When they faced each other in the regular football season, they were rivals. Now, players from seven Northern Santa Barbara high schools are teaming up as a strong, cohesive unit to go head-to-head with players from San Luis Obispo County in the fifth annual FCA All-Star Football Classic on June 6 at Santa Ynez Valley Union High School.
“This is football played at its highest level,” said Bill Stansbury, who’s helped organize the game since the first showdown. “These players are the best of the best. As in previous years, this promises to be a top-quality, competitive game.”
One of 14 executive committee members, Stansbury is currently in his fifth year of helping to plan and coordinate the annual fundraiser sponsored by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. The committee is made up of retired and current coaches, officials, and business leaders from both counties. Proceeds from the event directly benefit athletic programs at the 15 high schools represented.
With gates set to open at 6:30 p.m. and kick off at 7 p.m., North Santa Barbara County will have seniors from Santa Maria, St. Joseph, Ernest Righetti, Pioneer Valley, Santa Ynez, Cabrillo, and Lompoc high schools seeking to claim victory over SLO County seniors from Paso Robles, Atascadero, Templeton, San Luis Obispo, Mission Prep, Arroyo Grande, Morro Bay, and Nipomo high schools.
“Not only is it an opportunity for these seniors to play football together one last time, it is a chance for all of the high school coaches to come together, put aside any type of rivalry, and work together to give the players and the fans a fantastic sporting event,” Stansbury said. “As a fundraiser, it’s also a great way for everyone to help support their local high school athletic program.”
The purpose of the annual game, according to FCA Central Coast Area Director Luke Llamas, has three components—to celebrate and promote the participating senior football players, to honor the coaches and officials who give their time to the high school programs, and, most importantly, to conduct a successful fundraiser for local high school athletic programs. The game location alternates between the two counties each year.
“Over the past four years, the FCA Football Classic has raised more than $614, 690,” said Llamas. “The involvement and game attendance continues to grow each year. It’s an exciting event that is a direct result of the unique partnership between the athletic community and the business community.”
Funds are raised through the sale of tickets, a car raffle, and donations from businesses. Major sponsors are television station KSBY, Dignity Health, and the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians. The car raffle—a half-time favorite that turns a winning $20 ticket into $20,000 toward the purchase of a new vehicle, is made possible through the generosity of 12 car dealerships.
“We also recognize an honorary coach from each team, an honorary official, and name two most influential players during the half-time festivities,” Stansbury said.
The late Leon Criner, who coached at King City High School, Santa Maria, Righetti, Allan Hancock College, and the College of the Canyons in addition to leading SLO High to the 1980 CIF Championship, will be honored along with Will Stensland, who was a long-time coach at Santa Ynez and led his team to the CIF Championship in 1960 and 1969. Jerry Mrozek will be recognized for his 40 years of officiating on the Central Coast at the high school level and 30 years at the junior college level. The names of the most influential player from each team will also be revealed.
Chris Rix, a former Florida State player and current announcer for Fox Sports, will address the players during the pre-game gathering. Purchase game tickets for $10 and car raffle tickets for $20 at local high schools or at the gate on game day. For more information, go to centralcoastfca.org/football.
The teams
The seniors from area high schools competing in the fifth annual FCA All-Star Football Classic are:
Team South (Team Santa Barbara)
Pioneer Valley: Mando Mansera, Sal Castro, Bryan Gonzalez, Gabriel Garcia, Matt Sapien, Dyriece Tell, Mario Ruiz, Preston Patague, and Jonaton Ponce.Â
Lompoc: Cory Maxwell, Joseph Osegueda, Austin Hayes, Ruben Venegas, Derrick Portis, Ryan Hale, Caleb Greene, James Graham, Matt Arevalos, and Jacob French.
Cabrillo: Josh Larson, Aidan Anderson, Zak Morrison, Nico Pachecho, and Brett Gregory.
Righetti: Connor Regan, Steven Spadarotto, Andy Cooper, Jeff May, Eli Wilkinson, Ricardo Bedolla, and Val Richardson.
Santa Maria: Dominique Garrett, Eric Tadeo, David Lopez, Rafael Montano, Francisco Villa, Juan Jimenez, and Avi Talamantes.
Santa Ynez: Alex Knightley, Tyler Piligian, Jackson Valencia, Justin Mortensen, and Jake Chaves.
St. Joseph: Chris Barganier, Justin Schnorf, Zach Ginter, Charlie Ferini, Jake Kersey, Matt Dias, Jacob Adam, Aiden Gallant, and Slade Hooper.
Team North (Team SLO)Â
Arroyo Grande: Sam Coleman, Cole Ramey, Ryan Teixeira, Jordan Harrigan, Thomas Fuentez, Nate Pino, and Gavin Angello.
Atascadero: Ethan Hicks, Tommy Carr, Nick De Rosa, Karson Block, Nick Ducasse, Josh McEwan, Tyler West, McKay Rickey, and Cooper Kuhnle.
Mission Prep: Joseph Cassaca, James Taylor, Sheree Wahba, Dyllan Smiley, Carson Brown, and Jack Ballentine.
Morro Bay: Will Unks, Adrian Astorga, Karsten Sween, Nick Meyers, Jordan Millington, Mario Barragan, Edgar Rivera, Elijah Garcia, Edgar Rivera, Jordan Liberatore, and Trajan Beecham.
Nipomo: Matt Albright, Brandon Hettenhouser, Harrison Labastida, Nick Kimball, Chris Owens, Elias Guzman, Peyton Witcher, Hernan Rodriguez, Matt Sparks, and Kai Givogue.
Templeton: Anthony Chausse, Justin Altamirano, Christian Hauser, Scott Rigdon, Noah McClain, Easton Coy, and Brody Camping.
Paso Robles: Luis Alvarado, Jordan Burbank, Parker Gray, and Trevor Torres.
San Luis Obispo: Nate Greenelsh, Dante Cappelano, David Chellsen, Colton Marcum, James Zanoli, and Joe Bravo.Â
Sun contributor Meagan Friberg can be reached through the editor at clanham@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in May 28 – Jun 4, 2015.
