Windsor will host Petaluma at Cardinal Newman field Friday at 7:30 p.m.
The varsity football Jaguars will make their 2016 debut when they play host away from home to the visiting Petaluma Trojans this Friday, Aug. 26 in the season opener at the Cardinal Newman stadium.
The game was moved after WHS received word that its field was unplayable when it failed a compaction test on the rubberized material. Future home games will be relocated until the issue can be figured out. Kickoff times for the JV and varsity are 5 and 7:30 p.m.
Windsor is coming off a strong 2015 campaign, posting a 4-3 league mark before advancing to the NCS quarterfinals before falling to Clayton Valley Charter. The Jags will have a youthful glow this season under second year head coach Tom Kirkpatrick, having graduated nearly all of their starters from last year.
“We’re a work in progress, nothing is set in stone at any position right now,” Kirkpatrick said this week. “We’re very young up front, but I do think we’ll be pretty good defensively.”
The Jaguars’ offensive unit will be led by senior veteran Kobe Roman, a great athlete that can make things happen any time he touches the ball. Although he’s more than capable of running the football, Roman can be expected to air it out down the field.
“We’ll run some zone read (option) stuff, but I think we’ll throw the football more than we did last year,” Kirkpatrick said.
Also manning the offensive backfield are the team’s lone starters on offense from last year, senior running back David Escarcega and bruising senior fullback Joey Pignataro. Senior Jackson Baughman also figures to get his share of carries.
The offensive line is not yet set, but may consist of as many as eight players led by seniors Logan Conner and Kevin Correa. The Jags boast a talented core of receivers that features senior Marcel Sands, junior Jorgen Sarganis, senior Jordan Diaz and junior Patrick Tappin. Bas Osborn and Jordan Diaz figure to anchor the yet undetermined defensive line. The linebacking corps should be a good one, led by Pignataro, Jarrod Mulholland and Brett Stibi. Manning the defensive backfield are Sands, Baughman, Sarganis, Ian “Chuck” Knoblock and Bic Chaturaksama.
Lacrosse star turned football player Olin Piotter will handle most of the punting and kicking chores.
