NEWMAN, Calif – A new season and new league are on tap for the Orestimba High football team.
Warriors head coach Aaron Souza, his assistant coaches and their 35 players are preparing to host their annual jamboree at Coach Roger Pauletto Field at Warrior Stadium. The eight varsity teams are scheduled to start at 7 p.m. The junior varsity teams are expected to go at 5 and freshman teams at 4.
“This scrimmage was around in the 90s and early 2000s when I was playing,” said Orestimba head coach Aaron Souza. “Then it faded away. When I took over in 2010, it was gone and we had to go to Grace Davis (Modesto for a scrimmage). In 2011, I started back with four teams and now it has grown to eight, with a yearly waiting list.”
High school football programs taking part at the jamboree are host Orestimba, Patterson, Pitman of Turlock, Atwater, El Capitan of Merced, Ceres, Lathrop and West of Tracy.
“It is one of my ‘babies’ that I take great pride in,” Souza said.
Patterson enters its first season into the rugged Valley Oak League after spending the last six seasons in the Central California Conference. Pitman is in the Central California Athletic League. Atwater and El Captain are in the CCC, Ceres and Lathrop are part of the Western Athletic Conference and West joins the San Joaquin Athletic Association for football only but remain in the Tri-City Athletic League for all sports.
There’s another perk for Souza and the Warriors hosting their own scrimmages.
“I love hosting, as I do not like traveling,” Souza said. “It also is a great event for our community/ school while being an awesome revenue generator.”
Since July 29, Orestimba and the rest of the high school football programs in the Sac-Joaquin Section have been practicing. That’s not counting time on the field prior in the weight room and 7-on-7 passing games and tournaments since January.
“Our current goal is to get our players to play with a phenomenal effort on a daily basis while putting together a great showing at our scrimmage,” Souza said. “Once training camp and the scrimmage has ended, then we will put our focus on Gustine.”
Orestimba and Gustine play their season opener at the Reds’ field in a non-league game on Aug. 23.
Orestimba will display its shotgun spread offense this season. On defense, the Warriors will run a base 4-3 look.
Three of the 35 players are returning this season to help anchor the Warriors on both sides of the ball.
Jacob Valenzuela is one of the Warriors’ top threats returning this season. A senior, Valenzuela played quarterback, wide receiver and defensive back during the 2023 season in which Orestimba posted a 9-4 record and 6-1 in the Southern League.
Valenzuela, in all 13 games in 2023, completed 60 of 103 passes for 865 yards and 14 touchdowns. He only had one interception. Valenzuela also rushed 41 times for 139 yards.
“(Valenzuela) has been our leader day in and day out,” said Souza of his quarterback.
Two more Orestimba players, both of whom are seniors, returning this season. Running back/linebacker Allen Garcia and tight end Nicolas Cuevas are the other two who contributed on the 2023 team.
“Both returning players that have shined early on,” said Souza of Garcia and Cuevas.
Gone from the Warriors is running back Juan Esquivez, who graduated last spring. He had 216 carries for 2,352 yards, averaging 10.9 yards per carry.
Trans Valley League
Orestimba plays Gustine early in the season with good reason.
The two rivals are still that, but now in different leagues.
Orestimba joins the Trans-Valley League for all sports this upcoming school year. The section realignment promoted the Warriors from the Southern Athletic League, which is Division VI, to the TVL that is D-V, during league realignment meetings for the 2024-28 league realignment cycle in the spring of 2023.
Orestimba was in the TVL from 2010 until 2014, then returned to the SAL in 2014 until last spring.
After Orestimba plays Gustine, Johansen of Modesto and SAL rival LeGrand in non-league games, it will face new and some familiar foes of the past starting in late September. Those schools are Modesto Christian, Sonora, Ripon, Hilmar, Hughson, Ripon Christian and defending league and section D-IV champions Escalon.
Orestimba join former SAL rival Ripon Christian in the TVL. Sonora, the other new TVL member, had been playing in the Mother Lode League for all sports since summer 2014.
Modesto Christian is in the TVL for football only. The Crusaders play in the TCAL, which is D-I, for basketball only. The school is in the SAL for all other sports.
Orestimba played Escalon, Hilmar, Hughson, Ripon and Modesto Christian in all sports when it was in the TVL in the early 2010s.
Mike Bush is a multimedia journalist who was born and raised in the Merced and Stanislaus County areas. Contact him at mikebushmedia@gmail.com. Follow him on X/Twitter @MikeBMultimedia and Instagram @mikebushphotography.
