The High Schools : Cleveland Defenders Turn Cagey

What type of defense does a coach design to cage the San Fernando Tigers, possessors of one of the most versatile offenses in the City Section?

Cleveland trapped San Fernando by first taking away quarterback Michael Wynn’s receiver, then his running back, and, finally, Wynn’s own rushing avenues.

In the defensive set, Cleveland cornerback Mark Mooney was assigned to wide receiver Sean Williams. Williams, who had 4 touchdown catches against Canoga Park a week ago, finished with 1 reception for 9 yards.

Linebacker Will Johnson shadowed tailback Maurice McFarland on the option. McFarland gained 18 yards in 7 carries.

Also on the option, outside linebackers Al Martinez and Marcus Walker were to control Wynn. His total: 8 rushes, 5 yards.

“Their assignment,” Cleveland Coach Steve Landress said, “was to make No. 10 (Wynn) into a size 5.

“When they did their job, it was a pretty thing to watch.”

The result was 4 San Fernando turnovers, a 20-10 win for Cleveland and a disappointing loss for Tiger Coach Tom Hernandez.

“It just seemed like a lot of stuff went wrong,” said Hernandez, whose team is ranked No. 2 in The Times’ Valley poll. “It’s hard to say. They deserved to win, though, because they didn’t turn the ball over.”

We’ll take it: As far as test drives go, this one made the sale. Heck, Channel Islands Coach Joel Gershon might buy two .

John Johnson, Channel Islands’ senior running back who a week ago underwent arthroscopic surgery to remove a piece of torn cartilage from his right knee, rushed for 104 yards in 16 carries in a 9-0 win over Huntington Park. The surgery was the second of Johnson’s career. As a sophomore he had similar surgery on the same knee.

“It was a kind of a test trial to see what I could do,” Johnson said. “I wasn’t really worried, but I was surprised. I thought it would give me some trouble cutting.”

Not to say that Johnson had completely forgotten the injury, which occurred against Westlake on Sept. 30.

“It crossed my mind, but I tried not to think about it,” he said. “Coach wouldn’t have let me play if he didn’t think I could go.”

Johnson, who started in the second quarter, ran 10 yards in his first carry.

“We just didn’t know where John would be, physically and mentally,” Gershon said. “We wanted to get him back in the saddle. Then, it was real John Johnson play, and we thought, ‘Wow, this is great.’ ”

Johnson had the surgery Oct. 7 and rehabilitated the knee under the supervision of orthopedic surgeon Melvin Hayashi, who performed the operation.

Interestingly, Hayashi is Newbury Park’s team doctor. Channel Islands plays the Panthers on Friday, which might make Hayashi one of the least popular fellows in Newbury Park this week.

Basketball signing: Although Taft guard Dedan Thomas will accept a scholarship at Nevada Las Vegas during the early signing period next month, Coach Jim Woodard has no fears about a letdown for Thomas’ senior season.

“It’s fine with me that he’s signing. It’s flattering for him and I know it won’t cut down his motivation. He’s a great competitor and won’t back off just because he’s signed,” Woodard said.

Thomas joins Cleveland’s Adonis Jordan and Oakwood’s Mitchell Butler as the Valley-area’s top prospects. All could sign before the start of the high school season. Seniors may sign Nov. 9-16.

Butler will take trips to UCLA, Arizona, Cal, Duke and either Kansas or Stanford. Jordan will visit DePaul, Kansas, Providence, Seton Hall and Texas El Paso. Cleveland’s Lucious Harris, who also might sign early, is being recruited by Kansas, Providence, Loyola Marymount, Texas El Paso and Cal State Long Beach, among others.

As many as 4 Cavaliers could earn scholarships. Warren Harrell has drawn interest from San Jose State, Nevada Reno and New Mexico, and Tim Bowen has received letters from Baylor and Stanford.

El Camino Real assistant Jeff Davis said forward Brent Lofton is leaning heavily toward Utah State, which he has visited. Also in the running are USC, Michigan, Cal State Long Beach, Pepperdine, UC Santa Barbara and Loyola.

Add basketball: Cleveland Coach Bob Braswell encourages his players to sign early. Last year, Richard Branham (Cal) and Michael Gray (Cal State Long Beach) signed before their senior seasons, and UCLA’s Trevor Wilson signed before Braswell’s first season.

“Recruiting is really a strain on kids and their parents,” Braswell said. “Signing takes a lot of pressure off. You’re always concerned about how it will affect their senior years, but we haven’t had it affect our players yet.”

Last add basketball: Grant is trying to find a replacement on its schedule after Jefferson canceled a Dec. 9 nonleague game. City teams are allotted 4 nonleague games and 2 tournament appearances with their regular-league schedules, and Coach Howie Levine said he does not want to get short-changed.