Been there, done that. An 0-2 start for the Trojan football team is nothing new and it’s no cause for alarm. Coach Sunil Smith is not worried because the team started the same way last year and turned out league champions in the end. “The games are almost identical; it’s eerie,” said Smith.

In Coach Smith’s first year, Alisal became the M.B.L. co-champs for the first time in school history. To build on their success, the team trained over the summer to improve their skills. During the summer the team went to three different camps: Competitive Edge, Team First, and Interior Lineman.

However, the team lost 20 players to graduation. According to Smith the key players lost were running back and strong safety, David Carriedo; quarterback, Francisco Estrada; and offensive and defensive lineman, Jose Rico. Smith also lost players because “they didn’t want to put in the hard work and time.”

Even though the team lost players they still have running back and safety, Raymond Guterriez; offensive lineman, Joel Cordova; defensive lineman, Cruz Lopez; and quarterback, Ray Mendoza. While optimistic, the players are not over-confident. “If we don’t play together as a team, we don’t stand a chance to repeat as champions,” said Guterriez.

According to Smith, the team lost the first two games because they didn‘t execute. Smith feels that it doesn’t affect the team, because they have been working hard. Smith decided to play Palma first because, “They’re a good off-season motivator and you can only get better playing a team like Palma.” Smith feels Palma will finish first in TCAL and Live Oak will compete with Salinas and Hollister for second the spot.

Smith thinks the future looks bright. “If we play the way we practiced this week, we can run it (the league) out.” He thinks this year will be tougher because there are four football teams that are good enough to win the league title.

“Monterey has an abundance of talent, North County has a great coach and program, Seaside has great talent, and Alisal is young, hard working, and we put in a lot of time and effort over summer,” says Smith.

Alisal’s next two opponents, Soledad and Templeton, will provide the team opportunities to work on their execution as they prepare to defend their M.B.L. title.