Napa looks to turn momentum gained in offseason into regular season success
By Kyle Foster, photo courtesy of Don Lex (LuckyDuckImages.com)
Twitter: @NapaKyle @NapaSportsNews
There is a lot of renewed hope and optimism around the Napa High football program, as the team prepares for its 2022 season.
One reason is that the team has had a typical offseason for the first time in a few years. After all, they were able to get in the weight room to prepare for this season. The weight room was something that was lacking in 2021 for the Grizzlies.
“We’ve gotten back into the weight room and everyone’s increasing in strength and we’re all getting better in the weight room,” Napa High lineman Carlo Deianni said. “We’re trying to bring that to the field and we’re starting off better than last year. We’re just trying to keep the momentum going.”
Another reason for there to be some optimism is the fact that there are a good amount of players returning from last season. Yovani Palma started most of the games last season under center and will be back as the quarterback as just a junior.
“He’s just so much more mature now,” Napa High head coach Askari Adams said of the growth of his signal caller. “He’s not like a deer in headlights and I think being forced into it last year has really helped him out for the offseason. He’s actually become one of the leaders on the team, and he’s out here working extra almost every other day.”
They’ll also return Carlos Mata, Tyson Furth-Lopez, Deianni, and Jose Martinez.
“All the seniors, this is our last year,” Deianni said of the team’s cohesion this season. “We’ve kind of fought through since freshman year with COVID. Then some hard seasons and seniors will make this year count.”
It’s also no secret that Napa is looking to have a better season than they did in 2021. Last season, they finished with a 1-9 record that included a 1-6 mark in Vine Valley Athletic League play. The lone win came in the season’s final game against Sonoma Valley.
So far this summer, the Grizzlies have been busy.
They began the summer by going to the UC Davis 7-on-7 tournament. In that tournament, they got to see where they stacked up with some of the best teams in the area.
“It was amazing,” Palma said of the UC Davis tournament. “Lots of people getting used to varsity snaps. Lots of people who are coming up are new. All the leaders were there and immediately everybody started clicking together.”
Also over the summer, they participated in league 7-on-7 at Vanden every Thursday in June.
A few minor tweaks to the schedule in 2022
This year, the Grizzlies schedule will have a pair of new opponents on the non-league schedule.
“Honestly, every game is circled,” Adams pointed out. “(After going) 1-9 we don’t have the capability of circling games.”
One of them is Irvington of Fremont who they’ll open up the season against on August 27th. It will be a special 5:30 pm start at Napa Memorial Stadium.
After that, they’ll host former Monticello Empire League rival Wood-Vacaville on September 2nd before visiting Rodriguez on September 9th.
The final non-league game will come on September 16th when they host Novato.
Napa will have their bye week on September 23rd, which is the week before they begin the Vine Valley Athletic League portion of the schedule.
When league play gets underway, Napa will have a pair of home games right away against a pair of local rivals.
On September 30th, they’ll host American Canyon. To begin October, they’ll then host Justin-Siena. Last season, they lost a close 14-7 game on the road against the Braves.
Following that, they take a trip to Petaluma to visit Casa Grande on October 14th.
Petaluma High will visit Napa on October 21st.
Big Game LI (51) will take place on October 28th, with Napa as the visitor for the first time ever in an odd-numbered Big Game.
Big Game will once again be featured in the Great American Rivalry Series 2022 season.
To end the regular season, the Grizzlies will take a trip to Sonoma to face the Dragons. It was who they beat for their lone victory last season.
The awaited return of freshmen football
The last time Napa offered freshman football was all the way back in 2018. It’s been a total of four years.
From the outside, having freshman football may not seem like a super important thing to have. But it goes a long way in helping to develop the future of the program.
“Since I’ve been here, we haven’t had a freshmen team,” Adams pointed out. “I know it’s been a while since we had one. Just to be able to have one right now is huge for the program.”
New year, new coaches, and some in different roles
As is the case every year, the program has had some coaching changes.
Adam Schnider will now call the offense this season. Isaac Castrillo is in to help as the linebacker coach. Ian Stand will coach the defensive line. 2017 Napa graduate Axel Chowell will coach the wide receivers at the varsity level this season.
Chowell brings with him valuable experience to win a league title. After all, he won a pair of Monticello Empire League titles in his time in the blue and gold.
For the new freshman team, Kavelle Jenkins will lead them as the head coach and also coach the running backs at the varsity level. Ramon Ochoa will coach the defensive line for the freshman and varsity.
Leading the efforts in the weight room as the strength and conditioning coach will be Jeremy Vassalo. He’ll also help with the offensive line at the varsity level.
