Bee’s Best prep football: No. 5 Vacaville looks to build on undefeated spring season
This week, we’re blowing up with prep two-a-days. We’re publishing two previews a day as we dive into the top 10 of our rankings for high school football in the Sacramento area.
No. 5 Vacaville Bulldogs
City: Vacaville
School opened: 1895
League: Monticello Empire League
Division: l/ll
Enrollment: 1,938
2021 spring record: 5-0
Coach: Mike Papadopoulos
Outlook: Vacaville coach Mike Papadopoulos knew football was back when he looked up to the stands during his team’s intersquad scrimmage earlier this month.
What he saw in the stands were a few hundred people. The Vacaville community is tightknit, so being able to have fans in the stands in a larger capacity this fall is a big deal for the whole school, which includes fans, the band and student section.
“We are thrilled for everyone (that football is back),” Papadopoulos said. “We are really fortunate to get great support. … To get everyone together for a preseason scrimmage was really neat.”
There will be a good product on the field for the locals to look forward to. Vacaville went 5-0 in the spring. The Bulldogs have their sights set on making an even bigger splash this fall and they have the firepower to do just that. Vacaville returns 11 starters from a team that scored nearly 50 points a game and only gave up 14.8 points on defense.
Vacaville’s success will start with star running back Darian Leon-Gurrero. During the spring season, he rushed for 701 yards and 15 touchdowns. The Bulldogs returning starting quarterback is Ryan Vaughan. He threw for 839 yards and nine touchdowns and also ran for 70 yards and another score.
More starters who return include receivers Anthony Wiley and Timothy Plowman, tight end Luke Levengood, linebackers Lucca Sartorio and Blake Espino and linemen Jacob Edmonds and Javier Sixto. Edmonds was named Monticello Empire League lineman of the year last spring.
“We are really excited about the group of kids we are working with right now,” Papadopoulos said. “The chemistry is really good (with this group).”
Vacaville’s opener against Davis on Aug. 20 will be a special community event. It will mark the opening of Tom Zunino Stadium to the public after it was renovated in 2020. Vacaville also plays Oak Ridge on Aug. 27, Cardinal Newman on Sept. 3, Granite Bay on Sept. 10 and Tracy on Sept. 17. The Bulldogs MEL opener is against Fairfield on Oct. 1.
“We are excited for the first game that’s coming up,” Papadopoulos said. “We are inviting all of our alumni football players back for the first game. There are a lot of groups involved on Friday nights. It’s a great way to start the season in our community.”