Denair Scores Early and Often in 36-6 Homecoming Win

Submitted by Denair High School

DENAIR – There are fast starts … and then there are faster starts.

Friday’s 36-6 Denair blowout of Delhi clearly falls into the second category.

The Coyotes scored on four of their first five plays of the game, built a 29-0 lead at halftime and coasted the rest of the way in front of a raucous homecoming crowd at Jack Lytton Stadium.

To make the night even better, the Coyotes got some help from Orestimba, which knocked off Waterford. The left Denair alone in second place in the Southern League standings and firmly in control of its own playoff destiny with two weeks left in the regular season.

The Coyotes (7-1 overall, 4-1 in the league) play at Mariposa this week before hosting Waterford on Oct. 26.

Unbeaten Ripon Christian (8-0, 5-0) – which beat Denair 35-7 four weeks ago – is cruising to the Southern League title. But two more victories would assure Denair of second place all alone and, more importantly, a high seed and home game when the Sac-Joaquin Section Division VII playoffs begin Nov. 2.

“The only thing we can control is the next two games,” said Denair Coach Anthony Armas. “The CIF is going to rank us where they rank us. There’s nothing we can do about what other teams do.”

Friday night, the Coyotes made quick work of the Hawks (0-8, 0-5).

On its second play from scrimmage, Denair scored on a 28-yard run by Hunter Musgrave. After forcing a Delhi punt, Musgrave struck again, sprinting 88 yards on the first play of the next drive. He finished with 144 yards rushing on just four carries.

The score-on-the-first-play sequence was repeated on Denair’s next two possessions – first by Drew Pritchard on a 72-yard run and again when quarterback Elvis Silva connected with Steffin Winston on a 60-yard TD pass.

“We’ve got some good athletes all around,” said Armas of his offense, which is averaging more than 43 points a game in the Coyotes’ seven victories.

Denair led 29-0 at halftime. Silva threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to Scott Badal in the second half, which was played almost entirely with a running clock.

The Coyotes’ defense also made its presence felt, forcing two more turnovers – a fumble recovery by Winston in the first half and another interception by Pritchard in the second half.

“It seems like Drew intercepts a pass every week,” Armas said.

Creating turnovers is not a fluke. It is a point of emphasis each week in practice in what is known as “Turnover Tuesdays,” Armas said.

“It was something we really harped on in the off season,” he explained. “Our defensive coaches do some drills where we work on stripping the football (out of opponents’ hands) or working on tips to get interceptions. Our kids really started flying around on defense in the Gustine game. Turnovers swung the momentum then and have been paying off in the past few weeks.”

JV Game: Delhi 13, Denair 6. The Coyotes are 1-5-1 overall and 1-4 in league play.

This week: Denair will play on homecoming for the fourth week in a row, this time at Mariposa (2-6, 1-4). Facing the Grizzlies the road always is a challenge, Armas said. It’s a 90-minute bus ride to a one-of-a-kind venue. “They play at the fairgrounds,” he said. “It’s just different. There are concrete and steel and car parts all around. A few years ago, they put sawdust on the field after it rained to soak up the water. It’s just a different environment.” … Fullback Dylan De Silva is expected to play after serving a one-game suspension after being ejected two weeks ago against Orestimba. … This is the first time Denair has won at least seven games since 2006, when the Coyotes made it all the way to the Section Division VI championship game. They lost to Lindhurst and finished 8-4 overall. … Denair remains No. 2 in the Modesto Bee’s small-school rankings behind Ripon Christian.

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Denair High Celebrates 2018 Homecoming

Submitted by Denair High School

Denair High School celebrated its 2018 football homecoming with a community parade on Friday afternoon. The procession started Down Coyote Way to Denair Elementary Charter Academy, turning down Fresno Street, before returning to the High School. The Denair High School Band led the parade followed by FFA, the homecoming court, class floats, and the football teams and cheerleaders. A photo gallery is available for your viewing pleasure.

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Floats with Video Game Theme Highlight Homecoming Parade

Submitted by Denair High School

Not only is Delhi’s football team winless on the field this season, the Hawks also are taking a beating this week on the Denair High School homecoming floats.

In keeping with a video game theme, poor Delhi is getting hammered by the freshmen (“Super Smash Brothers”), gobbled up by the sophomores (“Pac-Man”), barrel rolled by the juniors (“Donkey Kong”) and run over by the seniors (“Mario Kart”).

The floats are the products of the imaginations, artistry, and skill of Denair’s leadership team, plus some nifty welding work by students in the Advanced Ag Mechanics class, painting, and construction done by art students.

The floats will be on display during the annual homecoming parade Friday, which begins at 11:45 a.m. and runs from the high school campus to Main Street into town and back. The parade follows a rally at 10:50 a.m. during which kings and queens will be crowned.

Work on the floats began more than a month ago and wrapped up Tuesday. Students in Robyn Hilton’s leadership class first brainstormed about a theme. They chose classic video games, many of them popular when their parents were toddlers.

Next came the actual design, which in the case of the junior float took just 5 minutes, said Chloe Padgett. “I sketched it out on paper and then transferred it to the computer.”

The other floats may have taken slightly longer to conceive, but all reflect the creativity one would expect of teens enthused about homecoming.

The freshmen – led by Jack Henderson, Preston Roe, and Makena Padgett – crafted a “Super Smash Brothers” float with a muscular Coyote using a hammer to pummel an unwitting Hawk.

The sophomores – with Madelyn Brammer and Haley Hultgren in charge – have a gigantic purple “Pac-Man” orb about to munch a Hawk ghost. On the back, the words “Beware the Pac” are painted, a sly reference to a pack of coyotes as well as the game.

The juniors – with Chloe Padgett and Alex De La Cruz running point – chose “Donkey Kong,” a game both admit they never have played. “I saw it in the movie ‘Pixels,’ ” Padgett said. The back of the float features the slogan “Coyote Kong Country.”

The seniors – led by Adrianna Snyder and Drew Pritchard, but relying on at least a dozen others – created the most intricate design. It has two karts welded by Diana Soto, with the one driven by a Coyote upending a hapless Hawk. As the defending champs (they won last year as juniors), the class of 2019 might be favored again this week.

Voting is done by K-8 students on Denair’s other campuses, plus some community members.

“They’ve had a lot of fun working on these,” said art teacher and project adviser John Stavrianoudakis. “There is a lot of creativity reflected in these floats.”

The floats and parade will be a fun part of a day that will culminate with the football game at 7:15 p.m. at Jack Lytton Stadium.

Denair (6-1) is tied for second place in the Southern League with three games to play. Delhi (0-7) is last.

It will be the third of four consecutive homecoming games for the Coyotes – their own Friday, road victories the past two weeks against Gustine and Orestimba, plus the Oct. 19 game at Mariposa.

“The kids are talking about going 4-0 in homecoming,” said football Coach Anthony Armas.

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Denair High Celebrates 2017 Homecoming

Submitted by Denair High School

Denair High School celebrated its 2017 football homecoming with a community parade on Friday afternoon. The procession started Down Coyote Way to Denair Elementary Charter Academy, turning down Fresno Street, before returning to the High School. The Denair High School Band led the parade followed by FFA, the the homecoming court, class floats, and the football teams and cheerleaders. A photo gallery is available for your viewing pleasure.

Denair High Celebrates 2016 Homecoming

Submitted by Denair High School

Denair High School celebrated its 2016 football homecoming with a community parade on Friday afternoon. The procession started Down Coyote Way to Denair Elementary Charter Academy, turning down Fresno Street, before returning to the High School. The Denair High School Band led the parade followed by FFA, the team Moms, the homecoming court, class floats, and the football teams and cheerleaders. A photo gallery is available for your viewing pleasure.