The Monterey Trail Mustangs open their 2019 football campaign today with a week zero matchup against the Sheldon Huskies, but will have a new face running their veer offense.
After two years of former quarterback Zach Larrier leading the high-powered offense that averaged 469.3 yards per game of offense last season, senior quarterback Viktor Timonin has taken the helm.
Mustangs head coach, T.J. Ewing, said that Timonin played quarterback at the junior varsity level for the Mustangs and knows the system really well.
“He (Timonin) has good accuracy and is tough as nails,” Ewing said.
The two back system that will be behind Timonin is junior running back Prophet Brown and senior running back/middle linebacker Marcus Jones Jr.
Brown played in all of the games for the Mustangs last season where he carried the ball 36 times for 551 yards and had nine touchdowns.
Although Jones Jr. didn’t run the ball offensively for Monterey Trail last season, he can run the ball up the gut and run over people.
The receiver that will be catching the pigskin down the field for the Mustangs will be Kevin Adams Jr.
“I’m excited and ready to see what these guys are going to do,” Ewing said.
On the defensive side of the ball, you have to mention Jones Jr. first.
The senior standout anchored the Monterey Trail last season with 147 tackles and 13.0 tackles for loss.
Senior defensive back Antonio Williams will be tasked with locking down receivers. The third-year varsity player has a total of 92 tackles and two fumble recoveries in 15 games played for the Monterey Trail.
Over the summer for scrimmages, Ewing said he moved a lot of guys around into different positions to see where everyone on his roster would fit.
The Mustangs scrimmaged with Lincoln-Stockton, Manteca and Davis.
“The scrimmages were great,” Ewing said. “They were competitive and physical.”
One of the things Ewing was happy about his team this offseason was the work they did on their own.
Ewing said that his kids would meet up and go and workout with one another away from the coaches and on their own time.
Although the Mustangs zoomed through the Huskies last season in a 41-6, Ewing said the Huskies are a great team and can’t wait to get the season started.
“They play hard and the coaches over there have done a great job,” Ewing said.
Sheldon also has a new head coach in Dave Filan. Filan was an assistant coach the past three seasons under former Huskies head coach Joe Cattolico.
Filan was the head coach at Valley High School from 2011 – 2015 where he posted a 10-31 record, including a playoff birth in 2014.
Tonight’s game will kick off at 7:15 p.m. at Sheldon-Pleasant Grove Stadium.
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