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2012 RECORD:
8-4 (1st in Metro League)
tOp REtuRnERs:
Senior tailback Devin
Martinez, senior wide receiver Jordan
Morgan, senior quarterback A.J. Woodin
SOUTHRIDGE
Southridge stacked with returners, ability
By MATT SINGLEDECKER
The Times
Southridge- the defending outright rul-
ers of the Metro- have all the ingredients
to not just guard their league crown but
go for the golden jewel-the 6A state cham-
pionship.
A mammoth, knowledgeable offensive
line? Check.
Turbo-charged, big-play producers who
can score from anywhere on the field? Check.
An experienced quarterback? Southridge
has that too, to accompany a fearless defense.
On the surface the Skyhawks seem ready
to soar to JELD-WEN Field and claim a state
banner.
Still, Southridge doesn’t want to be state
champs on Aug. 31. They want to be the last
team standing on Dec. 7, the day of the 6A ti-
tle bout.
“The thing to understand is you don’t win
games on paper,” said second-year head
coach Doug Dean. “We might be stronger at
the start or we might not. That’s why we re-
ally need a game under our belts to find out
where we’re at and what we need to improve.
We have a better sense of what our kids are
capable of because we were a brand new staff
last year.”
DEfEnsE
Junior 6’1”, 180-pound Andrew Ripley-
Miles was third-team all-league defensive
back last season. Maleke Nathman-Valenti-
no, Derek Parnell, Jared Baskin, and Isaiah
Rio will see playing time at cornerback. Se-
nior Logan Sackley was moved from outside
linebacker to strong safety and Jacob Gomez
is starting at free safety.
Senior linebackers Mike Varadi and Pepe
Tanuvasa started last year. Outside line-
Skyhawks excited about 2013
prospects with 34 seniors
backers Daniel Rico and Michael Sparks are
a little more inexperienced as juniors but
Dean said they’ve improved tremendously
from the start of the summer. Defensive tack-
le Willie Eteaki is a monster at 330 pounds
who started at Southridge as a freshman,
moved out of the area but is back in Beaver-
ton.
“It’s nice to have a guy who by girth can
take up two gaps,” said Dean. “Right now he’s
working himself into shape and we’ve told
him if he gets into great condition he can be
legit. He’s got great feet, size and strength.
We’re real excited about his potential.”
The tall and swift Jordan Taula’I will start
at left defensive end. Tyler Saunders and
Daniel Tanabe are battling for the right de-
fensive end spot.
OffEnsE
Southridge’s talent and ability on offense
is akin to Jesuit’s curt clique of defenders on
the other side of the rock. Starting with the
smooth-moving, gummy-fingered wide re-
ceiver Jordan Morgan who committed to the
University of Arizona this summer, the Sky-
hawks are well-heeled in the playmaking de-
partment. The 6’2” Morgan was first-team
all-league and second-team all-state last sea-
son despite catching passes from three dif-
ferent quarterbacks.
“We have kids on the perimeter who have
a lot of game experience and they’ve been
fire tested,” said Dean. “That should equate
to some better execution, especially earlier
in the year. I’m biased, but I think they’re
some of the best athletes in the state.”
This year Morgan has a stable signal call-
er in senior A.J. Woodin who started seven
games last year and helped lead a 26-21
come-from-behind win against Jesuit.
“He’s improved an awful lot since last
year,” said Dean. “But, now the proof is in his
performance on Friday nights. He’s earned
the starting spot and now it’s his time to go
shine and lead this team. It’s his team.”
Junior 6’2” 220-pound left guard Jeremiah
Everett, senior running back Jacob Pruit,
and senior place kicker Alex Beekman were
all second-team all-league nods. Senior 6’4”,
220-pound right guard Tyler Cox returns
with a third-team selection under his belt af-
ter a standout junior season. Running back
Devin Martinez was also third-team as a ju-
nior. He and Pruit form a united one-two
punch in the backfield that few Metro teams
can match. Ironically, the 5’8” Martinez is
more of power runner while the 6’3” Pruit is
shifty and likes to make guys miss in the
open field.
“They’ve done a phenomenal job of sup-
porting each other and we view both of them
as starters,” said Dean. “One guy will hit you
in the mouth and the other guy’s trying to
miss you.”
If you’re counting at home, that’s six all-
league returners, just on offense alone, the
most in the Metro.
Everett, Cox, right tackle Walker Lukens,
center Jim Weber, and left tackle Nick Stahl
all started at some point along the line of
scrimmage last year.
“In my opinion, you win and lose games at
the line of scrimmage,” said Dean. “We’re
way ahead in terms of what we have inserted
in our playbook. We’re more experienced
this year and that’s a big difference.”
TIMES FILE PHOTO
Southridge wide receiver Jordan Morgan leads a Southridge offense that’s senior-heavy and experienced.
