Long Beach Poly taps former Giant LB Antonio Pierce as new head coach

 

by Jeff Fisher
Follow @HSFBamerica

Antonio Pierce, who played nine years in the NFL with the Giants and the Redskins, is the new head football coach at Long Beach Poly.

Pierce, who was introduced to the media today, becomes the 25th coach of the Jackrabbits, who have been playing football for 106 years.  Pierce takes over for Raul Lara, who resigned at the end of last season after leading the school to a record five CIF-SS titles and an overall record of 142-30.

Pierce, who is native of Compton, played his prep football at Paramount High. After high school, he went on to Mt. San Antonio College before moving on to Arizona. He was undrafted, but had a successful professional career making the Pro Bowl in 2006. He was a starter on the Giants' Super Bowl team in 2007.

While addressing the media, Pierce, who's son will be a junior on the team this year, said he will continue with his ESPN analyst duties.  You can hear his comments about commuting to ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut and topics in the video above.

Former Poly High School Football Star Cleared of 2002 Rape Charge

by Jeff Fisher
High School Football America

The story of former Long Beach Poly football player Brian Banks, whose 2002 rape conviction was dismissed by a judge on Thursday, continues to twist and turn like a soap opera.

The LA Times reported on its blog today that the 26-year old Banks will be seeking money from the State of California for the five years he was in prison.  In the same story, the LA Times Blog reports that the former high school football star will not take legal action against his accuser Wanetta Gibson.

The path to Banks' freedom came after Gibson "friended" him on Facebook and telling him she felt guilty about making-up the rape allegations.  Banks, who wanted to play college football at USC at the time of the allegation, always contended the sex was consensual.

Banks, who's in great shape, is hoping to get a tryout with an NFL team.

Based on the odds Banks overcame to win his freedom, stay tuned to see what happens next in his story...I don't doubt that one NFL will give him a shot.

Who knows, since Banks still has his college eligibility, maybe a college coach will give him a chance to resume his dream.

In the meantime, watch the story on NBC's Today Show on Friday that includes an exclusive interview with Banks.

   

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California High School Football Scoreboard - 2nd Round Playoffs

By Jeff Fisher
The High School Football Huddle

Long Beach Poly (#6 USA Today) had another close call Saturday. One week after surviving by four points in the opening round of the PAC-5 playoffs, the Jackrabbits just got by Esperanza. Poly's 17-10 win moves them into the semifinals where it will face Lakewood. Click here for a game story.



California High School Football Scores
Saturday, November 29, 2008

SOUTHERN SECTION
Quarterfinals

PAC-5 (I)
Long Beach Poly 17, Esperanza 10

MID-VALLEY (XI)
Paraclete 14, Northview 0

EAST VALLEY (XII)
Maranatha 23, Big Bear 22 (OT)

NORTHEAST (XIII)
Riverside Christian 49, St. Genevieve 28
Linfield Christian 26, Bell-Jeff 0

8 MAN DIVISION I
Semifinals
Faith Baptist 18, Thacher 14
Santa Clarita Christian 26, Windward 21

8 MAN DIVISION II
Semifinal
Desert Chapel 42, North County Christian 38

#6 Poly Pops St. Bonaventure With D

By Jeff Fisher
The High School Football Huddle

In it's first big California test, Long Beach Poly showed that it's prepared to make a run at a Division I state championship. The Jackrabbits moved to 5-0 with a 12-7 win over previously unbeaten St. Bonaventure.

Click here for a game recap from the LA Times.

California High School Football Scores
Friday, October 10, 2008

USA Today Super 25
#6 Long Beach Poly 12 St. Bonvaventure 7
#10 Centennial 38 Roosevelt 7

Post-Game Comments from Gardena Serra/Taft

CITY
EAST VALLEY LEAGUE
Arleta 47, Grant 7
Sun Valley Poly 47, Verdugo Hills 12

EASTERN LEAGUE
Los Angeles Roosevelt 44, Bell 3
Los Angeles Jordan 44, Huntington Park 27

NONLEAGUE
Belmont 35, South Gate 19
Lincoln 31, Los Angeles 6
Los Angeles Marshall 42, Santee 21
Los Angeles Wilson 52, Contreras 32
San Pedro 38, Sylmar 14

SOUTHERN SECTION
BIG VIII LEAGUE
Corona Centennial 38, Corona Roosevelt 7
Riverside North 35, King 17

CITRUS BELT LEAGUE
Redlands East Valley 17, Fontana 0
Carter 34, Rialto 14
Miller 24, Yucaipa 0
Redlands 40, Eisenhower 13

GOLDEN LEAGUE
Eastside 36, Antelope Valley 14
Highland 14, Littlerock 12
Palmdale 28, Knight 21
Quartz Hill 29, Lancaster 13

INLAND VALLEY LEAGUE
Rancho Verde 21, Moreno Valley 0
La Sierra 36, Canyon Springs 27
Ramona 43, Vista del Lago 37
Valley View 41, Arlington 34

LOS PADRES LEAGUE
Lompoc Cabrillo 28, Santa Ynez 20
Morro Bay 36, Templeton 26
Pioneer Valley 20, Nipomo 0
Santa Maria St. Joseph 42, Santa Maria 0

MARMONTE LEAGUE
Thousand Oaks 38, Agoura 14
Moorpark 45, Simi Valley 14
Newbury Park 23, Royal 21
Westlake 49, Calabasas 21

MONTVIEW LEAGUE
Azusa 36, Sierra Vista 3
Duarte 34, Gladstone 16
Workman 20, La Puente 14

MOORE LEAGUE
Lakewood 30, Long Beach Cabrillo 8
Compton 30, Long Beach Wilson 22
Long Beach Jordan 21, Millikan 7

MOUNTAIN PASS LEAGUE
Banning 35, Heritage 28
Beaumont 45, Tahquitz 31
Citrus Hill 48, Riverside Notre Dame 17

PAC-7 LEAGUE
San Luis Obispo 42, Lompoc 33

PACIFIC LEAGUE
Arcadia 22, Glendale 6
Crescenta Valley 20, Burbank 12
Muir 13, Burbank Burroughs 10
Pasadena 51, Hoover 0

SAN JOAQUIN LEAGUE
Twin Pines 27, Animo Leadership 20

SUBURBAN LEAGUE
Artesia 61, Cerritos 13

NONLEAGUE
Crespi 37, Saugus 14
Los Osos 35, West Ranch 14
Bishop Amat 17, Diamond Ranch 6
Chaparral 56, Cathedral City 3
Arroyo Grande 34, San Marcos 21
Bell Gardens 24, Paramount 6
Beverly Hills 38, Desert Hot Springs 7
Big Bear 35, Rosamond 10
Bishop Diego 33, Grace Brethren 24
Boron 35, Vasquez 0
Buena 17, Hueneme 0
Camarillo 10, Oak Park 7
Campbell Hall 14, Lucerne Valley 0
Cantwell-Sacred Heart 33, Bosco Tech 7
Cathedral 37, Morningside 7
Cerritos Valley Christian 56, Godinez 0
Charter Oak 35, Etiwanda 32
Chino Hills 28, Silverado 20
Corona del Mar 17, Villa Park 5
Costa Mesa 35, Century 6
Desert 28, Pasadena Poly 8
Dos Pueblos 30, Rio Mesa 22
El Segundo 35, Bishop Montgomery 13
Harvard-Westlake 28, Chaminade 13
Hesperia 27, Ridgecrest Burroughs 24
Inglewood 31, Palos Verdes 30
Jurupa Valley 27, Perris 12
Kaiser 13, Colton 13
La Canada 28, Arroyo 0
La Serna 21, Los Altos 6
Lakeside 28, Calvary Murrieta 7
Leuzinger 35, Hawthorne 6
Linfield Christian 42, Chadwick 14
Lynwood 49, Lawndale 13
Malibu 20, Flintridge Prep 7
Maranatha 14, Rio Hondo Prep 7
Murrieta Valley 35, La Quinta 7
Newport Harbor 42, Mira Costa 14
Nordhoff 49, Fillmore 7
Norte Vista 40, Montclair 27
North Torrance 28, West Torrance 21
Northview 40, Nogales 7
Ocean View 27, Estancia 8
Oxnard 38, Ventura 7
Oxnard Pacifica 38, Santa Barbara 37
Paloma Valley 29, Bloomington 14
Redondo 23, Culver City 22
Rim of the World 27, Granite Hills 7
Rowland 21, Baldwin Park 0
San Clemente 28, La Habra 21
San Dimas 50, Bonita 33
San Gorgonio 40, Apple Valley 27
San Marino 29, San Gabriel 17
Santa Clara 50, Kilpatrick 8
Santa Fe 21, Downey 16
Santa Monica 28, Capistrano Valley 14
Santa Paula 27, Channel Islands 21
Schurr 7, Whittier 6
Silver Valley 21, Mojave 0
South Hills 14, Rosemead 10
South El Monte 35, Alhambra 7
South Pasadena 35, Keppel 6
South Torrance 27, Peninsula 7
St. Anthony 26, Downey Calvary Chapel 14
St. Francis 45, El Rancho 7
St. Paul 42, Pioneer 0
Summit 39, Sultana 14
Temescal Canyon 31, Hemet 20
Temple City 28, La Salle 17
Twentynine Palms 24, Aquinas 21
Walnut 47, Sonora 13
Warren 23, Torrance 21
West Covina 35, Diamond Bar 25
Whittier Christian 34, Kern Valley 7

INTERSECTIONAL
Orange Lutheran 42, Wilmington Banning 7
Los Alamitos 41, Narbonne 28
Gardena Serra 49, Taft 13
Atascadero 20, Sanger 7
Calexico 10, Coachella Valley 8
Carlsbad Army-Navy 14, Sage Hill 6
El Centro Southwest 22, Desert Mirage 21
Gardena 24, Huntington Beach 7
San Diego Cathedral 63, Chino 7
San Diego Horizon 45, Anza Hamilton 0
San Diego Parker 49, Laguna Beach 7
Valencia 35, Westchester 0

8 MAN
AGAPE LEAGUE
Joshua Springs 20, Victor Valley Christian 15

EXPRESS LEAGUE
Southlands Christian 46, Eastside Christian 14

MAJESTIC LEAGUE
Temecula Prep 62, Marywood-Palm Valley 12

OMEGA LEAGUE
Sierra Canyon 47, First Lutheran 0

VICTORY LEAGUE
Bermuda Dunes Desert Christian 62, High Desert Academy 14
Desert Chapel 42, California Lutheran 6
Moreno Valley Calvary Chapel 24, Upland Christian 0

WARRIOR LEAGUE
San Jacinto Valley Academy 56, Nuview Bridge 6

#6 Long Beach Poly (CA) Readies for Big Test Against St. Bonaventure

By Jeff Fisher
The High School Football Huddle

Long Beach Poly doesn't rebuild, it just reloads and tonight the Jackrabbits (4-0) will get a good idea how far they've come in rebuilding last year's PAC-5 division championship team.

Poly, ranked #6 this week by USA Today, will host St. Bonaventure (4-0) at Long Beach Veterans Stadium. Poly is ranked #2 this week in its Top 25, while St. Bonaventure is #3.

Click here for a preview from the LA Times and check-out the video below on some of Poly's top defensive players.

LA Times Top 25 High School Football Rankings

By Jeff Fisher
The High School Football Huddle

Except for Centennial, PAC-5 schools continue to dominate the LA Times Top 25 high school football rankings. Seven teams from the the PAC-5 are in the Top 10, and there are 14 PAC-5 schools overall in the Top 25.

The biggest change is Mater Dei's two spot drop to #5 after losing to #2 Centennial last weekend.

Here's the entire Top 25...

1. Long Beach Poly (2-0) , LW: #1
2. Centennial (2-0) , LW: #2
3. Crespi (3-0) , LW: #4
4. Mission Viejo (3-0) , LW: #5
5. Mater Dei (2-1) , LW: #3
6. St. Bonaventure 3-0, LW: #7
7. Servite (2-1) , LW: #6
8. Notre Dame (2-0), LW: #8
9. Oaks Christian (3-0) , LW: #9
10. Redlands Valley East (2-0) , LW: #10
11. Edison (3-0) , LW: #11
12. Los Osos (2-0) , LW: #12
13. Bishop Amat (2-1) , LW: #13
14. Upland (3-0) , LW: #15
15. Loyola (2-1) , LW: #17
16. Orange Lutheran (2-1) , LW: #14
17. Los Alamitos (2-0) , LW: #18
18. Lakewood (3-0) , LW: #19
19. Rancho Verde (3-0) , LW: #20
20. Corona Santiago (1-1) , LW: #21
21. Chaparral (1-1) , LW: #22
22. Tesoro (3-0) , LW: #23
23. St. John Bosco (3-0) , LW: #25
24. Serra (3-0) , LW: NR
25. Palmdale (2-0) , LW: NR

Long Beach Poly Squeezes Past Orange Lutheran

The minimum number of points two teams can score in a football game and win is two.

Long Beach Poly beat defending California Division II champ Orange Lutheran 2-0 Friday night to advance to the CIF Southern Section PAC-5 championship game. Poly used two outstanding goal line stands to reverse the 2006 playoff outcome when Orange Lutheran beat Poly by one-point.

The first goal line stand came in the first half when the Jackrabbits were able to stop O-L on four straight plays inside the 1 yard line. Then with 16-second to go in the game, Orange Lutheran fumbled inside the Poly one-yard line.

Poly's only points came on a safety when Orange Lutheran had a bad snap on a punt.

Poly will play Crespi next week for the PAC-5 championship. Crespi won its semifinal game, beating Servite 13-10 in overtime.