TOURNEY SHOULD BE A PASSING FANCY EIGHT FOOTBALL TEAMS VIE IN 7-ON-7 COMPETITION TODAY AT USC.Byline: Gerry Gittelson Staff Writer High school football doesn't get much bigger than this - during the summer, that is. Eight of the nation's top passing teams - including Hart, Valencia and four returning Southern Section champions - compete in a much-anticipated, touch-football tournament at the third annual Nike 7-on-7 Passing Championships beginning at noon today at USC An abbreviation for U.S. Code. . Most of the participants soon take a three-week summer break before returning in mid-August when full-contact practices begin, so this is a good gauge as to how annual powers Hart and Valencia stack up against the best of the best. The other participants are Div. I champion Long Beach Poly, Div. II champion Mission Viejo Mission Vi·e·jo A community of southern California southeast of Irvine. It is mainly residential. Population: 96,300. , Div. III champion Notre Dame Notre Dame IPA: [nɔtʁ dam] is French for Our Lady, referring to the Virgin Mary. In the United States of America, Notre Dame and Div. XI champion (and tournament favorite) Oaks Christian of Westlake Village, along with Edison of Huntington Beach Huntington Beach, city (1990 pop. 181,519), Orange co., S Calif., on the Pacific coast, across from Santa Catalina Island, in an oil-producing area; inc. 1909. It manufactures aerospace vehicles, aircraft parts, optical instruments, and heat transfer equipment. and Springdale (Ark.) Hart is led by returning quarterback Tyler Lyon, who passed for more than 3,100 yards in only his second year of organized football last season. He has eight major-college scholarship offers and a strong group of receivers, including returning standout Troy Yudin, who recently returned from an ankle injury. Valencia's Michael Herrick is on pace to break the state career passing yardage yard·age 1 n. 1. An amount or length measured in yards. 2. Cloth sold by the yard. Noun 1. record, and the Mississippi-bound standout has looked sharp this summer. Most of Valencia's top receivers have graduated from last year's Div. II finalist, but running back Shane Vereen is an all-state candidate after rushing for 1,389 yards with 57 receptions and 32 touchdowns as a sophomore. Springdale, the lone out-of-state representative, is an intriguing entry. Mitch Mustain Mitchell Mustain (born February 27, 1988 in Springdale, Arkansas, U.S.) is an American college football quarterback at the University of Southern California (USC). Mustain played his freshman year of college at the University of Arkansas in 2006 before transferring to USC in 2007. , the No. 1 quarterback prospect in the nation according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Rivals.com, has led the team to a 32-1 record over the past three years. He has more than 20 scholarship offers, including UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX . ``Mitch is 6-foot-3 with a whip of an arm. He's got all the tools,'' said tournament organizer Greg Biggins, the recruiting coordinator at Student Sports. Mission Viejo has won the Nike tournament two years in a row but is competing for the first time without Mark Sanchez Mark Sanchez (born November 11, 1986 in Long Beach, CA) is a college football quarterback attending the University of Southern California (USC). High school career , last year's No. 1 quarterback prospect in the nation who is now at USC. ``It's going to be a great tournament. The only problem is trying to figure out the seeding because all eight teams are really good,'' Biggins said. ``I guess the only thing we can do is try not to match teams from the same area in the first round.'' Hart and Valencia lost in the first round last year, then Valencia defeated Hart in a consolation game Con`so`la´tion game 1. A game, match, etc., open only to losers in early stages of contests. . Hart is in the tournament for the third year but has never reached the finals. Valencia has entered for the second consecutive year. This summer, Hart won the Bonita Bonita (Spanish and Portuguese for "beautiful") is the name of:
A capsule look at the eight teams: --Edison: Led by QB Brian Schrock, Edison won its own tournament last week in a field that included Hart, Valencia and several other top participants. ``Brian is six foot, so he's a little undersized undersized see dwarfism, runt. , but if he was a little taller he'd have 10 offers,'' Biggins said. --Hart: Always one of the state's most successful summer competitors, Hart has a strong program once again, led by returning quarterback Tyler Lyon and a group of experienced receivers. Sophomore running back Delano Howell could eventually develop into one of Hart's all-time best. --Long Beach Poly: The defending Div. I champion Jackrabbits feature two of the state's top receivers, Terrence Austin and Travon Patterson Travon Patterson (born September 20, 1988 in Lynwood, California) is a wide receiver for the University of Southern California Trojans. College career Patterson was a backup wide receiver during his freshman season in 2006. , along with standout cornerback Vincent Joseph, perhaps the state's top cover man. --Mission Viejo: It's hard to pick against Mission Viejo after the team won this tournament two years in a row. Quarterback R.J. Toman to·man n. A gold coin formerly used in Persia worth 10,000 dinars. [Farsi t  m takes over for Mark Sanchez (USC), and tight end Conrad Reuland is the
nation's top recruit at his position.
--Notre Dame: Speed counts more than ever in touch football, and returners Garrett Green (quarterback) and Rodney Glass (running back) are two of California's fastest players. --Oaks Christian: A strong favorite after winning several summer tournaments, Oaks Christian features big-time quarterback Jimmy Clausen and fleet running back Marc Tyler, two of the nation's top juniors at any position. The team nearly pulled off an upset over eventual champion Mission Viejo in the first round last year, but time expired with Oaks at the 1-yard line. --Springdale (Ark.): Mitch Mustain, who is being recruited by UCLA, is the No. 1 quarterback prospect in the nation, and receivers Damian Williams and Jeff Brewer have committed to Division I universities. --Valencia: As long as Michael Herrick is around, Valencia always will be dangerous. He passed for more than 4,000 yards last season and is on pace to break the state's all-time career passing yardage record. Jason Engleberg is the only experienced returning receiver and running back Shane Vereen is a blazer. Gerry Gittelson, (661) 257-5218 gerry.gittelson(at)dailynews.com NIKE 7-ON-7 PASSING CHAMPIONSHIPS Who: Hart, Valencia and six other top high school football programs What: Touch-football, single-elimination tournament Where: USC's Howard Jones Field Howard Jones Field is the practice facility for the USC Trojans football team. It was expanded in the fall of 1998 to include Brian Kennedy Field. In early 1999, Goux's Gate — named after the late popular long-time former assistant coach Marv Goux — was erected at the When: Noon, today (championship approx. 4 p.m.) Admission: Free CAPTION(S): 2 photos, box Photo: (1 -- color) Valencia's Michael Herrick will be one of the top quarterbacks at the Nike 7-on-7 Passing Championships today at USC. David Crane/Staff Photographer (2) Hart quarterback Tyler Lyon passed for more than 3,100 yards in only his second year of organized football last season. Kirby Lee/Special to the Daily News Box: NIKE 7-ON-7 PASSING CHAMPIONSHIPS (see text) |
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