Posted by thswarriors.com on November 26, 2008 SSL Ramblings ...
Warriors Looking For 5th Straight Win
Golden Valley Bulldogs Preview
The Warriors won their 4th straight game, and 6th win in their last seven games, with the 28 to 14 victory over Ridgeview Friday night. The Warriors are playing good football right now and have an excellent chance to upset the #3 seeded Bulldogs of Golden Valley this week. The win over Ridgeview gave head coach Steve Denman his 230th career win.
Golden Valley, located in southeast Bakersfield, was a former member of the South Sequoia League (SSL) and played against Tehachapi in 2004 and 2005. The Warriors won the 2004 contest and the Bulldogs won the 2005 game to win the SSL. In 2006, the Bulldogs left the SSL for the bigger Southeast Yosemite League (SYL).
As a sidebar to the history between these two schools, many of the current seniors for both schools played against each other as freshmen in 2005. The league champion 2005 Indians, behind Adam Mullen and Josh Strauss, defeated Golden Valley in 2005 by a final 58 to 13 count. The players have not seen each other since that game.
The Tehachapi win on the mountain over Ridgeview improved the Warriors overall record to 34 wins in 41 playoff games at home dating back to 1958, when Coy Burnett Field was dedicated. Tehachapi is notoriously tough at home during the cool weather playoff season of late November - early December.
Meet the Bulldogs from Golden Valley
The Bulldogs finished the 2008 season with an overall 6-4 season record, 3-3 in Southeast Yosemite League play. They received a 1st round bye in the playoffs. Like the Warriors, they have been playing good football in recent weeks --- winning their final three games of the season.
The Good: the Bulldogs had a quality win this year over the Bakersfield High Drillers, 23-14, co-champions of the SYL.
The Bad: A Week 2 drubbing at the hands of DII power El Diamante-Visalia, 61-7.
Common Opponents: Garces, the Warriors lost to Garces in overtime by 6 points while Golden Valley lost to the Rams, 28-32. Ridgeview, the Bulldogs defeated the Wolf Pack, 23-21, while Tehachapi defeated Ridgeview, 28-14, last week.
The Big Guns: QB #8 Dylan Finch, a junior, goes to the air often, completing 160 of 271 passes for 1,068 yards and 18 TD passes. The primary running back is #2 Byron Newman, 1,554 rushing yards and 18 TD's. The speedy 5'7" Newman will also line up as a wide receiver and plays in the defensive backfield for the navy-and-gold clad Bulldogs.
The Explosive Wing-T Offense .... Ode' to the Warrior Kicker
The Warriors have employed the run heavy Wing-T scheme for a long time. Your first thought with this type of offensive system is a low-scoring, ball control, methodical offense. But the Warriors are averaging 29.9 points per game this year; 33 points per game in 2007; and 30.2 points per game in 2006. Fact of the matter is --- the Warriors have been down right "explosive" on offense in recent years. These are some of the best offensive numbers in the storied history of the school. Hopefully, Warrior fans are appreciating the product of quality coaching and hard working linemen carving out big holes for the Warrior running backs.
An under appreciated weapon in the Warrior offensive arsenal this year has been junior place kicker Jake Reimer. Reimer has punched through three field goals this season and made good on 42 of 44 point after touchdown kicks. He is emerging as one of the greatest Warrior kickers in recent history. As the playoff season progresses, sometimes the kicking game proves to be the difference maker. The Warriors are fortunate to have a kicker that gives the team a great opportunity to win if the game is on the line --- many schools are not as fortunate.
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