OCVarsity Voice: Most indicators point North

The early consensus regarding the 49th Orange County North-South Prep All-Star Football game in July is that the North will win.

My heroes Dan Albano and Steve Fryer have already agreed on the outcome on this week’s Hot List. (CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO)

The assortment of weapons that Canyon coach Brent McKee will have at his disposal is amazing: Wes Fletcher, Ray Holley, Christian Daniel, Tyler Ortiz, Ryan Saumur, Josh Swaney….and that is just on the offensive side of the ball.

Imagine trying to gameplan to stop that offense.

Defensively, the North is loaded on all three levels. Blake Poole leads the defensive line, the linebackers (Scott Galvan, Anthony Hannon, Sean Kurtz and Brady Lukas) are unreal and the defensive backs can hold their own as well.

I could win with that team.

On the surface, it does appear that July 11 could be a long night for the South. But I wouldn’t go writing that game story just yet for a couple of reasons.

1. This is high school football.
You never know what will happen from game to game. During the season, we had our season Pick’em contest. And, if I remember correctly, I believe that Miguel A. Melendez bested Fryer by a couple of games or at least tied him. It was a shocking development considering that Miguel knows futbol, but not football.

2. The big boys up front.
I’m glad I’m not in charge of feeding the South’s offensive linemen. Kyle Caldwell (the football player from Capo Valley, not the Newport Harbor two-sport star), Tim Hodgdon (Tesoro) and Ben Tauanuu (Mater Dei) are all over 300 pounds. Kevin Murphy (San Clemente) is 6-7 and Eric Richter (Capo Valley) is 285. They’re going to have to line up and pound away at the North’s defensive front.

3. The Carlo factor.
How can a team lose when it has the potent combination of the Carlo tandem of Audagnotti (Santa Margarita) and Valdes (Mater Dei)?

If the South can get a couple of breaks (kickoff return, force some turnovers) get a great game from the O-line and some Carlo magic, then it could pull off what would amount to an upset.

However, I don’t see it happening and, more important, Fryer’s never wrong. Right?

Contact the writer: dcalhoun@ocregister.com