Sierra Canyons defensive unit: Call them The

Pow! Bam! Whack!

Sierra Canyon has a protection in high college soccer that wants comedian e book treatment.

Call them “The Kaboom Squad.”

At any second, whether or not it’s a lineman, linebacker or defensive back delivering the blow, be ready to be wowed.

With dimension, quickness and depth, the Trailblazers have shut out opponents for 12 consecutive quarters. The opponents haven’t been unhealthy: JSerra, Oaks Christian and Honolulu Punahou.

Will they go through their 10-game regular-season schedule unscored upon? Absolutely not. But the rationale they’ve three shutouts in lopsided victories is that the second stringers are performing as properly as first stringers when coach Jon Ellinghouse clears the bench.

Their 63-0 win over Oaks Christian broadcast on Spectrum only added to the Trailblazers’ popularity.

A mixture of returnees and transfers offers the Trailblazers a protection with few weaknesses.

Nobody is ideal, and maybe Downey and star quarterback Oscar Rios would be the first to end the shutout streak on Friday, but this is Sierra Canyon’s best protection since the spring of the 2021 COVID season when the Trailblazers put together 18 consecutive quarters of permitting zero factors and gave a scare to St. John Bosco.

All the Trailblazers’ positions are stuffed with gifted starters and high quality backups. The defensive line begins with Texas commit Richard Wesley, carrying No. 99, the quantity of Rams great Aaron Donald. The linebackers have a good, fearless tackler in Ronen Zamorano. The secondary has so many college-bound gamers that the gamers’ NIL offers may pay for a journey to Hawaii. Madden Riordan (USC), Havon Finney Jr. (Louisiana State) and Brandon Lockhart (USC) paved the way. And coming soon when the sit-out period ends on Sept. 29 is kicker Carter Sobel, who was a standout at Chaminade and will add to unhealthy discipline place for opposing offenses.

Sierra Canyon’s Spencer Parham will get emotional for a protection that hasn’t allowed any factors in 12 quarters.

(Craig Weston)

Having seen the physicality of St. John Bosco’s offensive and defensive traces last week in a 21-14 win over Baltimore St. Frances, Sierra Canyon (3-0) still wants to keep progressing to be on the same degree of the Trinity League powers needed to win a Southern Section Division 1 championship.

The Trailblazers are undoubtedly closing the hole with the Braves and No. 1 Mater Dei. They get a good tune-up for the Division 1 playoffs with a matchup against Orange Lutheran on Sept. 18, a workforce they misplaced to last season 33-26.

Chris Rizzo, a former Taft head coach, is the Trailblazers’ defensive coordinator. He wears his baseball cap backward on the sideline with sun shades and has many choices for defensive packages.

Asked if the protection has any weaknesses, Rizzo said, “We have some weaknesses. We’re not perfect by any means. We’ve got some things we have to fix and keep getting better.”

The protection is also serving to Sierra Canyon’s offense improve because it’s so troublesome to transfer the ball during practices.

“It makes our guys better,” Ellinghouse said.

Rizzo declined to reveal which unit he thinks is best. “The secondary is pretty star-studded,” he said. “The defensive line is deep. They embrace the grind and play for each other.”

Only time will inform whether or not this protection is as good as some suppose. There’s lots of video games forward to show if the Trailblazers are actually The Kaboom Squad.