|
Who would have thought that the 1999 season would have been so spectacular? The 1998 team had Kyle Boller. How could he
be replaced? The 1998 team was senior dominated. A significant number of the projected starters for 1999 had played very
little, if any, at the varsity level.
Certainly at the beginning of the season, no one saw this group as a great team as there appeared to be a dirth of talent.
But it turned out to be just that -- a great team, even without a lot of college bound athletes.
The greatest ever? In my book, the answer is yes. Why? First, the team was 14-0, the first and only time that has happened
at Hart. Second, the team dominated every opponent. The Indians were behind only twice in 14 games, both times early in
the game. Not a single game was close at the end. The closest game was a 14-0 victory against Muir in the playoffs. Hart
was toying with Muir at the end and could easily have made the score 21-0 or 28-0. Third, the defense may have been the
fastest, most cohesive group that I have seen at Hart. Fourth, the offense was one of the most balanced. Fifth, one of my
sons was on the team (which of course would not impact my decision in the least).
A lot of the pollster types agree with me. Hart finished No. 1 in Southern California according to the Los Angeles Times
and Cal-Hi Sports and No. 2 or No. 2 in the state. Interestingly, the Daily News had Hart number 2 in their coverage area
(with a one-loss Westlake Number 1, go figure).
|
Date
|
Location
|
Opponent
|
Score
|
|
09-09-1999
|
COC
|
Quartz Hill
|
56-18
|
|
09-17-1999
|
TOHS
|
Thousand Oaks
|
48-7
|
|
09-24-1999
|
COC
|
Sylmar
|
28-12
|
|
10-01-1999
|
PHS
|
Palmdale
|
45-0
|
|
10-08-1999
|
COC
|
Loyola
|
26-7
|
|
10-15-1999
|
COC(A)
|
Saugus
|
43-3
|
|
10-22-1999
|
COC
|
Burroughs
|
41-18
|
|
10-28-1999
|
COC(A)
|
Valencia
|
42-21
|
|
11-05-1999
|
BHS
|
Burbank
|
56-7
|
|
11-11-1999
|
COC
|
Canyon
|
55-8
|
|
11-19-1999
|
COC
|
Quartz Hill
|
62-18
|
|
11-26-1999
|
PCC
|
Muir
|
14-0
|
|
12-03-1999
|
COC
|
St. Francis
|
34-14
|
|
12-11-1999
|
COC(A)
|
Valencia
|
34-6
|
2000 (12-2)
The Missing O-Line, Defense and Mighty Mouse
Before the 2000 season began, Hart was the favorite in the minds of many. Kyle Matter returned as an all-CIF quarterback.
Coach 3's pre-season planning had returning junior running back Tim Gregory as the center of the offense. The defensive line
clearly was going to be dominate. But things started poorly and then went bad. The offensive line was porous and Matter
took a beating, setting a single game record for sacks. Tim Gregory played exactly six quarters and then was lost for the
season with a torn ACL. The receivers were collectively pretty slow and didn't exactly impress with their "hands of
stone." Hart was 3-2 in the preleague and looked pretty shaky in two of the wins.
Sometimes the best laid plans . . . go seriously awry. And great coaches adjust. A few changes here and there and Hart
destroyed the league and post-season competition on the way to a third consecutive championship.
|
Date
|
Location
|
Opponent
|
Score
|
|
09-08-2000
|
MHS
|
Monroe
|
36-6
|
|
09-15-2000
|
COC
|
Thousand Oaks
|
16-6
|
|
09-22-2000
|
WHS
|
Westlake
|
13-23
|
|
09-29-2000
|
COC
|
Palmdale
|
35-9
|
|
10-06-2000
|
Glendale HS
|
Loyola
|
16-24
|
|
10-13-2000
|
BHS
|
Burbank
|
45-8
|
|
10-20-2000
|
COC(H)
|
Valencia
|
21-7
|
|
10-27-2000
|
BHS
|
Burroughs
|
35-8
|
|
11-03-2000
|
CHS
|
Canyon
|
34-0
|
|
11-10-2000
|
COC(H)
|
Saugus
|
37-6
|
|
11-17-2000
|
COC
|
Chaminade
|
45-3
|
|
11-24-2000
|
Glendale HS
|
Crescenta Valley
|
28-23
|
|
12-01-2000
|
COC
|
St. Francis
|
13-0
|
|
12-08-2000
|
COC
|
Mira Costa
|
34-11
|
2001 (13-0)
Another Perfect Season
Hart won Division 3 Championships in 1998, 1999 and 2000. Could the Indians repeat? The elements were there. Matt Moore
would have been a starting quarteback at almost any other school as a sophomore and a junior. Tim Gregory was back and looking
good. Chris Frome was a dominating force on both lines. The pre-league schedule has some real challenges. The potholes
in the road certainly were not in the expected places.
The 2001 team dominated in almost every game on both sides of the ball.
The first game was eagerly anticipated because the opponent was Banning, the reigning City Section champions and noted
for tough, hard-nosed play. The game was a semi-rout with Hart winning 34-0 but it was the thuggery on the field, rather
than the score, that was most notable.
It was evident from the first play that Banning's primary objective on defense was to intimidate Matt Moore who was starting
his first game. But the conduct on the field went far beyond intimidation. It was very clear that some Banning players intended
to hurt Moore. It seemed like he was hit on every play, usually late, usually right around the knees. This was one of the
first games that Hart went almost exclusively to the shotgun and had quite a bit of trouble early on with Tim Gregory unable
to get by the defense and Moore having a tough time finding receivers. The game was close at half but by the end of the third
quarter Hart had a fairly big edge at, if I remember, 20-0. Frustration set in and the Banning players went after Moore with
a vengeance. The refs started calling the late hits and Hart moved down the field quickly, almost entirely on penalties and
scored to take a 26-0 lead. In that drive, a couple of Banning kids were ejected for their misconduct. Hart got the ball
back late in the game with the obvious intention of running the ball between the tackles and taking time off. From about
the 50, Neill, the backup QB ran a sneak which went for a touchdown. A Banning player nailed the Hart center from the back
at about the 20. A brawl almost ensued and, if I recall correctly, the game was called before time ran out.
Hart dominated most every game that season with the exception of two. The third game of the season was against Westlake.
Hart was considerably better than the Warriors and jumped out to a huge lead. Then the Hart defense went on vacation. Westlake
caught up in the fourth quarter and suddenly it was a game. Hart eeked out a 42-35 victory.
The second game of the year should have been a great matchup: St. Bonaventure with both Lorenzo Booker and Whitney Lewis.
Because of 9-11, the game was cancelled.
The Valencia-Hart game was otherwise forgetable except for two events. First, Hart shutout Valencia, 26-0, the only shutout
in the series (although 2000 would have been had the first-teamers stayed in the game until the end). The second event: just
after half-time Tim Gregory broke his leg. The kid was having a great year after missing virtually all of 2000 after blowing
out the knee on his other leg. Though he played in only 6 and a half games (exactly half of the total quarters that year)
he ended up as the leading rusher and scorer.
The other "whew" game was against what appeared to be a lowly Saugus team. The Centurions put it all together
against Hart and it was neck and neck the whole way. In the last minute, a JV player, Kevin Ciccone, who had been moved up
to the varsity for this game, had a reception that turned it around for Hart. Hart took a 42-35 lead. Saugus came very close
to scoring as time expired with Matt Moore knocking down a fourth down pass in the endzone.
Hart was wholly dominant in the playoffs. No game was particularly close and Hart easily beat Valencia for the second
time that season in the championship game, 42-13.
The team was 13-0. A candidate for the best team ever? Not in my book. The 1999 team had considerably more offensive
punch, largely because of a far faster and more formidable receiving corps. The 1999 team had Tim Gregory at the end of the
year. The 2001 team did not. The 2001 team had Matt Moore who was bigger, faster and possessed of a bigger arm than 1999's
Kyle Matter. Matter was a headier player. The 1999 defense was consistent throughout the year and the team was never close
to losing. The 2001 bunch let two very mediocre teams come within shouting distance of winning.
|
Date
|
Location
|
Opponent
|
Score
|
|
09-07-2001
|
COC
|
Banning
|
34-0
|
|
09-14-2001
|
Ventura HS
|
St. Bonaventure
|
cancelled
|
|
09-21-2001
|
COC
|
Westlake
|
42-35
|
|
09-28-2001
|
PHS
|
Palmdale
|
31-7
|
|
10-05-2001
|
COC
|
Lakewood
|
54-17
|
|
10-12-2001
|
Canyon HS
|
Burbank
|
49-21
|
|
10-19-2001
|
COC(A)
|
Valencia
|
26-0
|
|
10-26-2001
|
COC
|
Burroughs
|
49-6
|
|
11-02-2001
|
COC(H)
|
Canyon
|
33-0
|
|
11-09-2001
|
COC(A)
|
Saugus
|
35-28
|
|
11-16-2001
|
COC
|
Redondo Union
|
48-7
|
|
11-23-2001
|
AVHS
|
Antelope Valley
|
34-9
|
|
12-01-2001
|
JC?
|
Mira Costa
|
35-6
|
|
12-08-2001
|
COC (H)
|
Valencia
|
42-13
|
|
