also smart enough to realize the timing has to be right to jump from eight-man football, as witnessed by Marina's struggles when it made the move too soon.
 "For us to make that move, we need at least 40 players in the program,'' Trinity coach Frank Leonard said. "You want a lower level program as well.''
  The Warriors are getting close. While there are only 56 boys currently on campus, 32 of them are playing football this fall.
 For now the Warriors remain a bonafide eight-man football power, having knocked off a state ranked team last season on the road.
 "All three of our losses last year were to section champions,'' Leonard said.
 The Warriors produced over 400 points in nine games last fall, including 76 points in one game. In their seven wins, they averaged 55.8 points a game.
 Of course, Leonard has the task of replacing Jamez Booker, as his 2,000 plus multi-purpose yards have graduated.
 In addition, Leonard is breaking in a new quarterback this fall with sophomore Nick Furman and freshman Chase Perez battling for the opening.
 "We are going to have to protect our young quarterbacks until they get confident in the system,'' Leonard said. "Our strength is our offensive line and our big back.''
 Leonard was referring to four-year starter Christopher Wright, a punishing linebacker on defense that will see more touches this fall on offense as the teams premier tailback.
 "Who doesn't want to touch the ball 25 times a game,'' said the 6-foot-2, 217 pound Wright. "It's a running back's dream.''
 Wright, who was a magnet in the middle of that Trinity defense last season in finding the ball, gives them a hard-nose running back with deceptive speed.
 "I think he's the best all-around player in our league,'' Leonard said.
 It won't hurt that Wright will be running behind a wall anchored by 281 pounder Zachery Davidson and 6-3, 262 pound Michael Petty.
 "If we're effective running the ball, it will open up our play action,'' Leonard said. "We want to create opportunities for our young quarterbacks, build their confidence.''
  Wright won't be the only player with big play potential. Tight end Wyatt Hankard is an imposing target for the quarterbacks to get the ball too in the open field along with Cameron Hill.
 "We're still going to throw the ball,'' Leonard said. "We've scaled the playbook back and simplified the offense. We believe we can do some good things.''
 While defeating Cate -- then ranked No. 2 in the state at the time -- was arguably the biggest win in the programs history last fall, the losses are what stick with Leonard.
 "We lost one game where we lead at halftime,'' Leonard said. "Another loss came after we built a 14-point lead. We need to eliminate the mental mistakes. You can't loss focus.''
 While Leonard has stressed intangibles in practice, he's also preached patience. He's upbeat, full of energy. He works the underclassmen in gradually, building their confidence in a drill.
 "Some of these cats have never played the game,'' Wright said. "I remind the younger guys that it's a privilege to be up here. We're all united as one out here.''
 For a school with just over 100 students, the Warriors numbers in football are good. Their roster will be bigger than five programs in the Mission Trail Athletic League.
 "As the school grows, so will our numbers,'' Leonard said. "We're seeing the younger siblings of past players. We're here to compete. We feel the values of the school have us going in the right direction.''