Football: Winning the numbers game at Duarte
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By the end of spring practice, with defections continually depleting his team’s ranks, Tip Sanders didn’t even have enough players to field an offense at Duarte.
‘Spring was real scary,’ said Sanders, who had just taken over as Falcons coach. ‘I think we finished with nine players.’
The skeleton squad resulted from the dismissal of popular Coach Wardell Crutchfield, who had just guided Duarte to the quarterfinals of the Mid-Valley Division playoffs. The Falcons finished 6-6 overall and 5-1 in the Montview League, good for second place behind Azusa.
Many potential returning players, including the outgoing coach’s son, fullback Wardell Crutchfield III, decided they were going to transfer. Others figured they weren’t up for the rigors of spring ball under a new coach and went into wait-and-see mode.
Things aren’t as frightening for Sanders anymore. He has commitments from 22 players, more than enough to field a varsity team. He hopes even more will show up when practice begins Aug. 20 and then when school starts a few weeks after that.
‘That’s been part of the tradition around here, for them to wait for school to start to come out,’ Sanders said. ‘That’s a trend we’re trying to break.’
Among the key players Sanders is counting on are Tyrone Hall, a quarterback and free safety, and Denny Noonan, a middle linebacker. Sanders, who guided reclamation projects at Pasadena Marshall and Blair highs, is confident he can do the same at Duarte.
‘With the core we have returning, we should be in the hunt’ for a league title, Sanders said.
--Ben Bolch