Zach Arnold remembers Brea Olinda’s record his sophomore season.
“We went 2-8,” the senior middle linebacker said Monday. “My junior year, we turned it right around.”
The Wildcats really broke through Friday, defeating top-seeded and defending champion Garden Grove, 17-7, in the CIF-SS Southern Division semifinals to reach their first final since 2001.
Arnold was about 3 years old in 2001 when a 13-0 Brea Olinda team captured Division IX.
Arnold kicked off championship week Monday with the annual CIF-SS football press conference and luncheon in Long Beach, where he traced the path of his team.
“I grew up playing Brea Pop Warner,” he said. “I knew we had a lot of talent going into my freshman year. … I was always pretty excited about what we could do my junior and senior year.”
Brea Olinda, which takes on North Hills rival Canyon in the final Friday, features only 11 seniors, but the group helped spark the turnaround. The key four-year Wildcats include quarterback Nick Drury, cornerback/receiver Malik Campbell and defensive end/tight end Brandon Legendre.
On Friday, Legendre recorded a sack, Campbell deflected a pass and Drury had a team-high 126 yards total offense.
Brea Olinda also has benefitted from the steadiness in its coaching ranks and alignment with the North Hills League, Principal Jerry Halpin said.
Coach Robb Perrance has guided the Wildcats since 2003 and was a longtime assistant before being promoted.
“It says a lot for stability,” Halpin said of the Wildcats’ playoff run.
The North Hills League also helped Brea Olinda, especially after the Southern Section began to guarantee only three automatic playoff berths in seven-team leagues such as the former Century League.
“We’re excited to represent our little town and our community,” Arnold said.
WINNERS PLAY ON
Teams that win Southern Section titles advance to regional playoff games next week. The region includes teams from the Los Angeles, San Diego, lower-level Central and Southern sections.
The winner of the Pac-5 final between St. John Bosco (13-0) and Centennial of Corona (13-0) will likely advance directly to the Open Division state championship game Dec. 19 at Sacramento State.
Winners of the Southern and Northern regional games advance to play in state bowl games Dec. 18-19. Thirteen state champions will be crowned this season.
TOUGH DIABLOS
Some of the debate about county supremacy has focused on the strength of schedules for Mater Dei and Mission Viejo.
The Diablos’ nonleague schedule this season includes wins against Southwest Division finalist La Habra (24-14) and Eastern Division finalist Oak Hills of Hesperia (56-27).
“The schedule is good,” Mission Viejo coach Bob Johnson said.
WARRIORS FOR LIFE
Saddleback Valley Christian senior Jonathan Bunnel, who had two sacks in a victory over Crean Lutheran in the East Valley semifinals, is among few players on the team who have attended the school in San Juan Capistrano since kindergarten.
Bunnel’s lifelong friends include senior teammates David Molina, Dalton Lohman, Miguel Gonzalez and Ryan de Viso.
Contact the writer: dalbano@ocregister.com
