INLAND FIELDHOUSE

I covered 17 Inland Area prep football games for HS Gametime this season. From August to November I saw games on dusty fields and prestine synthetic surfaces from San Bernardino to Riverside, Fontana to Perris.

Here’s my Top 5 moments from the 2009 Inland Area football season.

5. San Bernardino Cajon blows out Duarte 55-0 in Week 0. It was definitely a learning experience for Duarte. I can remember Duarte’s coach saying he’s “only got like 15 little freshman out there.” Those freshman aged considerably that night.

4. Fontana Miller’s David Dash runs for more than 100 yards and catches five passes for 80-plus yards in a win over cross-town rival Fontana. It was the best performance of the season for Dash, who sat out the last game of his prep career with an unspecified knee injury.

3. Fontana Kaiser’s Josh Shirley, a 2009 U.S. Army All-American, asks me for some of my Skittles during his team’s game vs. San Bernardino Cajon. He said he needed some sugar and saw me pop a couple during a timeout. He couldn’t resist. Neither could I.

2. Perris Citrus Hill’s Deontae Cooper runs for 200-plus yards and also returns a punt more than 60 yards for a touchdown. It was the most impressive single-game display I’ve ever seen by a prep player. Only injuries can stop Cooper from gaining a starting spot for the Washington Huskies in the near future.

1. USC head coach Pete Carroll at Riverside King HS scouting Corona’s Jordon James and Demetrius Wright. I talked to him at halftime and he’s a gem of a fellow. Real approachable. Real likeable. Sort of a tiny guy, though.