High School football: Salinas, Aptos to square off at The Pit in a battle of unbeatens

SALINAS — The challenge of the Gabilan Division was exactly what Aptos High needed, what it demanded when it joined five years ago. What has eluded the program is a league title.

Salinas High has been largely responsible for that, sending the Mariners to their only loss in 2017, and keeping them from a share of the title in 2018 with a wild 28-24 win.

Redemption is just a word. Pandemic season aside, the road to a Gabilan Division title has gone through Salinas for three years as the two powers get reacquainted — both undefeated on the season — Friday at The Pit.

“Nothing changes with them,” Salinas coach Steve Zenk said. “Aptos is a disciplined team that plays to the whistle.”

Unlike previous seasons where the two teams have played in the league finale, it’s just Week 2 of the Gabilan Division season.

Yet, the Mariners are riding a wave of emotion and momentum after coming from behind late in the game to knock off Palma last week 47-42.

“I was surprised by the score,” Zenk said. “Both of those teams have solid defenses.”

Zenk was speaking about the fact that Aptos had shut out its first two opponents by a combined score of 98-0, stunning North Coast Section power Campolindo two weeks 49-0.

Zenk is no stranger to high-scoring affairs with the Mariners. While Salinas is 3-0 against them since becoming league rivals, the two teams have averaged a combined 58 points in their meetings.

“No matter what we do in practice, it’s difficult to simulate that offense,” Zenk said. “We have seen a couple of Wing-T offenses this year. So it’s not unfamiliar. Aptos just runs it so well.”

It’s what Aptos does that creates confusion, as it charges from the huddle to the line of scrimmage before snapping the ball within seconds, not allowing defenses to peek at the formation.

“We will adjust,” Zenk said. “This is one of the best defenses we have put together in my five years. We’ve been able to withstand the challenge in the past.”

Adjustments were made last week after giving up a touchdown in the first quarter, as the Cowboys defense forced Monte Vista into four turnovers, including a pick-six from Isaiah Durate.

The strength of that defense starts up front with Michael MacNeill in the trenches and Nathan Edeza coming off the edge, while Aidan Flynn and Jacob Vega are the heart of the linebacking corps.

“Our defensive coordinator does a great job in preparation,” Zenk insisted. “To me, that’s the hardest job in high school football. This group plays hard and physical.”

As dynamic as Aptos’ attack has been with three consecutive games of 45 or more points, the Cowboys are averaging 44 points a contest behind  quarterback Adam Shaffer, who has thrown for nearly 600 yards and six touchdowns, without a pick in 48 attempts through two games.

Shaffer has a trio of receivers to get the ball too, including Nyziah Hunter, who has a team high 14 catches this year, finishing with four touchdowns last week.

“Adam gets better with each game,” Zenk said. “He’s had a lot of growth. He does a good job in leading this team.”

As impressive as Shaffer has been with his arm, the junior has also rushed for over 100 yards, providing the offense with some balance in its running game along with Juan Acevedo.

“We’re big on whatever an opponent wants to give us, we’ll take,” Zenk said. “We believe we can run and throw equally effective. Our kids are prepared to respond to anything.”

Coming off an unexpected bye week two weeks ago, Zenk blamed Salinas’ sluggish first-quarter start on himself for not having them fully prepared.

“That usually happens to us after a bye week,” Zenk said. “You go from a game mood to trying to prepare to get better. One of these days, I’ll figure out how to do that.”

Nearly half of Salinas’ points this fall have come in the second quarter, where it has outscored teams 41-15. It has yet to allow a point in the first quarter.

“We can always play better,” Zenk said. “The goal each week, each day, each game is to be better than the previous week.”

What the Cowboys have done a good job of is capitalizing on mistakes, turning six turnovers into 35 points this season.

Aptos has been equal to the task, having forced 11 turnovers in three games, without committing one in its explosive start.

The Mariners offense is averaging nearly 500 yards a game, with Lawrence Ingram, Caden Prichard and Seamus Carey compiling over 300 rushing yards last week against Palma.

As run-heavy as Aptos traditionally is, quarterback Nick Forbes threw for over 200 yards last week and has thrown at least one touchdown pass in all three games.

“We don’t talk too much about who we’re playing,” Zenk said. “Our focus is on what we need to do to get better. I’m not about what the opponent does. It’s about being focused on the things we do.”