By Ernie Gonzalez
Head coach Brent Brennan made it clear that he believes there is enough star power in the California to construct a winning team. This belief was put on full display Saturday at CEFCU.
“To build the program we want here we have to have good players, and we have to recruit Bay Area kids — and California kids,” Brennan said.
Out of San Francisco, Jamar Williams gave Spartan hopefuls a little someone to talk about, rushing for two touchdowns on 16 carries and 69 yards.
Brennan thinks the 6-foot-2 redshirt freshman has a golden opportunity to make a difference, especially on a youthful team.
“He’s got a nice combination of size and speed,” Brennan said after the scrimmage.
Sophomore receiver Bailey Gaither, from Paso Robles, CA also made a name for himself, scoring twice with 150 receiving yards on only four receptions, including an impressive 95-yard touchdown from Montel Aaron.
Aaron, from Antelope, CA was named the No. 10 quarterback according to Scout.com coming out of high school from Southern California. Redshirting the 2016 season behind gave him a chance to learn behind the scenes from former Spartan QB Kenny Potter.
“[Kenny] just came out every day … even though he was about his business, he always found a way to have fun doing it,” Aaron said. “I just learned to keep a light edge on everything.”
Aaron found that light edge on Saturday, completing 6 of 13, and throwing for 202 yards with one touchdown.
He even displayed some finesse with his feet, proving he can be a dual threat as he rushed for 30 yards on four carries.
Aaron gave credit to his other ten guys, acknowledging their spring game success.
“I feel like as a whole, we did some really good things with our offense,” Aaron said.
Milpitas’ Tre Hartley who finished the 2016 campaign with 572 receiving yards on 33 receptions and led the team with 17.3 YPC last season, showcased that ability again, catching only one pass for 41 yards.
Hartley is entering his junior year as a Spartan but only his second year in action and will look to cement his role as a reliable receiver.
CB Tre Webb, LB Malik Hayes and LB Jamal Scott, all from Southern California, took turns getting to the quarterbacks with one sack each.