Last week’s inaugural Apple City Jamboree was exactly what it was supposed to be: a quick, competitive kickoff to the 2018 high school football season. And while the coaches of the city’s four teams — Watsonville High, Pajaro Valley High, St. Francis High and Monte Vista Christian — probably ended the night with a gigantic list of things they wanted to work on this week, it was tough to glean much from my ever-changing position.
There was only one thing I knew for certain when I walked off Emmett M. Geiser Field: the Watsonville-Pajaro Valley rivalry is alive and well.
When the city’s two public schools duked it out in the glorified scrimmage, the kids ran faster, the hits were harder and the chatter was a little more audible.
“You scared,” a Pajaro Valley defensive end barked at a Watsonville offensive tackle before a play. “I see you. You scared.”
I was starting to get a little worried that the best rivalry in Santa Cruz County had lost a little of its luster with the muted responses I received in season preview interviews. The 12th annual Belgard Kup Game, slated for tonight at 7:30 p.m. back at Geiser, was the last thing on any of the players’ minds.
“We don’t care much about that game,” said Pajaro Valley senior lineman Josue Gutierrez. “It’s a preseason game. We’re looking to league.”
Said Watsonville senior linebacker Esteban Reyes: “It’s just another regular game. Except it’s at the beginning this time.”
“Mm-hmm,” I said, trying to get him to expound further.
To which Reyes matter-of-factly replied: “That’s it.”
Getting some smack talk out of these kids has been tougher than getting a substantial answer from Sarah Huckabee Sanders — I “can’t guarantee” that will be my final political joke of this column.
I’d like to take the kids at their word, and believe tonight’s meeting will be nothing more than a preseason contest. But seeing their actions last week, makes me skeptical.
A more realistic takeaway from their mum responses?
In a world dominated by social media, where nothing ever truly dies and things get blown out of proportion on a daily basis, nobody wants to be “that guy.” You know, “that guy.” The guy that calls out the other team, wakes a sleeping bear and turns what should be an ordinary game into a bloodbath.
We all know, “that guy.” My senior year at Watsonville there was a “that guy” at Aptos High who insulted our school before the now-defunct Black and Blue Bowl. Someone played the grainy 240p YouTube clip — it was 2009 — at the rally before the game, and everyone in that gym (players, coaches, students, administrators) was instantly ready to run through a wall that night. The result of that game? Watsonville 43, Aptos 23 — the Wildcatz’s last victory over the Mariners to this date. Thanks, “that guy.”
I have no clue how the organizers of that gameday rally found that video. Like I said, it was a decade ago and social media was just becoming a thing — my Myspace page is probably still out there somewhere. Today, it’s comically easy for a team to find something that could be used as motivation or ammunition for trash talking. Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, take your pick: it’s never been easier for a high school kid to make a mistake for the whole world to see — now and in the future.
“It’s tough to be a kid nowadays,” said Pajaro Valley head coach Kevin Cordova.
When Cordova played for St. John Bosco in the early 2000s, trash talking leading up to the yearly rivalry game against St. Paul High was almost expected. Most of it was friendly, some of it was mean but none of it was posted to the internet for coaches, parents, teachers or future employers to see.
“All that was part of a rivalry,” Cordova said. “Back then, most kids would’ve been psyched to get quoted in the newspaper, but now they’ve got to be a little more tentative because things go viral so quickly.”
There has been no shortage of people sticking their foot in their mouths, or being thrown through a trial by mob for online posts from their younger days. From Roseanne Barr’s ambien-fueled racist tweet leading to the cancelation of her television show, to Buffalo Bills rookie quarterback Josh Allen taking a hit when racist and homophobic tweets from his high school days resurfaced just hours before the NFL Draft, it is very easy to come to this conclusion: “Nothing goes unseen, and nothing ever disappears,” said Monte Vista Christian head coach Jubenal Rodriguez.
With that in mind, the Pajaro Valley Unified School District high schools last fall added a “social media contract” to their preexisting athletic packet, a yearly stack of forms that also includes a student-athlete’s sports physical, parental consent and insurance policy, among other things. The social media contract isn’t very long, roughly one page, according to Watsonville Athletic Director Mark Northcutt, but it serves as a good “reminder” of what is acceptable and, more importantly, what isn’t.
“I think the kids know right from wrong, but we try to let them know that it extends beyond the game,” Northcutt said. “Anytime you represent the ‘Catz or the Grizzlies, or anyone, really, there’s a standard that you need to live up to, not just when you’re in the game, but also when you’re at home chillin’ on the bed at 9 p.m.”
M.V.C. does not require a social media contract for its student-athletes, and Rodriguez has not enforced a football specific code of conduct for his players either. The first-year coach gives his players free reign over everything they do on the web.
“We’re going based on trust,” Rodriguez said. “We put the trust in our kids that they’ll stay away from the bad stuff, and I’m proud of how our kids have used the platform.”
Rodriguez is right to be proud. Many M.V.C. players, like senior receiver Daniel Brierley, senior defensive back Scott Tinsley and junior offensive tackle Anthony Shepherd, use their Twitter profiles as a sports-themed online resume, showcasing their height, weight, grade point average, year of graduation and, in some cases, email.
They also include a link to their highlights on Hudl, a website that hosts numerous hours of game film from nearly every high school program in the country. In a matter of seconds, a high school athlete can get the attention of a college coach by uploading a highlight of a recent game or camp and “tagging” them in a post. And, thanks to a NCAA decision in 2016, college coaches are free to “follow,” “like,” “favorite” and “retweet” prospective student-athletes, letting them know if there’s mutual interest — coaches still can’t directly tweet at or about recruits, leading to a policy best known as “Click; don’t type.”
That instant access to coaches still boggles Pajaro Valley Athletic Director Joe Manfre’s mind.
“I remember the days when we were cutting together VHS tapes and mailing them to coaches not even knowing if they got them,” Manfre said. “[Twitter is] such a powerful tool if used in the right way.”
While having a professional-looking Twitter page doesn’t guarantee that a kid will receive a scholarship, it will at least keep an interested coach from scratching them off their recruiting list. Almost every college program, especially at the NCAA Division I level, starts the recruiting process with a deep dive into a prospect’s social media accounts. And if a coach sees any red flags — posts about drugs, drinking, race, sexuality — they typically move on to the next kid.
“For our kids that do want to play at the next level, we tell them that they have to be aware of that,” Cordova said. “Whatever image of yourself that you have online, that’s going to be a coach’s first impression of you.”
Watsonville head coach Ron Myers said he didn’t spend much time with his players going over social media etiquette. He simply recited an old adage at the beginning of the season.
“If you can’t say anything nice,” Myers said, “don’t say anything at all.”
So maybe kids are becoming more aware of the social media landscape of their generation, or maybe the Belgard Kup Game has lost a bit of its mystique as the season opener instead of a season finale.
Either way, I’ll leave you with a quote from possibly the greatest athlete of all time, Bruce Wayne: “One man’s tool is another man’s weapon.”
In the right hands, social media can be a life-changing tool. In the wrong hands, that small electronic device in your pocket can be a self-destructive weapon.
Post wisely.
Editor’s Note: Tony’s Thoughts is a reoccurring column from Sports Editor Tony Nunez that dives into the local sports world. Contact Nunez at Tn****@********an.com or 761-7335.
