Windsor’s Chase Vehmeyer, Rancho Cotate’s Sai Vadrawale are 2 of Sonoma County’s top football players — and friends

It isn’t always on-field performance that makes an athlete the best among his peers.

Take two players recognized by most of the coaches in the Redwood Empire as elite: Windsor quarterback Chase Vehmeyer and Rancho Cotate wide receiver/defensive back Sailasa Vadrawale.

The pair was in attendance at the Routes vs. Coverage Showcase 7-on-7 football camp in Oakland a few months ago and ended up on the same team with Andrew Antonio, Casa Grande coach John Antonio’s son.

On the ride home after the session, coach Antonio said his son spoke about both players’ leadership.

“The way they treated my sophomore slot receiver, they were great teammates to him,” the elder Antonio said. “I remember driving home on the second day and my son saying, ‘Those guys have it all. They’re great players, they’re really good teammates, they were good to me.’

“To me, that’s a huge thing. Both those guys on that team inspired my son. Imagine playing with those guys every week.”

It’s no secret that Windsor and Rancho Cotate are considered among the top teams to beat in their respective leagues thanks to those two, with Vehmeyer now under the tutelage of coach Paul Cronin, renowned for his work with quarterbacks in the past two decades, and Vadrawale in the Cougars’ constantly successful program, first under Ed Conroy and now Gehrig Hotaling.

Here’s a deeper dive into the pair and their now-blossoming friendship.

Rugby style

Per team stats on MaxPreps, through two games, Vadrawale has caught 21 passes for 327 yards and one touchdown. On defense, he has eight total tackles — which leads the team — and an interception.

Hotaling raved about Vadrawale, who dabbled in rugby prior to football. With Fijian roots, he brings a skill set that makes him valuable across the field.

“He plays the game like a rugby player,” Hotaling said. “It’s fantastic, it’s electric.”

Vadrawale, who goes by “Sai,” said he would train with his father’s rugby teams, although he never played competitively. He picked up football rather recently, a few years prior to high school, but the transition has been smooth thanks to that speed.

“He’s incredibly fast. I hand-timed him at a 4.3 (40-yard dash),” Hotaling said. “And I think I like to pride myself in being accurate on my hand times on those, which is insanely fast for a junior and a high school athlete in general.”

Vadrawale was also voted a team captain by his teammates. According to Hotaling, he’s full of energy.

“Probably the best thing about him is his drive,” Hotaling said. “He just doesn’t stop. He’s like the Energizer bunny out there. He just goes and goes and goes. It’s pretty fun to watch.”

The junior Cougars wide receiver welcomes the challenge of leadership.

“I live for pressure,” Vadrawale said. “I love doubt. I work harder when people are doubting me and everything. With pressure comes a great warrior inside of you.”

Don’t rule out seeing Vadrawale anywhere on the field.

“We just want the balls in his hands because good stuff is going to happen,” Hotaling said.

All-around air attack

How many high school seniors can say they’re playing their 11th year of football? Vehmeyer can.

Thrown into the fire early (second grade) by his father, who coached under Jason Franci at Montgomery for years, the Windsor senior is likely the most veteran quarterback in the area thanks to that tutelage.

“He taught me everything I know, to be honest,” the younger Vehmeyer said. “Up until high school, he was there for me every single day, every single practice. He was always the head coach.

“He was not a quarterback, but he would teach me how to be a quarterback.”

This past spring, the five-game sprint worked out well for Vehmeyer: He threw for 908 yards and nine touchdowns. This season, the four-year varsity starter has learned Cronin’s system quickly: the Jaguars cruised to wins against East Union and Montgomery, with Vehmeyer completing 22 of 28 passes for 441 yards and two touchdowns (He also ran for six touchdowns on the ground).

“It was full-go mode,” said Vehmeyer of the moment he found out Cronin was coming to Windsor. “He gave us about a week to process everything.”

Despite the recognition from other coaches in the area, Vehmeyer understands there’s more to accomplish.

“The job is not done yet, by any means,” he said.

Blossoming friendship

In addition to the camp experience, Vadrawale and Vehmeyer also played against each other while playing for KT Prep and in school scrimmages on 7-on-7 teams this past summer. The competition and camaraderie has led to the two becoming pretty close friends.

Vehmeyer said he and Vadrawale were standing in line at the RVC camp when they started talking about where each played at school. It was then that Vehmeyer realized who he was talking to.

“I was like, ‘What number?’” Vehmeyer said. “He told me and I was like, ‘No way, you’re him?’ And he’s like, ‘Yeah, who are you?’ and I said I’m Windsor’s quarterback. And he’s like, ‘No way!’

“We put those pieces together and figured out who each other were. We’ve just been really close since then. We talk almost everyday.

The feeling is mutual.

“I’d say we’re pretty good friends,” Vadrawale said. “Our teams are kind of rivals now. It’s mutual respect between me and him, but when we get on the field, no more friends. It’s time to battle and put your team on the map.”

So this season, don’t be surprised if the North Bay League-Oak Division title comes down to a fade into the end zone from Vehmeyer to a Jaguars receiver being defended by Vadrawale. It’d only make sense.