For all the glitz and glamour garnered by the Juanita High football team, it’s still been years since the Rebels raised a banner — league champs, state champs, anything — to the rafters.
This particular group of Rebels hopes to change that.
“We want to hang a banner in our gym, and that’s something that hasn’t happened for a while,” said linebacker Dean Sise. “It’d be pretty special to leave that legacy here, being a senior and being able to look back and always remember that.”
Sise is one of several seniors with big aspirations for the next level, having recently committed to play football for the United States Naval Academy. Fellow senior Salvon Ahmed, last season’s KingCo 3A Offensive Player of the Year, is one of the most heavily-recruited athletes in the state of Washington.
Busy summer for Salvon: All-American, a star at @TheOpening and college offers across the US https://t.co/qhsSWcvBhM pic.twitter.com/1IrlGD8yn2
— John William Howard (@JowardHoward) August 18, 2016
But before moving on, the Rebels aim to improve on last season’s quarterfinal bid, a run ended by an ugly 73-28 loss to Bishop Blanchet.
Juanita picked up seven first-team selections and five second-team selections. Ahmed made first-team as a running back and a cornerback and is the only player to return, leaving the Rebels with holes to fill up and down the roster.
Juanita’s up-tempo style plays a big role as the backups see plenty of the field during practice. And with experience on the defensive line and some of the top offensive threats in the league, the Rebels seem prepped for glory.
“I figure, we’ve got guys in the right place this year,” Ahmed said. “We had a lot of guys graduate, but I feel we’ve got a team full of dogs in this thing and we’re ready to go. I think we’ll go as far as our captains take us, including myself.”
If anyone is prepared to step into a starting role, it’s Dexter Mell. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound senior lost out to Tavin Montgomery in the quarterback competition last fall but continued to take first-team snaps during practice.
Another stop by Juanita football. pic.twitter.com/DfQLqozLAD
— John William Howard (@JowardHoward) August 26, 2016
Mell appeared mostly as a standout linebacker on the field. The then junior excelled at the new position. Head coach Lele Teo said the switch and the effort he poured into the new role was appreciated by the team.
“With Dexter, it’s his turn now,” Teo said. “He’s a really good quarterback. Big arm, athletic and makes the right reads. I think he’s going to have a great year for us, and I don’t think there’s going to be much of a drop off at all.”
Montgomery was smaller, and had the ability to scramble and extend plays in the backfield when things broke down. Mell can run, but that’s not likely to be his first option.
“He’s looking to freakin’ fling it,” Teo said. “He’s more your gunslinger, and he’s looking to get it out there with a little more velocity. They’re pretty comparable, but he’s a bigger version of Tavin.”
“We’ve been playing with Dexter, even [last year] with Tavin,” said Sam Rice. “They were trading reps all the time. Even with a pocket passer and not much scrambling, we’ll do fine.”
The emergence of a pocket-passer is, perhaps, well-timed. The Rebels return experience on both the offensive and defensive line, and given the up-tempo tendency, even players who didn’t start last season have seen extensive time.
Teo said the defensive line will be even bigger than last season, with a handful of players approaching or surpassing 300 pounds.
An example is the 6-foot-7, 305-pound tackle Palmer Sumner, a junior. The offensive line also returns an all-league honorable mention in senior guard Romey Sasouvong.
“Those guys look good coming back,” Teo said. “They’re a hardworking unit, and they love each other. They’re at Costco all the time together, raidin’ that food court.”
If the Rebels can get through the first four games of the year unscathed, both the offensive and defensive lines will be battle-tested.
Juanita has Class 4A Mount Si in the season opener tomorrow, followed by a Saturday game against Garfield on Sept. 10 at Memorial Stadium — the same venue as the playoff loss last season.
The Rebels then have a rematch with Bishop Blanchet and a showdown with Bellevue, the defending Class 3A KingCo champion and 2015 state semifinalist, in back-to-back weeks.
The Tacoma Dome is waiting.