OLD RIVALRIES STILL RUN DEEP; CONTROVERSY INVOLVING AVC AND COC REKINDLES SPORTS FEUD BETWEEN TWO VALLEYS.

Byline: Scott Magoloff Staff Writer

Two geographical regions, the Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys, stand separate from the rest of Los Angeles County by clear boundaries.

Although major freeways - the 5 and 14 - act as the regions' border to the south, their relative isolation and growth have rekindled an old rivalry among the football programs in each community.

``I think the biggest contributing factor is the road is well traveled between (the Antelope Valley) and L.A. now - that's increased the rivalry,'' Palmdale coach Jeff Williams said. ``The world has gotten smaller and Santa Clarita has gotten closer. It's like we're an extension of them and they're an extension of us.''

Any expansion that brings the communities closer together has no official effect on their sovereignty. Case in point: allegations by Antelope Valley College of illegal recruiting by College of the Canyons.

Just imagine how it will play out on the field when AVC and COC, whose football program is in its second year, meet in Valencia on Sept. 18 and each year thereafter.

``I suspect that it's going to be more of a rivalry this year because of the situation,'' said AVC coach Brent Carder, who recruited three or four players from Santa Clarita in the 1980s, when COC was without a program.

``We were contacting them and there was a gray area in the rules,'' he said. ``I asked the (state commissioner on athletics) if we had the right to go down there. They said, `You can't go down there and contact them.' We ceased any communication with them in recruiting.''

Carder also said the area rivalry is more intense at the prep level because the average age of community college students is 27 and they have other responsibilities.

The prep rivalry has many participating factors.

History might be the original cause. The Antelope Valley-based Golden League welcomed Hart, Canyon and Saugus highs in 1977, creating a natural strife among the new league foes. Hart left for the Foothill League, now centered in Santa Clarita, in 1982. Hart, not nearly the power it is today, never figured much in the rivalry until recently.

The Santa Clarita team the Antelope Valley schools gunned for was Canyon, which remained in the Golden League, along with Saugus, until 1992. The Cowboys won seven consecutive Golden League titles in the '80s.

``It was still Canyon, even though we were in the same league,'' said Hart defensive coordinator Rick Herrington, whose senior season at Hart coincided with the Indians' first year in the Golden League. ``Maybe it was because we weren't real good back then. The rivalry now is more than what it was back when I played. Both leagues have been pretty successful.''

When Canyon and Saugus left the Golden League in 1992, uniting the Antelope Valley schools in their league and the Santa Clarita schools in the Foothill League, one might think the community-pride factor would have entered in and added fuel to the rivalry. Actually, it detracted from it.

The two leagues were in separate divisions, meaning the schools had no chance of facing each other in the playoffs. But this changed in 1994, as both leagues were shifted into Division II (they currently sit together in Division III).

``I think the rivalry is that we're in close proximity and in the same division,'' Hart head coach Mike Herrington said. ``When we schedule our games (the Golden League) is one of the closest leagues, all of the schools are close in size and have good football programs. It creates good preseason matchups and we keep track of each other during league because there's a great chance to face them in the playoffs.''

Lancaster coach Ray DeShane, who coached at Palmdale and Quartz Hill in the 1980s, agrees that location plays a great role in the rivalry. But for DeShane, there were also personal feelings that dated back to the time Canyon was in the Golden League.

``To be honest, none of us wants to go further than Santa Clarita, no one likes to travel,'' he said. ``When (Canyon) was in the Golden League, they hated going to Ridgecrest (to play Burroughs). There are stories about (Canyon) trying to run up the score to get them out of the league.''

Lancaster's first-round playoff victory against Canyon last year was an exorcism, of sorts, for DeShane.

``All those years as an assistant, I never beat them; it was a nice feather in my cap,'' he said. ``It was very important for me as a coach.''

In addition to proximity, historical and community ties, a factor behind the scenes of the rivalry exists on the airwaves. The Santa Clarita radio station AM 1220 airs a Friday-night call-in show which is also broadcast on Antelope Valley's KAVL 610.

Barry McKeever, who coached on Hart's junior varsity team in 1991, had always wanted to get into radio. He got a taste of college radio while he was a linebacker at Stanford and felt he could create a show here that would keep the entire area informed and offer a forum for the fans to voice their opinions. And it has for eight years.

McKeever realized the show's potential in 1994 and 1995, when Hart and Antelope Valley played each other for the Southern Section championship. Hart, at 13-0 a resounding favorite in '94, lost 36-15. The situation was reversed in '95, with Antelope Valley at 13-0. But Hart came through with a 35-28 victory.

``Both seasons Hart and AV were on a collision course; it was something we played on,'' McKeever said. ``It was a constant rivalry on the air and they played back and forth, bantering.''

Added Mike Herrington: ``It's been a really neat situation for both areas. . . . That's created a big rivalry. It makes for pretty good controversy and speculation on who has the best teams.''

However the AVC-COC recruiting conflict plays out, most coaches agreed that it would have little effect on the prep rivalries, which they also agreed are on the rise.

Forget the old league ties, forget the proximity, forget the radio, and forget the community college-recruiting dispute. As long as Antelope Valley and Santa Clarita schools are in the same division and field winning programs, the intensity will be there.

``Somebody in our league is going to see somebody in the Foothill League, if not two teams, every year (in the playoffs),'' DeShane said.

RIVALRY TIMELINE

1977: Canyon, Hart and Saugus enter the Antelope Valley-based Golden League.

1982: Hart leaves for the Foothill League.

1992: Canyon and Saugus join Hart in Foothill League.

1994: Golden League moves from Division I to Division II, where Foothill League resides. The move re-creates the possibility for Antelope Valley-Santa Clarita playoff games.

1994-1995: The area rivalry is seen in a microcosm of consecutive Southern Section championship games between Antelope Valley and Hart highs. The underdog won in each case, with the Antelopes victorious in '94 and Indians in '95.

1998: College of the Canyons restarts its football program.

1999: Antelope Valley College files complaint alleging COC coaches attended an Antelope Valley prep all-star game at AVC for the purpose of recruiting.

CAPTION(S):

Drawing, Box

DRAWING: (Color) no caption (AVC and COC football players)

Jim Thompson/Special to the Daily News

BOX: RIVALRY TIMELINE (see text)