Sobrato’s Anthony Villarreal takes down the ball runner during practice Thursday for the Charlie Wedemeyer Silicon Valley Youth Classic All-Star Game.

Annually, the Silicon Valley Youth Classic means so much to so many. And this year is no different for five of Morgan Hill’s finest.

Sobrato High School’s Skyler King will play in his one and only game as a “senior.” Live Oak High School’s Derek Satterlee will suit up for his final football game, period. And three other local football standouts – some rivals throughout their high school careers – have come together for the opportunity to shine one last time at the prep level in the 38th Charlie Wedemeyer All-Star football game Wednesday at Westmont High School.

On the South squad, King and Satterlee are joined by former Bulldogs Nick Perry and Anthony Villarreal, and former Acorn Nikki Weber. They’ve been practicing since last Friday at Willow Glen High School.

“It’s been great – very intense,” Villarreal said after Thursday’s practice. “All these kids are good at what they do. You have to stay on top of your game.”

Villarreal, the Santa Teresa Division’s Most Outstanding Defensive back in 2011, was one of the last players to receive the selection call.

“I was pretty stoked,” he said. “It took me about 10 minutes to comprehend it. I decided to do it and it’s been a blast. It definitely is a honor and all of us feel that way. We are appreciative to be out here.”

Presented by the Rotary Club of Almaden Valley, the Charlie Wedemeyer All-Star game highlights Santa Clara County’s top graduating seniors – a spectacle steeped in tradition.

And perhaps no-one is more thankful for his prep swansong than King, who was ruled ineligible by the Central Coast Section for the 2011 season because he fulfilled enough credits to be considered a senior during his junior year at SHS. King attended San Benito High School as a freshman in 2007-08 and was home-schooled the following year. He enrolled at Sobrato in fall 2009 but lost a year of eligibility.

“It’s an honor,” the 5-foot, 11-inch, 255-pound center/nose guard said. “Like coach (Norm) Brown said, he had a choice of 200 kids and he got it down to 45. It feels good to be one of the top kids in your area.”

To keep in shape during last fall’s prep season, King, an All-Santa Teresa Division first-team defense pick his junior year and a second-team All-West Valley Division offensive lineman as a sophomore, practiced with the scout team and acted as an assistant coach, while the Bulldogs went 7-4 and won their first Santa Teresa Division championship. More recently he has been fighting for a starting role at De Anza Community College.

“Usually before every game I’m nervous,” King said. “For this one it’s more like I’m already to go. I’ve prepared all year for this.”

Satterlee, too, will cherish his farewell game.

“It’s my last opportunity so this means a lot more to me,” said the 6-foot-2, 240-pound defensive lineman, who accepted a job with the Humboldt Fire Department and will start there soon after the game.

“When I got the call (to play) I was really excited. It’s a real honor to play in this game,” Satterlee added. “It’s one last game in high school. I get to play with people I played with throughout high school. It’s weird practicing with people that you played against and are supposed to hate.”

Satterlee wasn’t alone in expressing that change in behavior.

“Playing with guys I used to go against is pretty cool,” said Perry, Sobrato’s Most Outstanding Defensive Lineman in the Santa Teresa Division a season ago. “It’s at a college level out here. It’s the best of the best getting ready to take on the best of the best on another team.”

Weber (6-foot-1, 230 pounds) had an outstanding 2011 season, earning first-team All-Mount Hamilton Division at linebacker with a league-best 130 tackles, good for fifth in the section. He also caught five passes for 71 yards at tight end and slot receiver and carried 12 times for 54 yards.

The South holds a two-game win streak over the North. Kickoff Wednesday is slated for 7:30 p.m.

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