Two coaches who have faced both Yucca Valley and Cerritos break down the CIF title matchup

At the time, it seemed odd to Bill Johnson. But this week, it makes a little more sense.

When Johnson, the football coach at Coachella Valley High School, hopped onto a phone call with Cerritos High coach Demel Franklin prior to their CIF Southern Section semifinal game last week, all Franklin wanted to do was talk about the football team at Yucca Valley High.

“What can you tell me about them?” Johnson recalls Franklin asking, even before the Don had beaten Coachella Valley to secure a matchup with Yucca Valley in the Division 12 finals this Saturday in Lakewood.

Then, just before their teams faced each other on the field last Friday, Franklin again asked Johnson about Yucca Valley. It seemed to be a fairly brazen move but it now makes a lot more sense that the Cerritos head coach would want to know everything about his opponent in the CIF title game.

The matchup is now set. Yucca Valley will travel to Lakewood for a neutral site game at Artesia High. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. A Yucca Valley win would mark the first CIF football championship for a Coachella Valley team since Palm Springs won the Eastern Division in 2014.

Aside from Johnson, one other coach this season has faced both Cerritos and Yucca Valley — Buena Park’s David Prieto. So, we checked in with both Johnson and Prieto, whose teams lost to Yucca Valley and Cerritos, to get their take on who has the advantages and where leading into the Division 12 title game.

Here is their analysis:

When Cerritos is on offense

The Dons run a power rushing offense, utilizing a physical offensive line and multiple between-the-tackles runners. For valley football fans, think of La Quinta. Four different runners, including quarterback Justin Sagun, carried the ball at least eight times each for Cerritos in the semifinal win over Coachella Valley.

Cerritos racked up 301 yards on 59 carries in that game, with a slow, methodical approach. Only three of those carries went for more than 15 yards.

“What makes Cerritos dangerous,” Johnson said, “is that there’s not just one guy you have to try to stop.”

The Trojans have fared well this postseason, outscoring three running teams by a combined score of 119-34. The key? Aside from active, attacking defensive linemen Jasper Stewart, Joseph Natzel and Walker Rauschenberg, Yucca Valley has taken early leads in all three games, which has forced opposing teams to turn to the pass.

That’s where the Yucca Valley defense is at its best, with last year’s Desert Valley League defensive player of the year, Javin Hudson, a ball-hawking safety, and speedy, athletic defensive backs Myles and Malachi Harper.

“They play man coverage and have those two big, disruptive defensive tackles,” Prieto said. “Yeah, they’re going to be fine against the run.”

Prieto’s Buena Park offense, which averaged 219 yards and 2.5 touchdowns per game on the ground, was held to 150 rushing yards and no touchdowns against Yucca Valley.

Earlier in the season, Coachella Valley’s offense, which averaged 272 rushing yards per game, was held by Yucca Valley to 177 yards.

Cerritos will still likely get a couple hundred rushing yards against the Trojans, as the Dons have been consistent in running the ball all season and are committed to it. But if the Trojans are able to force some early punts and/or turnovers and take a lead, it could force the Dons to throw the ball, Prieto said.

That would play out in Yucca Valley’s favor. The Trojans have allowed just 14 completed passes, on 46 attempts, in their first three playoff games. Those 14 completions have gone for 268 passing yards, while the defense has defensed 15 passes and recorded 13 quarterback sacks.

When Yucca Valley is on offense

Myles Harper has rushed for 1,447 yards (206.7 per game) and 21 touchdowns in seven games as the Trojans' starting running back. What is even more eye-popping is that he's done it on just 102 carries, for an average of 14.2 yards per carry. The Yucca Valley offense will start there, with their best athlete one of the most elusive runners in Division 12.

Cerritos has displayed a solid run defense this postseason, holding Fillmore to 47 rushing yards and Western Christian to 52. They then at least slowed Coachella Valley down to 188 rushing yards when the Arabs were averaging 272.

“They play very well as a team and that’s what makes them so dangerous," Johnson said. "They have a strong run defense. We all knew that and prepared for it and they still came out and did a lot of what they wanted against us.”

So, one would have to assume that the Dons' defensive focus will be stopping Harper and the Trojans' rushing attack. But even if they are successful in doing that, can they also slow the Trojans' passing attack?

The Dons allowed 266 passing yards against Fillmore and 421 to Western Christian before allowing 284 to Coachella Valley last Friday. They did that yet somehow still managed to win the game.

Against Yucca Valley, they'll face a quarterback in Michael Ramos, Jr. who threw for 34 touchdowns and just three interceptions last year as a sophomore, before missing part of his junior season with an upper-body injury. In three games this postseason, Ramos has completed 65% of his passes for 430 yards and three touchdowns, with no interceptions.

At receiver, Javin Hudson, who routinely outjumps defenders and catches almost anything, broke a school record with 15 touchdown catches last season. This year, the 6-foot-1, 200-pound senior has caught 11 touchdown passes, even having missed two games with a leg injury. Malachi Harper, who has played running back and receiver this season, gives Ramos another weapon to work with.

Prieto, the Buena Park coach, doesn't know the players by name, but said that Hudson (No. 7), Myles Harper (6), Malachi Harper (2) and Ramos (13) make the Yucca Valley offense nearly impossible to defense for four quarters.

"Yeah, 7, 6 and 2, those guys operate on a different speed and will be tough to stop," Prieto said. "On film, they were fast. But we had no idea just how fast until we took the field with them.

“Even the quarterback, 13, he can sling it and 7 is so big and fast and athletic, he’s going to be a big challenge.”

Johnson noted that Cerritos was able to get a strong pass rush against Coachella Valley while only rushing three players and dropping the other eight back into pass coverage. It forced Arabs quarterback Derek Calderon into throwing three interceptions and being sacked six times.

"They're going to give Yucca's offense a challenge," Johnson said.

Prieto said that the key will not only be that ability to defend the run and the pass, but whether Cerritos can successfully keep Yucca Valley's explosive offense off the field. He said that Cerritos attempted three consecutive onside kicks against his Buena Park squad earlier this season.

"I don't see them just giving Yucca Valley the ball," Prieto said.

Special teams

One thing to watch for will be the play of these two teams on special teams. Hudson has returned two punts for touchdowns this year and Myles Harper has returned two kickoff for scores. Last week, Mikey Rodriguez took a kickoff back for a touchdown against Cerritos.

That all points toward special teams potentially playing a factor in the game. Johnson, the Coachella Valley coach, said that the game will be all about field position.

“If Yucca plays the field position game better than we did and doesn’t give Cerritos the short field," Johnson said, "they’ll win.

Predictions

Prieto: "It's a good matchup. It's definitely going to go back and forth, but I got Yucca Valley by at least two touchdowns. Honestly, they're just too explosive."

Johnson: “I think Yucca is the favorite. They’re going to have to play some real good football and I think Cerritos has some impressive elements in their game.

"But at the end of the day, I think Yucca will prevail. I think this is Yucca’s year. They're very senior heavy and have a lot of senior talent. If they’re healthy, they’re in a great spot.”

Andrew John covers sports in the Coachella Valley for The Desert Sun and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at andrew.john@desertsun.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Two coaches make predictions for Yucca Valley versus Cerritos football