Royal City Knights still the dominant 1A force

ROYAL CITY - There's no sense in asking what's new in Royal High School football.

Other than some of the players, nothing is. The Knights are still kings.

The Knights will be one of two favorites for the South Central A Conference East championship. And they will be among the contenders for the state 1A football crown.

Coach Wiley Allred doesn't mind the recognition, but he's not so quick to crown his team. He believes the road will be tough. First there is the other league favorite, Connell, and he says "Kiona-Benton, Burbank and Riverview are always tough."

Still, Royal is the program other schools envy. It's one of three high schools in the state with a field turf field. It has eight assistants who run practices with the precision of a military command.

Since 1990, Royal has made the playoffs 20 of 21 years. It has won about 90 percent of its games during that stretch.

There have been five state titles, with four in Allred's 12 years at the controls. And the Knights have finished second twice and third three times.

Last year was sort of a down year. Connell defeated the Knights to win the SCAC East. Royal made it to the playoffs but bowed out in the first round.

The Knights will find out early about their state playoff potential this year. They will open Sept. 2 at Cashmere and travel to Omak on Sept. 9. Both are formidable opponents.

Cashmere ended Royal's season last year with a 34-10 victory in the first round of the playoffs. The Bulldogs were the state champs in 2008.

Omak has not been quite as successful as Cashmere, but it has been tough. The Pioneers knocked then unbeaten Zillah of the SCAC West out of the playoffs last year.

Royal's third non-league game won't come until Oct. 7 when LaSalle of Yakima comes to town. The Lightning were a tough B program before turning A last year. Allred is expecting a battle.

The big game of the year in the SCAC East, if all goes according to prediction, will be at Connell on Oct. 21. No coach sees the Knights or Eagles losing before that titanic clash.

Allred greeted about 65 players for the opening of fall practices. They included seven starters on offense and seven on defense. They brought skill, speed and heft.

The key to the Knights could be their line play. It will be led by 6-1, 235 senior guard Tanner Whitaker and 6-3, 210 junior tackle Kent Christensen. They should key the defensive line was well at tackle and end respectively.

Other key linemen are junior tight end Brady Dixon, 6-2, 175, junior tackle Uriel Carmona, 5-10, 180, and senior tackle Justin Edwards, 5-11,175.

Dixon will play linebacker on defense, Carmona will be a defensive end, and Edwards will be a linebacker.

Two other offensive linemen of note will be 6-0, 200 junior Carter Christensen and 5-10, 200 junior Abel Castellon. Christensen will be an end on defense, and Castellon will be a tackle.

Another key lineman will be 6-1, 200 junior Christian Fernandez. He started at defensive tackle last year.

"He's one of our faster players," Allred said.

The last of the linemen who should have an impact is 6-4, 180 junior tight end Reid Lefler. He played last year.

The offense will be triggered by junior quarterback Alex Myrick, who has added experience to the excellent athletic skills he exhibited last year.

Myrick was a super sophomore. He completed 142 of 243 passes for 1,806 yards and 24 touchdowns. He ran the ball 100 times for 738 yards and seven scores.

"He can do it all," Allred said.

The only thing that kept Myrick from all-league recognition was Chandler Salisbury of Connell, who had a super year of his own.

Myrick was named the all-league first team safety last year. He is a polished deep defender.

Dixon caught 10 of Myrick's passes last year for 173 yards and three scores. Allred is expecting all three numbers to go up.

The top wide receiver will likely be senior Danny Vermeer. He snagged 19 passes for 307 yards and three touchdowns last year.

Two more developing receivers are 5-8, 150 senior Ricky Ramirez and 5-4, 150 senior Johnny Villanueva. Both will play in the defensive backfield.

Where the Knights will rebuild is at running back. They lost a 1,000-yard gainer. Allred is looking for seniors Alex Ramirez, 5-9, 145, and Christian Guerrero, 5-10, 175 to more that fill the void. Either, or both, is capable of 1,000 yards.

Allred also has a couple of bruising fullbacks in 5-11, 185 senior Damien DeLaRosa and 6-0, 180 senior Zach Christensen.

Ramirez started as a linebacker last year and will return to that post. Guerrero will be a safety, DeLaRosa a cornerback and Christensen a safety.

Three players expected to be defensive secondary specialists are 5-11, 150 junior Laddie Goroski, 5-11, 150 senior Freddy Ramirez, and 5-8, 165 Marcos Morales.