Centaurs to Rely on Experienced Defense

The Culver City High varsity football team began full pad practice last week in preparation for its opener on September 9 against West Torrance. Patch's George Laase caught up with Offensive Coordinator Aki Wilson and Head Coach Jahmal Wright to discuss the upcoming season.

Patch: This is the first week back from the CIF-mandated break, what are your early impressions of the team?

Aki Wilson: It remains to be seen. We have a lot of guys who played last year, a lot of returning starters. Our question mark is up front. We have only one returning starter on the offensive line. The other four guys are all new. At every other position, the guys played last year. So the sooner we can get the O-line to gel, the better we'll be.

Patch: Will Lukas O’Connor be a pocket-style quarterback?

Aki Wilson: If the front line gives him the time. I want him to be a pocket quarterback.

Patch: Will Culver City continue to run the “Wildcat" formation?

Aki Wilson: Of course. [Quarterback/receiver] Kevin Porche is such a weapon with the ball.

Patch: Is there anyone who stands out at this point?

Aki Wilson: It’s too early for that. Everybody has to come out and work. I’m not going to give anybody praise yet. They haven’t done anything, they haven’t earned anything yet.

Patch: Are there any underclassmen who have surprised you?

Aki Wilson: We have a couple of newcomers who will help us out a lot. [Wide receiver] Julius Wilson and [running back/linebacker] Akili Skannal will be juniors. They should help us out a lot this year.

Patch: What’s your prognosis for the beginning of the year?

Jahmal Wright: So far, so good. We're very excited about this year’s team. We have 30 seniors and eight returning starters on defense, including the whole front seven. The only one who graduated is [offensive lineman] Billy Sanchez. We're very excited about our defense this year. The only question we have is the offensive line, but through camp and with two-a-days we’ll come around and shore that up.

Patch: Who’s going to be the team to beat in the Ocean League this year?

Jahmal Wright: Inglewood is the champion from last year and they went 5-0, so they're going to be formidable. Santa Monica has lots of talent coming back and Coach Travis Clark does a marvelous job with his staff. Beverly Hills is a rivalry that goes way back. Those three teams are definitely going to challenge us for the league title.

Patch: Can you predict where you'll finish in the Ocean League?

Jahmal Wright: Our goal is to win it. We've won it four out of the last five seasons and that's our goal again. We'll take one game at a time. We think we own the Ocean League, so we have to go out and prove it. We make no bones about it, we’ll tell the whole world our goal is to win the Ocean League.

Patch: How much are you going to count on Kevin Porche?

Jahmal Wright: Kevin is one of our better football players. We have to find creative ways to get him the ball, but he's only one of the many weapons we have on this team. We’ll try to create matchups. Kevin’s not only a good receiver, he does other things as well.

Patch: Besides the five captains (Alex Jackson, Lukas O'Connor, Kevin Porche, Khalil Pettway and Jonathan Jackson), who is showing leadership?

Jahmal Wright: We're a senior-laden team. So with 30 seniors out of 53 players, they know what to expect. They check themselves because they have so much experience. That’s a great thing to see as a coach, because they already know what's expected of them. Many of them are now in their third or fourth year in the program. I'm proud of my seniors. They're a close-knit group and I expect them to lead the way to a league championship this season.