It will probably be cold and fogging in the South Bay on Friday night when Culver City High School’s varsity football team rolls into Manhattan Beach to play Mira Costa at 7 p.m. The Centaurs and the Mustangs have battled each other dating back to the 1990’s and like most of the Bay league games the intensity level is very high.
The Centaurs come into the game with a perfect overall record of 6-0 and a 1-0 Bay league record. The Mustangs are 4-2 overall and 1-0 in the Bay league. This game has CIF playoff implications because two other Bay league teams are also fighting for a spot in the playoffs. Inglewood is 6-0 (1-0) and Leuzinger is 5-1 (0-1).
“We know Mira Costa will come into the game disciplined and well coached so it’s going to be a great Bay league game,” said Culver City head varsity football coach Jahmal Wright in a telephone interview last Sunday night. “Every game is going to be a battle in this league, so we have to focus and take it one game at a time. Every game in this league is important.”
Last Friday night at Culver City the Centaurs beat Palos Verdes 21-18 in a hard-fought battle against the Sea Kings in the league opener for both teams. “It was a classic Bay league battle,” said Wright. “It was two teams that know each other well. Both teams are well coached, and we were fortunate to be on the wining side of that game.”
Assistant coach and former Culver City head coach Cornell Myles liked what he saw against Palos Verdes. “This game was really good because we worked hard on defense, especially linebackers Darryl (Davis III) and Damarion (Boyd). Darryl did a great job coming off the edge and Damarion played well on the inside.
“We match up well against any team that we play,” said Myles. “We just have to take care of what we do best and execute. We have some very good athletes on this team. As coaches we try to my sure our players believe in themselves and that they can do outstanding things if they follow instructions from the coaching staff. Our job as a coaching staff is to is to keep the team playing at a high level.”
The Centaurs have many players that are playing at a high level and one of them is quarterback Seth Shigg. Shigg has passed for 1,578 yards and 17 touchdowns with only two interceptions. Shigg is also one of the fastest quarterbacks in Southern California. “I think Seth is one of the most athletic quarterbacks that we have had at Culver City,” said assistant wide receiver and strength and conditioning coach, Michael Hooper after the win over Palos Verdes. Hooper is also a former Centaurs star football player. “Seth is fast, and he has agility, and he has the arm strength to get the ball down the field.”
Shigg tries to stay humble as he leads the Centaurs’ explosive offense. “It feels good to be able to rely on God and my teammates,” said Shigg after the Palos Verdes game. “Our coaches put us through touch practices so when the game starts, we are ready to go. During the games the objective is not to panic and trust in my teammates. In the games we need to keep a level head and stay consistent and aggressive all four quarters.”
Last Friday the offense ran the ball well which opens up the passing game and gives the defense more time to regroup and rest. Running backs Chyler Paton and Langston Wilson are two players that have stepped up during recent weeks to give the Centaurs the balanced offense they need during the last four Bay league games against Mira Costa, Leuzinger, Lawndale and Inglewood.
