Acorns dual Mustangs, Bulldogs in 7-on-7 scrimmages Thursday
MORGAN HILL — In preparation for their season-opening showdown, Gilroy and Live Oak football got an abridged first look at each other Thursday during a passing-league contest at Live Oak High School.
The retrorivals took what they could from the 7-on-7 event, which pits quarterbacks and receivers against defensive backs and linebackers.
“The thing with passing league is, you get good work in, but it’s not realistic for games,” said Live Oak coach Jon Michael Porras, whose Acorns will visit Garcia-Elder Sports Complex on Sept. 4. “You have your regular offense, and you have your passing-league offense. Obviously, during a game there’s going to be linemen and blitzes to deal with.
“For what it was, this was a good test for both teams.”
It was also a chance for first-year Gilroy coach Greg to shed light on his offense, which graduated several key players in spring. The Mustangs got a solid workout from senior quarterback Nick Marra, the heir apparent to league offensive MVP Jamie Jensen.
“He’s really quick on decision making,” Garcia said. “He has a quick release on the ball.”
Garcia also was impressed by veteran receivers Michael Aldridge, Jordan Mitchell and Bryan Sanchez, who matched up well with Live Oak’s secondary.
“They were very aggressive. They did a good job covering us,” Garcia said. “They had good speed.”
Porras said the Mustangs have not lost a beat from last year, when they averaged close to 400 yards per game.
“They’re good at what they do,” said Porras, alluding to Gilroy’s intricate spread offense. “It was pretty exciting to be competing with them in a game-like situation.”
Their season-opener should be more different, though, considering Live Oak’s run-first attack. Porras said the onus was more on his defensive backs Thursday.
“We have really good linebackers, but we didn’t get to use them much,” he said. “I was really impressed with our (cornerbacks). Nick Sosebee, Jacob Montoya, Artie Valencia did well. Cody Van Aken is looking like a play-maker.”
Along with Gilroy, Live Oak also got a first look at its other rival, Sobrato. The Morgan Hill teams played a heated 7-on-7 scrimmage in which both sides moved the ball efficiently and created turnovers.
They will meet Sept. 25 for El Toro Bowl III at Richert Field.
“When you get Sobrato and Live Oak together for passing league, it’s like putting a square peg in a round hole,” Porras said. “We’ll see how much we pass against each other in September.”
