Bee’s Best prep football: No. 19 Yuba City banks on speed and key veteran returnees
The Sacramento Bee will unveil our Top 25 football rankings from No. 25 to No. 1, at least a team every weekday, right up to the Aug. 19 kickoff.
No. 19 Yuba City
City: Yuba City
School opened: 1922
League: Capital Valley Conference
Division: ll
Enrollment: 1,922
2021 record: 7-4
Coach: Willie Burns
Outlook: Speed will be the name of the game for the Yuba City High School football team.
Head coach Willie Burns encouraged players to run track during the spring to get their speed up. They bought in and it’s led to the Honkers having one of the fastest teams in the area.
Yuba City only lost four starters to graduation on offense. Some of those returners include quarterback Nick Afato, running back Brandon Sanders, wide receiver Nate Hurley and tackles Noah Pineda and Noah Dunham.
“We couldn’t match up to the Inderkums and the other guys with their speed and athleticism,” Burns on why he made speed a priority. “It’s been a mission of ours for the last five years is to get more athletic and get more speed. Last year our speed made a difference. It’s something that everyone has to be prepared for.”
He added, “We are definitely very excited for this year. We were able to reload and I don’t think we are going to miss much of a beat.”
Afato is also the leader of the Yuba City defense, where he plays linebacker. He is expected to have a bigger role this season at quarterback.
“We have given him much more leeway this season,” Burns said. “He has audible capabilities … most high school quarterbacks aren’t given the opportunity to (call) audibles, but he’s a smart kid and he knows the offense up and down.”
Afato is being recruited by colleges to play defense and has Division l scholarship offers from Cal Poly and UC Davis. Dunham is another college prospect. He had multiple Pac-12 scholarship offers but decided to commit to Washington State.
Burns hopes Sanders can join the mix of Division l prospects at Yuba City.
“It’s important to us (at Yuba City) because it goes into what we have been preaching,” Burns said. “If you follow (our plan), good things will happen.”
Yuba City will open the season on Aug. 19 against Vanden. The Honkers also have non-league games against Lincoln, Pleasant Valley and Chico. The first Capital Valley Conference game is on the road against Inderkum.
“We are really looking forward to the Vanden game,” Burns said. “I love to have a tough preseason schedule because it prepares us for league. We will always have tough teams to play.”