Growth of football team is a good sign for Viewpoint

By Kyle Jorrey jorrey@theacorn.com

READY, AIM . . . -Viewpoint quarterback Daniel Selarz looks over his options during a game earlier this season. Still without a home field, the Viewpoint football team, which is in its first season of 11-man ball, plays all of its home games at the Calabasas High School stadium just down the road from their campus.

Placed near the base of a steep hillside on the eastern side of a 25-acre piece of property, Reade Field at Viewpoint High School in Calabasas may be the area’s most secluded practice locations. A five-minute walk from Viewpoint’s upper school (grades 9-12) campus, the 50-yard field is nearly impossible to reach without specific instructions from a member of the school’s staff—and it’s a fitting home to a team with a top secret project brewing in the works.

That project is to make the Patriots, already well-recognized for their athletic success in sports like volleyball and tennis, a top-notch football program as well. And the first steps in that direction were taken last year when Viewpoint decided to make the jump from eight-man to 11-man football for the 2004 season—a natural progression that reflects the growth of this nondenominational school that houses grades kindergarten through 12th grade.

"Although, as an eight-man football school we had success and believed in the program, it is a natural extension of the school for football to go to 11-man," said athletic director Patrick Moyal, who’s been with Viewpoint for the past 15 years. "As the school grows, so do our athletic programs. I think this change will help bring us to the forefront for a lot of athletes that wanted to come to Viewpoint but wanted to play 11-man football."

And while players, coaches and school officials applauded the upgrade, the transition itself has brought its fair share of challenges, especially for the seven seniors who had been accustomed to the fast-paced, wide-open style of eight-man.

One of those seniors is co-team captain Pravin Krishna, a Northridge native who’s been playing varsity football for the Patriots since his freshman year.

"It’s been a rough transition, but a lot of that has to do with the fact that we graduated a lot of good players from last year’s team," Krishna said. "But even though it’s tough at times, we know that the work we are putting in now is going to make things better for this program in the future."

Fellow captain and senior Robbie Silverman, a wide receiver/defensive back, is another Viewpoint player still getting used to all the extra bodies on the field.

"At first, 11-man was hard for me to pick up because I was used to a lot of open-field tackles," Silverman said. "Now I’ve learned that you have to rely on your teammates a lot more and they have to rely on you."

Through three games the Patriots are 1-2, losing last week at the hands of Chadwick High School, 50-20. Only fielding a 28-man roster, the biggest disadvantage for Viewpoint has been their size, a matter that used to be less of a factor back in eight-man.

"The heaviest player on an eight-man team is 230 pounds. Now we’re going up against 230-pound linebackers and lineman who are 290," Krishna said. "I’ve been getting pretty banged up every game . . . Every game takes a lot out of me. We’re playing really hard and we’re playing with a lot of heart, but we get overwhelmed by teams who are so much bigger."

Originally a wide receiver/linebacker, Krishna has stepped into the role of running back after the team’s starting backfield was injured early in the season. Like many of his teammates, it’s Krishna’s pride in the program and his hope for the program’s future that keeps him coming back week-to-week despite the punishment and early-season setbacks.

"The goal for this season is to make the younger guys get better, and get them committed to putting in the work it requires to be a successful team, and that starts in the weight room," Krishna said. "I want them to become better, and I want this program to reach the heights I know it can reach."

As they practice hard each afternoon with new head coach Patrick Marquez, the players have taken great joy in one of the welcome advantages of 11-man status: the chance to play beneath the "Friday night lights." Once regulated to Saturday kickoffs, the team now suits up for Friday home games played just down the road at Calabasas High School.

"We really enjoy it because a lot more people come to our games now that we play on Friday," Krishna said. "We’ve played two home games and both times the stands were packed. We get a lot of support from both the students and the administration."

But that support—or investment—from the school does come with its returns. Because as all private school administrators know that athletic success can be a great form of advertising for prospective students, especially if that success comes on the football field.

"I think that there’s a tremendous amount of emphasis on athletics in the minds of potential families," Moyal said. "They’re looking for a school that will create a more well-rounded student because that’s what colleges are looking for. They want a school that can brag about its accomplishments in the classroom and in athletics, and I think Viewpoint is one of those schools. That’s why we as a school put so much emphasis in our sports programs."

There’s already a plan in motion to construct a home stadium and regulation size practice field on the Viewpoint campus, a project the athletic director says is one or two years away. But for now, players are content to continue to make the almost daily trek down to Reade Field, where they work inconspicuously to create a winning program beneath the comforting shade of the Santa Monica Mountains.

"Right now, Viewpoint attracts a lot of kids who are smart but don’t necessarily want to play a contact sport like football, but I think that’s changing," Krishna said. "I think now that we have an 11-man team, we’re going to attract a lot more kids who want to play football, but who are also smart. I think the school itself is going to benefit a lot from this, and the kids that are freshmen now, they’re going to be a part of a really good football team."

Silverman, whose brother Jamie, a freshman, is already star running back/linebacker on the varsity team, agrees wholeheartedly with his teammate’s prediction.

"In a few years, if we have some success, I hope everyone will want to come to Viewpoint to play football," said Silverman, a Tarzana-native. "This season I’ve already started to see a lot of people turned on to the idea of playing, and in a couple years, who knows? This team, with guys like my brother, could be competing for a CIF championship."