Throughout the college football season, players have worked to carve out their own spot on their respective teams. Santa Clarita Valley football products are no exception.
Here’s a look at the players who have been grinding it out in the NCAA Division 1 Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS):
Drew Wolitarsky (Canyon): Wolitarsky, a senior, is hitting the University of Minnesota record books this season, as he is ranked 10th in program history for career catches (117) and seventh for longest streak of games with at least one reception (23 straight games). He’s played in all 10 games this season, accumulating 669 yards and three touchdowns on 53 catches.
Leon Jacobs (Golden Valley): Although he’s listed as a fullback on the roster, he’s had 24 tackles in five games in his junior year at Wisconsin. His best game was against Nebraska, when he notched 11 tackles.
Cole Murphy (Valencia): The Syracuse kicker entered his junior season ninth for career field goals made in program history with 29, and third in field goal percentage with .763 (29-38). The junior has gone 10-for-18 on field goals this season and has one tackle, which came in the game against USF. He hit two field goals of 48 and 39 yards to help the Orange get a win against North Carolina State on Saturday.
Jeff Coprich (West Ranch): After transferring from the University of California, Berkeley, Coprich has played in five regular season games for East Carolina. He’s had two catches for 14 yards – one against USF and another against UConn.
Davis Koppenhaver (Hart): Forced to sit out in his first season with a shoulder injury, the redshirt sophomore has returned to Duke as a second string tight end. This season he has had 13 receptions for 114 yards and two touchdowns, with his best game coming against Georgia Tech where he had three catches for 51 yards. He caught the game-winning TD for the Blue Devils in a 28-27 win over North Carolina.
Israel Cabrera (Canyon): After spring drills, the redshirt freshman safety was listed third on San Diego State’s depth chart. In eight games, he has one tackle.
Liam Cabrera (Canyon): The other Cabrera twin is also a redshirt freshman and is listed fifth on the depth chart at wide receiver for San Diego State. He’s yet to see action in a game.
Rhett Almond (Hart): A sophomore kicker, he made his first career BYU field goal against Arizona. He kicked a 19-yard field goal to seal a victory against Toledo and has kicked for a total of 65 points this season.
Egidio DellaRipa (West Ranch, COC): DellaRipa, an offensive lineman, played on the scout team for Vanderbilt after transferring from COC last year, and has yet to see action in a game this season.
Linwood Foy (COC): The Louisville offensive lineman made his first career NCAA appearance against Charlotte on Sept. 1.
Pac-12
Brady White (Hart): A redshirt freshman, White threw his first Arizona State University career touchdown pass to Raymond Epps against USC on Oct. 1. He’s completed 25-of-49 passes for 259 yards and two touchdowns in four games, but suffered a season-ending foot injury against UCLA, as reported by AZCentral.com.
Jay Jay Wilson (Valencia): Although he’s listed as a sophomore linebacker on the ASU roster, Wilson can additionally play tight end or receiver when needed. He scored his first touchdown on his first career catch on Sept. 24 against Cal. He also has three tackles this season and two catches for 54 yards.
Tim White (Hart, COC): On the season, the redshirt senior has 49 catches for 623 yards and one touchdown for Arizona State. He’s also returned 23 kicks for 514 yards. His best game was against UCLA, with Brady White at quarterback. Tim White caught 11 passes for 123 yards in the game.
Trent Irwin (Hart): Irwin has earned increased playing time at Stanford since last season and this year has 34 receptions for 395 yards. Against Colorado, he had seven catches for a game-high 88 yards.
Tedric Thompson (Valencia): After a week eight performance against Stanford in which he had two interceptions, the University of Colorado defensive back earned Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week honors. This season, Thompson has 63 tackles, three interceptions, and five pass breakups.
Nick Nowakowski (West Ranch): The Utah offensive lineman has appeared in all ten games this season. He had starts against Arizona, OSU, and UCLA.