It has been said that if you've got two quarterbacks, you've really got none. That's not the case this season as several teams in the Front Row region have utilized multiple quarterbacks with success.
Ripon Christian (2-0) has lit up the scoreboard through the first two games -- albeit against inferior Central California Athletic Alliance opponents -- with Cade Alger and Nolan Lingley pulling the strings. The Knights are No. 6 in the latest small-school poll and travel to Summerville (1-0) on Friday for a game of high interest in the Southern League. The Bears edged Mariposa last week, 10-9. Another strong performance by Ripon Christian will put the rest of the Southern League on notice, especially resident king Orestimba.
Central Catholic (2-0) has maintained its place atop the large-school rankings despite subbing out its dueling quarterbacks, Kyle Jackson and Dalton Durossette, every quarter. Jackson started the season opener at Clovis West, while Durossette got the nod at De La Salle. Their numbers are nearly identical, though Jackson did engineer the Raiders' only scoring drive against the Spartans.
Coach Roger Canepa says he's got to make a decision soon on a full-time starter, but don't expect it to come Friday against Holy Bowl rival St. Mary's (0-1).
Perhaps there's no greater example of the multiple QB system than Friday's showcase game between large-school No. 2 Downey (2-0) and large-school No. 5 Merced (2-0) at Chuck Hughes Stadium. Both programs feel comfortable with rotating their QBs, and it's hard to argue the logic. Downey has beaten back-to-back playoff teams, including two-time defending Sac-Joaquin Section champion Manteca, with junior Bryce Gouker and freshman Beau Green commanding the huddle. Merced has matched that effort, routing Del Campo and Gregori, with heavy contributions from Dhameer Warren and Junior Garcia. In fact, Garcia was nearly perfect in 14 attempts against the Jaguars.
And now it seems the Front Row's brass, Joe Cortez and James Burns, have embraced the split. In this week's episode of "Bold or just bald?", Cortez sides with his alma mater, Merced, while Burns, the "Bold or just bald?" leader through two weeks, picks host Downey to keep its rocket start alive.
Here's a look at all of our Week 3 predictions:
Friday, Aug. 31
Argonaut at Hughson, 7:30 p.m. Burns: Argonaut Cortez: Hughson
Bear Creek at East Union, 7 p.m. Burns: East Union Cortez: East Union
Beyer at Gregori, 7:30 p.m. Burns: Gregori Cortez: Gregori
Big Valley Chr. at Le Grand, 7 p.m. Burns: Big Valley Chr. Cortez: Big Valley Chr.
Buhach Colony at Edison, 7 p.m. Burns: Buhach Colony Cortez: Buhach Colony
Central Valley at Ripon, 7:30 p.m. Burns: Ripon Cortez: Ripon
Davis at Atwater, 7 p.m. Burns: Atwater Cortez: Atwater
Delhi at Livingston, 7:30 p.m. Burns: Delhi Cortez: Delhi
Delta Charter at Bret Harte, 7 p.m. Burns: Bret Harte Cortez: Bret Harte
Oakdale at El Capitan, 7 p.m. Burns: Oakdale Cortez: Oakdale
McNair at Enochs, 7 p.m. Burns: McNair Cortez: McNair
Escalon at Sonora, 7 p.m. Burns: Escalon Cortez: Esacalon
Golden Sierra at Orestimba, 7:30 p.m. Burns: Orestimba Cortez: Orestimba
Gustine at Hilmar, 7:30 p.m. Burns: Hilmar Cortez: Hilmar
Liberty Ranch at Amador, 7 p.m. Burns: Amador Cortez: Amador
Linden at Galt, 7:30 p.m. Burns: Linden Cortez: Galt
Los Banos at Patterson, 7 p.m. Burns: Patterson Cortez: Patterson
Merced at Downey, 7 p.m. Burns: Downey Cortez: Merced
Millennium at Denair, 7:15 p.m. Burns: Denair Cortez: Denair
Modesto Chr. at Calaveras, 7 p.m. Burns: Modesto Chr. Cortez: Modesto Chr.
Pacheco at Sierra, 7 p.m. Burns: Pacheco Cortez: Pacheco
Pitman at Pleasant Grove, 7:15 p.m. Burns: Pitman Cortez: Pitman
Ripon Christian at Summerville, 7 p.m. Burns: Ripon Christian Cortez: Summerville
Sierra Ridge/ROP at Riverbank, 7 p.m. Burns: Riverbank Cortez: Riverbank
St. Mary’s at Central Catholic, 7 p.m. Burns: Central Catholic Cortez: Central Catholic
Tracy at Turlock, 7 p.m. Burns: Turlock Cortez: Turlock
Turlock Christian at Waterford, 7:30 p.m. Burns: Waterford Cortez: Waterford
Centennial at Golden Valley, 7:15 p.m. Burns: Centennial Cortez: Centennial
Manteca at Granada, 7 p.m. Burns: Manteca Cortez: Granada
Tranquillity at Stone Ridge Christian, 7 p.m. Burns: SRC Cortez: SRC
LAST WEEK
Burns: 29-6. Cortez: 26-9.
Burns: 22-10. Cortez: 21-11.
SEASON
Burns: 51-16. Cortez: 47-20.
