Everett, Wash.
Published: Saturday, June 27, 2009

East-West game has mystery element

Neither team in today's contest knows what to expect from the other

 EVERETT -- For two teams that have been around each other all week, practicing just a few hundred feet away at Everett Memorial Stadium and staying in the same hotel, these guys don't know much about each other.

At least, that's their story going into today's 2009 East-West All-Star Football Game. Kick-off is 1 p.m. at Everett Memorial.

"I actually don't know anything about the West team," said Clayton Homme, a 6-foot-6 wide receiver/defensive back for the East team and University of Idaho football recruit from Kennewick's Southridge High School.

"Most of the (West) guys are bigger and they have a lot more linemen up front. But our linemen are pretty scrappy and they'll get after it."

Guided by East team head coach Greg Kittrell of Moses Lake High, Homme and his teammates will use a no-huddle, spread offense. Central Valley quarterback Blake Bledsoe will start. He'll have an impressive group of receivers, including Homme, 6-5 Guy Varsek of Camas and Ferris' Aaron Roberts.

"We don't need a lot of time anyway with the speed guys that we have," said Homme. "I think we'll match up well."

Restricted by East-West game rules that require both teams to use a 5-2 defensive alignment (five linemen and two linebackers), West team head coach John Ondriezek will try to bottle up the fast-paced East attack.

"They will be running a spread offense so we can only guess, but they'll probably be throwing the football a lot," Ondriezek said. "But spread offenses can also be balanced, so we'll see."

"We're limited in what we can do defensively," he added, "so the main thing is that we allow our athletes to go out and make plays, and we've got some great athletes on defense."

The West "D" includes Federal Way linebacker Andru Pulu, who signed with the University of Washington, and high-energy nose guard Grant Engel, who helped Skyline win the Class 4A state title and plans to walk on at Washington State University. Engel and safety Nasser Kyobe of Meadowdale are West team captains.

While the East offense is of the increasingly popular spread variety, the West team will use a more traditional -- especially in this area -- Wing-T attack. Coach Ondriezek has had great success with the run-oriented Wing-T at Mariner High. But he and his assistants added some wrinkles to accommodate the talents of a skill-player group that includes Lake Stevens quarterback Nick Baker, The Herald's 2008 All-Area Offensive Football Player of the Year. The West's starting backfield will feature Eastern Washington University-bound speedsters Taylor Cox (Jackson High) and T.J. Lee (West Seattle). In addition to being dangerous rushers, Cox and Lee are capable receivers.

Baker, the QB, had fun learning a new offense and is excited to see what the West team can do. "The passing scheme, obviously it's not like the Lake Stevens (spread) passing scheme," the left-hander said. "But it still has definite pluses and it's really easy to make reads with it."

Baker is a threat to throw and run. This past fall he demolished numerous Lake Stevens school records, passing for 2,785 yards and 30 TDs with a 65.4 percent completion rate. Baker also led the Vikings in rushing. He will play football for Montana Tech.

Asked about the East team, Baker -- like the East's Homme -- said he didn't know exactly what to expect.

"I think they're going to be a really good team," said Baker. "I know they have some athletes going to big (schools) over there. We'll see what we can do."

This could be the last game as a head coach for Kittrell, who recently resigned as Moses Lake's coach and accepted a vice principal post. Can he finish with a win against the West?

"Obviously it's a classic (East-West) matchup, but how the teams stack up, I really don't have any idea," said Kittrell. "And I suppose that's best. I don't want to go in with any preconceived ideas."

But you can be sure he wants to go out with a victory.

Mike Cane: mcane@heraldnet.com. Check out the prep sports blog Double Team at www.heraldnet.com/doubleteam.
© 2009The Daily Herald Co., Everett, WA