Denair High School’s football team concluded the non-league portion of its schedule with a 3-1 record following Friday night’s 41-0 victory over Pajaro Valley of Watsonville.

The Coyotes will open Southern League play this coming Friday when they host undefeated Stone Ridge Christian (Merced), the reigning Southern League champion.

Head coach Anthony Armas likes the way his team is playing heading into the games that matter most.

“There are always things that you can clean up, but I think we’re in a good place,” he said.

Denair will need to be at its best against the Knights, who defeated the Coyotes 28-6 in the 2024 regular season matchup and 35-15 eight weeks later in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division 7 playoffs.

“They’ve got some really good athletes and they’re well coached,” Armas said of the Knights, who fell to eventual state champ Summerville in the D-7 playoffs. “They’re an aggressive, physical football team. They’re the defending league champs, it’s the first league game, and we’re at home. We’re up to the challenge.”

Against Pajaro Valley, the Coyotes held a comfortable 13-0 lead at the intermission — thanks to a Degan Butler 6-yard touchdown run and a 49-yard scoring strike from Derek Potter to Harlan Brown — then put the game out of reach when they outscored the Grizzlies 21-0 in the third quarter on a Potter-to-Butler 10-yard score, a 17-yard TD run by Connor Hart, and a 9-yard TD run from Potter.

DHS added one more touchdown in the fourth quarter — a 75-yard TD run on John Wilmoth’s lone carry of the contest — to produce the final margin.

Potter finished by completing five of seven attempts for 143 yards, while Bryson Salazar led the way on the ground with 96 yards on seven carries. Butler totaled 75 yards on 14 attempts, and Hart contributed 72 yards on seven tries.

Harlan Brown caught three passes for 100 yards.

Barring potential injuries in the lead-up to Friday’s league opener, Armas said the Coyotes are in good health.

“Right now, we’re good,” he said. “There’s always one or two guys who are under the weather, but there no injuries to speak of.”

Kickoff for Friday’s game is 7:15 p.m.

Southern League volleyball — The Coyotes saw their six-match winning streak come to an end last week with a 3-0 loss to Stone Ridge Christian. Denair also dropped its first set since Aug. 28 in the loss to the Knights.

The Coyotes will look to get back on track with a pair of Southern League home matches this week: Monday, Sept. 15, against Le Grand and Wednesday, Sept. 17, against Gustine. Both varsity contests are set to begin at 6 p.m.