Golden Valley’s loss to Crescenta Valley last week hit the team hard.
“The vibe in the locker room (after the game) was that we can’t let this happen again,” said GV quarterback Zack Chevalier. “Now we’ve tasted defeat and we don’t like it.
The Grizzlies (2-1) had the goal of going undefeated this season and the loss served as a reminder to take a serious approach every week, Chevalier said.
They’ll have the chance to get back on track against Crespi High School of Los Angeles, a Division 3 opponent.
“You’ve got to respect the fact that Crespi is a great program,” said coach Dan Kelley. “We’re going to have to play a perfect game to beat them and it’s a big game for us as well because they’re in a higher division than us.”
Golden Valley will be returning a handful of players, including running back Jordan Anderson and linebacker Johnathan Kaelin who were out last Friday.
Chevalier will be taking the field with more confidence after getting word that he would be the team’s starting quarterback earlier this week.
The signal caller transferred from Village Christian of Sun Valley, which canceled its 2017 football season due to low numbers. He arrived at Golden Valley near the end of July.
“I had to … learn the plays, figure everything out, get a connection with the receivers and now it finally paid off,” Chevalier said.
A number of Village Christian football players transferred to Crespi (1-2), giving Chevalier some extra familiarity with this week’s foe.
Kelley said he expects running back/linebacker DJ Turner and receiver/defensive back DeGabriel Floyd to repeat their strong performances from last week.
Floyd scored all three touchdowns in the Grizzlies’ loss.
“I’m putting all my effort into it, everything I have,” Floyd said. “Blood sweat and tears. These are my brothers so I’m going to fight with them.”
