It’s been a memorable season for Western Pioneers who are trying to bring home first CIF football title

Western standouts (from left) Jacob Domino, Anthony Munoz, Caine Savage and Cassius Savage lead the Pioneers into Friday’s CIF championship game. (Photo, Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone)

It’s already been a very special year for Western’s football team.

The Pioneers would like nothing better than to cap it with the school’s first CIF football title.

Third seeded Western (11-2) hosts Peninsula (9-4) Friday night at 7 at Western in the CIF Division 11 championship game and Coach Dan Davidson is excited about leading his squad, which has racked up almost 600 points this season.

“We’re excited to be here; I have a group of kids who are pretty unbelievable in their perseverance and their knowledge of the game and their commitment not only to the game of football but to each other which is what really separated this team from other teams that I’ve coached, ” Davidson said Monday at the CIF press luncheon in Long Beach.

Western, under the fifth year coach, has made the change from being a double wing team over the past three decades to a passing team. And it has made steady progress under Davidson. The Pioneers were  1-9 in 2014, 2-8 in 2015, 2-7-1 in 2016 and 4-6 last year.

“What we had to do first was to learn how to compete, so I joined all the 7-on-7 passing league tournaments,” Davidson said. “We played all the top teams so the kids knew what it takes. Part of it is a buy-in and part of it is trust and I think learning how to compete at a high level really helped us a lot.”

This year, Western shared the Pac-4 League title with Laguna Beach and Ocean View.

Leading the offensive attack is senior quarterback Anthony Munoz.

“Anthony’s knowledge of the game and his understanding is outstanding, he’s thrown for more than 4,200 yards and 59 touchdowns,” Davidson said. “But the truth is he understands the game and he puts the kids in good opportunities. It helps to have Cassius Savage and Caine Savage on the outside but Rashaan Hester can run the ball and not only can he run the ball, he’s pretty good in the slot and James Mendoza gets all those tough catches over the middle. He’s top 20 in Orange County himself. It’s been a pretty good run for us.”

The players are excited about the big game. It will be the first time Western has been in the CIF finals since 2004.

“We’re just blessed to be there,” said senior linebacker Jacob Domino. “We haven’t been there since 2004 so it’s definitely a big milestone in my four years of high school and we’re looking forward to being there Friday and hopefully we come out with a win.”

Domino attibuted the team’s success to “working in the off-season hard, creating a brotherhood and being able to trust each other on the field. ”

That brotherhood paid off in the 35-34 semifinal victory over Beaumont, Domino said.

“The last game against Beaumont definitely tested us and our will to win to face adversity and come through with a win,” he said.

Munoz, the quarterback, said it’s been a special season for the Pioneers.

“We know that we were capable of this last year and the year before, but we worked hard over the summer and we really came together and we trusted one another,” Munoz said. “We knew coming into the year it was going to be special and to actually follow through with that is amazing.”

Munoz is expected to be airing it out again as he has all season.

“I’m truly just a passing quarterback; I have receivers all across the field who are able to make plays,” Munoz said. “My job is just to get them the ball and let them do what they’re best at. I let them do all the work, as crazy as it sounds. They make me look good.”

Munoz said the students on campus and fans in the community are excited.

“We’re excited. We haven’t had a lot of athletic success over the last few years, as long as we’ve been on campus. Going back to a decade, we haven’t had a lot of success. So, knowing we are one win away from putting a banner up and it would be our first team CIF championship at Western, we’re all excited and everyone is looking forward to the game. It’s going to be a good one.”

HERE’S THE FULL SCHEDULE FOR THIS WEEKEND’S CIF CHAMPIONSHIP FOOTBALL GAMES

-Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com