The Burroughs High School Burros mascot.
Posted by thswarriors.com on September 23, 2008 SSL Ramblings ...
Warriors Travel To Ridgecrest
Looking To Turn Season Around
The Warriors will travel to Ridgecrest this Friday night hoping to reverse a losing streak which has seen them drop two straight games, first to Garces, 27-21 in overtime, and then to Frontier of Bakersfield, 19-18.
Meanwhile, upstart Burroughs High School has won two straight games, defeating Paraclete of Lancaster 26-20 in Week 1, and Apple Valley 48-32 in Week 2.
The Warriors will limp into Ridgecrest with their two premier running backs --- Adam Mullen and Josh Strauss --- hurting from nagging injuries. Emerging star running back Angelo Loli rushed for a career best 102 yards and scored 1 TD in the loss to Frontier.
The Warriors and Burros have previously met 16 times, with the Warriors leading the overall series 9-7. The Warriors won both the 2007 and 2006 games after dropping the 2004 and 2003 contests. The two schools did not play in 2005.
Sherman E. Burroughs High School opened its doors in Ridgecrest in 1944, with the first senior class graduating in 1947. The Burros play in the Desert Sky League along with Victorville, Barstow, Silverado, Serrano, and Granite Hills.
Burroughs is coached by former THS alum Matt Gracey. Gracey is in his second year at Ridgecrest, coaching the 2007 team to a disappointing 3-7 record. Before coming to Burroughs, Gracey coached at Port Angeles in Washington, earning a two year record of 9 wins and 11 losses.
After graduating from Tehachapi, Gracey played football at Victor Valley JC, and then graduated from Adams State College in Colorado. Before moving to Washington, Gracey went 43-13 over a five year period coaching at a high school in Arizona.
Burros second year coach Matt Gracey, a Tehachapi High alumnus, is hoping his undefeated Burroughs
can knock off the Warriors this weekend in Ridgecrest. Photo by Mark Suorez, Burrosfootball.com
Around the SSL This Week ...
After Week 2 of the young high school football season, every SSL team has suffered the bitter pill of defeat. The last undefeated team in the SSL, Taft, was crushed by a very good Exeter team, 31-7. Look for the Monarchs to be a very successful team in 2008.
In another key non-league match-up, Bakersfield Christian, behind the passing of Derek Carr, outlasted Central Valley Christian (CVC) of Visalia, 27-22. BCHS now stands at 1-1 for the season. Garces improved to 2-0 with a convincing 23-7 victory over Arvin; Porterville topped an inspired Wasco team, 40-27; and South Bakersfield whipped hapless Shafter 49-14.
Key games in Week 3 (September 26) include Taft at Coalinga; Shafter at Foothill (Bakersfield); Lindsay at Wasco; Arvin at South Bakersfield High; and Bakersfield Christian at Liberty-Madera Ranchos.
Another big game this week will feature the Holy Bowl as San Joaquin Memorial of Fresno will visit Garces in Bakersfield in a match-up of private Catholic high schools. This game will take place on Saturday.
The 1937 Warriors had their season cut short after teammate Milton Myers
passed away from a kidney injury suffered during a mid-week practice session.
Second Kern County High School Football Player
Succumbs After Suffering Football InjuryOnce again we hear the tragic news of a Kern County high school football player losing his life as a result of playing a game he enjoyed playing so much.
Sophomore Vinnie Rodriguez, a varsity member of the Boron High School Bobcats, suffered head trauma during a recent game and died on September 16 at Loma Linda University Medical Center in Riverside County.
Boron athletic director Jim Boghosian says Rodriguez fell over on the sideline after making what appeared to be a routine tackle. Boghosian says he was told Rodriguez began having seizures while he lay on the ground.
Bakersfield Christian High School senior Patrick Allen died of a condition related to dehydration on Aug. 16 after collapsing during a preseason workout two days earlier on Aug. 14.
Losing two high school boys to football related injuries from one County in one season is absolutely unbelievable. Our hearts go out to the families, coaches, and teammates of these two young men.
The only known Warrior to lose his life playing football for Tehachapi was 15 year old Milton Myers. Myers played for the 1937 Warriors and suffered a mid-week back injury during practice. The back injury turned out to be a severe kidney injury and Myers died in a Bakersfield hospital from complications related to the injury. A shaken Tehachapi High School administration decided to cancel the remainder of the 1937 football season, and the Warriors finished a shortened season with an 0-4 record.
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