Style points hit the prep gridiron

Kevin Smith and his son Zack made the trip down the mountain from Mariposa to Merced for a photo shoot at the Merced Sun-Star a couple weeks ago.

Zack is a third-year wide receiver for Mariposa High School with a 4.33 grade-point average and is being recruited by Ivy League schools.

As the Smiths walked through the Sun-Star office, a Golden Valley football player – in full uniform and pads – ran past them. Cougars quarterback Armando Muzquiz ran to a friend’s car to grab a football for his photo shoot.

“It kind of feels like a scene from a ‘SportsCenter’ commercial with the athletes in the office,” Kevin said.

That’s what it’s been like for the past month in the office as football players have paraded in and out for photo shoots for the Sun-Star 2015 High School Football Preview, which is available today.

We did 17 photo shoots, including at least one for all 16 teams in our coverage area. A special thanks to all the coaches and players who helped us schedule all the shoots and traveled from towns like Mariposa, Gustine, Chowchilla, Los Banos and Dos Palos.

Also, thank you to Sun-Star photographer Andrew Kuhn, who handled all the photo shoots that produced the great photographs in the section.

Putting together our annual football preview section is always a grind. It usually takes about a month after we pick a theme. In recent years, our themes have included movies, TV shows, Facebook, traditions and elections.

This year, our theme is football fashion. If you watch a college football game on TV on a Saturday afternoon, one thing that pops out is the uniforms. The bright colors, chrome helmets and futuristic styles have become big selling points for potential recruits.

The uniform trend is led by Oregon, which has the backing of Nike co-founder Phil Knight, one of the university’s most famous alums.

The uniform craze also has reached the high school game. We talked to coaches and players about the importance of looking good on Friday night and what it costs to outfit their teams.

Is it true if you look good, you feel good and play good?

“That’s hard to say,” Los Banos coach Dustin Caropreso said. “I don’t believe in that stuff, but if you asked me when I was playing, I would probably say the same things as these kids. It’s the time we live in. They see it on TV. These teenagers probably feel that way. If that’s the case, if looking good is going to help us play good, we better look good.”

Expect Caropreso’s Tigers to not only look good but play good this season. The reigning Western Athletic Conference champs return the league’s Most Outstanding Offensive Player, quarterback Adam Herrera, one of the top offensive threats in Merced County, receiver David Walker and a big, experienced offensive line.

We’ll follow some great story lines this season.

Merced High seeks a third consecutive Central California Conference title behind big-time playmakers in running back Ulonzo Gilliam and receivers A.J. Stewart and Brandon McKinney.

Golden Valley looks to rebound from an 0-10 season with the help of a strong junior class, led by Muzquiz and running back Isaiah Montanez.

After an 0-10 first varsity season last year, El Capitan has opted for a more manageable schedule. Instead of opening against Buhach Colony and Merced – the Gauchos were outscored 114-8 – El Capitan will face Stone Ridge Christian and Mountain House, which is playing its first varsity season.

Stone Ridge Christian, the defending Sac-Joaquin Section Division VII champion, has plenty of strength up front with all five offensive linemen returning.

Hilmar aims to return to the playoffs after missing the postseason for the first time since 2007.

Gustine believes it has its best team since 2002, when the Redskins reached the section Division V championship game.

With the season kicking off Friday night, there is excitement all over Merced County, and we’re looking forward to it just as much as you.

This story was originally published August 26, 2015 at 11:47 PM with the headline "Style points hit the prep gridiron."