Pacheco High football looking to rebound with the ‘right guys’ after tough 1-9 season
Pacheco High football coach Jeremy Siemiller called last season an eye-opener.
Not only did the Panthers struggle through a 1-9 season, Siemiller was forced to make the difficult decision to dismiss a group of players from the team for disciplinary reasons that left Pacheco thin on the offensive line.
“I think we had some guys who felt they were irreplaceable,” Siemiller said.
The situation forced Siemiller to make some changes this off-season in hopes of making sure players were committed to the team and program.
Siemiller set attendance requirements for players during off-season workouts. Athletes had to take part in 60% of the workouts during the spring and 70% during the summer to play this fall.
Siemiller says he’s not as concerned about having large numbers on the team. He wants the right players on the team.
“Having the right players out there is making practices easier,” Siemiller said. “It’s a different environment. This group is bought-in. The attendance has been great this spring and summer and we have more guys taking a leadership role.”
Siemiller is counting on his veteran players to change the program culture. Third-year varsity player Isaac Valencia is one of those leaders.
“I see a lot of people having a lot more pride in playing on our team this year,” Valencia said.
Valencia says holding players more accountable is making a difference.
“We have a lot stronger guys, a lot more discipline,” Valencia said. “Everybody really knows the playbook. They know what they have to do, and it’s less time having to keep saying the same things over and over at practice. We can just have a good practice of learning a lot new stuff.”
Siemiller hopes to have more guys playing on just one side of the ball, but some key guys like Valencia (running back/linebacker), Arturo Anguiano (receiver, safety) and Peyton Mosley (tight end/linebacker) will see time on both sides of the ball.
Mosley was an all-Western Athletic Conference pick on both sides of the ball last year.
The Panthers coaching staff added veteran coach Jon Betschart as defensive coordinator and he’ll oversee a until that returns eight starters and should be the backbone of the team.
The defensive line will be anchored by Siaosi Vai and Robert Crawford and will also feature players like Valencia, Mosley and Anguiano.
“We all communicate well,” Valencia said. “We have a lot more chemistry which I think will help us run our defensive stuff better, and overall I think we’re just a stronger team this year.”
A big addition on offense will be running back Jacob Sanchez, who takes over for three-year starter Abel Bravo.
“He’s quick, he can hit the hole pretty quick,” Siemiller said. “He’s pretty fast in the open field and he’s not afraid of contact.”
Valencia will help share the load out of the backfield, and Siemiller plans to use quarterbacks Aidan Pikas and Brandon Watkins to help out in the running game as well.
The offensive line will be anchored by third-year starter Xavier Flores at guard.
The Panthers are hoping to put last year behind them and hope to compete this year in the Western Athletic Conference.
“I’m hoping that me and my team, we could be a problem,” Valencia said. “Not just for the league, but hopefully make playoffs, and then perhaps go deeper in playoffs. That’s really the goal, just changing the whole program around.”
Panthers 2024 Schedule
Aug. 23 at Atwater
Aug. 30 vs Chavez
Sept. 6 vs Los Banos
Sept. 20 at Lathrop
Sept. 27 vs Central Valley
Oct. 4 at Johansen
Oct. 11 at Ceres
Oct. 18 vs Beyer
Oct. 25 vs Grace Davis
Nov. 1 at Livingston
