Game Preview: Battle of the Undefeated when Camarillo Travels to Calabasas on Friday

Written by Ryan Wright

Twitter: @HogManInLA

A battle of undefeated southern California teams will be on display Friday night when the Camarillo Scorpions (6-0) travel to the Calabasas Coyotes (6-0) in a non-league showdown.

Camarillo has steamrolled through the competition so far this year with their closest margin of victory being a 27-13 win over a tough Arroyo Grande squad. The Scorpions are a slight pass leaning team led by quarterback Jake Constantine. The 6’1”, 180, pound athlete has thrown for 1,520 yards with 22 touchdowns against just three picks. He has also gained another 136 yards on the ground finding the end zone two more times.

The running game is anchored by speedy Isaiah Otis. Otis is a true scat-back rushing for 848 yards and 14 touchdowns while hauling in 23 passes for 363 yards with four more scores.

When Constantine drops back to pass he has a quartet of receivers to pick from with Francisco Tostado being one of the more explosive playmakers in the group. The senior has 21 receptions for 256 yards with a team-high seven touchdowns. Colby Stevens is second on the team with 22 receptions for 184 yards with two touchdowns. The Coyotes cannot sleep on seniors Elijah Alexander or Ryan Muscarella. Alexander has pulled down 18 passes for 255 yards with three scores and Muscarella has 11 receptions for 261 yards with two scores sporting an eye popping 23.7 yards per reception.

The Scorpions defense is active led by leading tackler Brett Triebold. Triebold has 71 stops with 9.0 tackles for a loss from his linebacker position. Fellow senior linebacker Brett Harron is second on the squad with 57 tackles stopping the opposition behind the line of scrimmage a team-high 13 times. Wyatt Zambri leads the team with five sacks.

When the Coyotes are offense, they too lean towards the pass with Tristan Gebbia under center. Gebbia has thrown for 1,438 yards with 15 touchdowns against three interceptions so far this season. The run game goes through senior tailback Erik Hillman with sophomore Josh Madison as his primary backup.

The Coyotes’ receiving corps is equally as deep as the Scorpions lead by two-way star Darnay Holmes. When Holmes lines up on the outside he has been tough to stop with a team-high 412 yards receiving off 19 receptions with three scores. Class of 2017 standout Keyshawn Johnson Jr. has a team-high 25 passes caught going for 291 yards with three touchdowns.

Calabasas head coach Casey Clausen has two more weapons in his passing attack with emerging star, sophomore Brian Hightower, and another two-way star, Marquel Dismuke. Hightower has 22 receptions for 403 yards and Dismuke has proven to be a chain mover averaging 24 yards a catch off of nine passes taken in for 214 yards.

On defense, senior Arthur Kaslow and Isaiah Hayes lead the way with 52 and 51 tackles respectively. Kaslow is a disruptive force off the edge with 12.0 tackles for a loss and three sacks. The Coyotes have a bright future with sophomores Jackson Despain and Zack Boyle being top players on defense. Despain has a team-high 53 tackles and Boyle leads the Coyotes with 6.5 sacks.

Hayes is the top ball hawk in the secondary with three picks but which spot in the back four would an opposing offensive coordinator want to test? Hayes, Dismuke, Holmes, and Jermani Brown could easily be the best secondary in the nation.

The key to the game is which team can enforce their will in the passing attack against the other team’s stout defense. If a running back can get hot taking pressure off either quarterback, the opposing defense could be in for a long night.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. with the game being held at Calabasas High School.

*Recruiting News Guru will be there!

Photo credit: acorncapture.com; No. 13 Tristan Gebbia drops back to pass.