Northview QB James Arellanes makes former Vikings coach and dad proud with school’s first CIF title in 34 years

It was hug and a moment, but also a memory that will last forever.

After Northview quarterback James Arellanes finished celebrating Friday with his teammates following their 27-20 victory over St. Anthony in the CIF Southern Section Division 10 final that gave the Vikings their second championship ever and first since 1987, he sought out his dad, Jim Arellanes, and boy did they hug it out.

Jim Arellanes was the head coach at Northview from 2006 to 2009, and he knows all about the Vikings’ history. He raised his family in Covina and watched his son, and so many other Vikings teams, over the years come up short while chasing the school’s second title.

So imagine what it felt like when Jim, a former quarterback at El Rancho High School, watched his son James quarterback the Vikings to a championship.

James was steady, completing 10 of 19 passes for 119 yards, including a key 48-yard pass that was part of a touchdown drive.

“Going through it, I was probably more nervous than he was every week,” Jim Arellanes said. “I don’t know if people realize how hard it is to win a CIF championship.”

Jim Arellanes had some good teams during his tenure at Northview, and the school’s current coach Marcel Perez certainly had other great teams that knocked on the door.

But this is the team that got it done.

“It just shows you how hard it is to do,” Jim Arellanes said. “Thirty four years, that’s a long time. So yeah, to watch it happen, not just as a former coach, but watching your son be part of it, it’s hard to put into words. I’m just so damn proud.”

Northview (8-6) isn’t finished. It will travel to take on Colony (8-6) on Saturday in the CIF Southern California Division 4-A regional title game at 6 p.m. It’s a chance to raise another trophy, and a chance to move on to next week’s state championship game.

For the Vikings to continue winning, everyone has to play their part. James Arellanes knows that.

James’ season has very much mirrored the Vikings’ season, with plenty of ups and downs, but like his team, he has persevered.

There was a brutal four-game stretch for James that started in early September. After a loss to rival Covina, the Vikings lost to California, 22-19, in which James’ potential game-winning touchdown pass in the final seconds turned into an interception. It was a game that James didn’t start for the first time all season, though he came in to finish.

The next day, Jim Arellanes tried to console his son with a comment on social media that linked to a story about the game.

“Gotta take the good with the bad right? I know how much he wants this throw back, but have to learn and get better. Still an incredible work ethic, incredible passion and incredible kid. Love you son!”

Why did he post it?

“My message was you have to take the good with the bad,” Jim said. “But he got it. He said, ‘Dad, I’m not going to let it break me.’

“And he didn’t. You have to grow as a person and as a quarterback, and games like that are part of it. You have to be mentally tough and keep on fighting.”

Two more losses followed for Northview, stretching its losing streak to four with James throwing seven interceptions during that stretch.

But James doesn’t have a 4.5 grade point average and isn’t the vice president of his junior class because he shies from adversity.

He kept on working, getting better and was a major piece in the Vikings’ turnaround, first winning the Valle Vista League title, and then winning four straight in the playoffs.

In the Vikings’ past five games, James has thrown six touchdown passes with no interceptions. His stat line on the season is modest, having thrown for 1,461 yards and 16 touchdowns, but that’s his role.

The Vikings run the ball with authority, so James’ role is to manage the offense, and he’s done that to perfection over the last month.

“The kid is very intelligent,” Perez said. “He is a manager on the field for us and a winner. He has come a long way.”

James knows his role and what he needs to do.

“I don’t need to throw the ball 30 or 40 times or throw 40 touchdowns,” James said. “I have to do what my team needs me to do to win games. Our coaches do a great job coming up with a game plan and when they need a big play, or big pass from me, I have to be ready.

“Our coaching staff is great, they come up with a great game plan every week, and whatever your role is, just do your part. We have all bought in and have done it together. That’s why we’re still playing.”

James never looked at his early-season struggles as just him struggling; everyone struggled and everyone had to dig themselves out after a 2-5 start.

“We had to learn and I had to learn how to have short-term memories,” James said. “When something goes wrong you have to forget it and move on to the next play, the next game.

“That’s what our team is about. If someone messes up, we have each others back. We lift each other up and move on. We’re a team that has stuck together.”

Was there pressure being the son of a former Northview coach? Pressure playing the same position he did?

James knew his father had a reputation at the school and in the community before he took his first snap as a freshman in 2019. He barely remembers running around on the sidelines as a 5-, 6- and 7-year-old during his father’s coaching tenure at Northview.

But that hug. That moment. That was what it was all about.

“Sometimes the hard times got to me, but my dad was always there, helped me through it,” James said. “There was never any pressure that I had to be like my dad, or do it for my dad. I always knew that no matter what happened, my dad will always love me and be there for me.”

It might take a while for James to fully understand what the Vikings accomplished this season, especially while they’re still in the moment and chasing titles.

“The next morning after the championship I asked James, how does it feel?” Jim said. “He said he was sore. I just started laughing. I said, no, how does it feel? That’s when you realize he’s still a kid and I’m that proud dad.”