Bee’s Best prep football: No. 2 Rocklin looks to defend Sierra Foothill League crown
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. 2 Rocklin Thunder
City: Rocklin
School opened: 1993
League: Sierra Foothill League
Division: l
Enrollment: 2,178
2021 record: 12-1
Coach: Jason Adams
Enrollment: 2,178
2021 record: 12-1
Coach: Jason Adams
Outlook: Last season was special for Rocklin.
The Thunder went 12-1, won the Sierra Foothill League and reached the Sac-Joaquin Section Division l final before falling to Folsom. Rocklin graduated a majority of the starters from that team but still have reason to be optimistic.
The top returner is linebacker Derek Houston. Houston, who will be a three-year varsity player, is expected to miss the first few weeks of the season with an injury. He amassed a team-leading 100 tackles (13 tackles for loss) as a junior.
“Derek is everything you would want in a person and player,” Rocklin coach Jason Adams said. “From day one, he’s demonstrated what’s it like to be a high-level performer and that’s in the classroom, film room, weight room and the field. We think the world of Derek.”
Adams, who previously was Rocklin’s defensive coordinator before becoming the head coach in 2019 is excited about the possibilities of his team’s offense. The headliner is senior quarterback Joey Roberts who started seven games last season after Kenny Lueth went down with an injury.
“No one expected Joey to play a lot last year unless it was a situation where we were up or down by a lot,” Adams said. “Joey really took advantage of his opportunity. We gained in a lot of confidence in Joey and Joey gained a lot of confidence in himself. It’s nice knowing Joey is coming back.”
Rocklin returns a dynamic one-two punch in senior running backs Elias Brown and Mason Silva. Other returners include Adams’ son, Austin and lineman Zom Sackinsky.
“They’re going to be some dudes this year,” Adams said about his running backs. “They’re both backs you would want to give the ball 25 times a game to. They run hard, they are explosive and they pass protect. It’s literally a two-headed monster.”
The Thunder open up the season on the road Friday at Turlock. Other non-league games include McQueen of Reno, Capital Christian, Antioch of the Bay Area.
Rocklin will also face Glacier Peak of Snohomish, Washington, on Sept. 23. Adams said tentatively his team will travel to Washington next season to play Glacier Peak. It will come down to if the Rocklin program can raise the money.
Rocklin’s first SFL game is on the road at Whitney on Sept. 30.