Culver City High School’s first big test of the football season will be Friday against North Torrance (2-1) in the South Bay at 7 o’clock.
Ranked No. 10 in the South Bay, North Torrance beat Bishop Montgomery 33-9 last week.
The 2-0 Centaurs are No. 1 in Division 11. Their high-powered offense will face a good North Torrance defense.
Culver City’s defense will try to stop their explosive offense. It will be a battle between two similar teams.
Once again Culver City’s high efficiency offense was on display last Friday night when they score 48 points at Torrance. The offense was led by quarterback all-CIF quarterback Johnathan Martin who completed 15 of 22 passes for 352 yards. The first two games the Centaurs have scored 106 points. Martin has thrown for 929 yards and 10 touchdowns.
“We planned and set goals to have a very explosive offense,” said Coach Jahmal Wright. “We started building this offense in the spring and summer .
“In the first two weeks of the season, all of our hard work and planning have paid off.”
Wright continued to talk about the offense. “We are still in the beginning stages of something special.
“But we still are not clicking on all cylinders. We need to improve on our running game.”
Wright wants his defense to improve against the run. “The defense has some things to shore up — but we have enough good players to get better every week,” said Wright.
The kicking game, which includes the punt and kickoff teams, is at a high level. “I am very pleased with our kicking game,” said Wright. “Coach Greg (Goodyear) is doing a great job with the kickers.”
Right now the Centaurs need to be ready for North Torrance. “They are going to be tough,” said Wright. “They have a lot of good athletes. They actually play a game that is similar to ours.
“They run a no-huddle offense, and they like to spread the ball around. It’s basically it’s going to be our strength against their strength. It should be a good matchup.”
Mr. Finley may be contacted at sfinley50@aol.com
Mr. Laase may be contacted at GMLaase@aol.com