Pasadena Bulldogs Look to Shock Alemany

Pasadena head coach Randy Horton is well aware of the public perception surrounding the Bulldogs’ season opener Friday night at 7 at Mission Hills Bishop Alemany. 

“I know nobody is giving us much of a chance,” Horton said. “Alemany doesn’t respect us.”

It’s easy to understand why few think the Bulldogs are capable of knocking off the Warriors. Or keeping the game relatively close, for the matter.

Alemany is widely considered to field one of the top squads in the Southland this year. The Warriors are ranked No. 5 in ESPN Los Angele’s preseason rankings, and they return 13 starters from a team that went undefeated in the Serra League last year and advanced to the semifinals of the prestigious CIF-Southern Section Pac-5 Division playoffs.

Pasadena, on the other hand, is coming off a 4-6 season capped by a 63-6 loss to Muir in Horton’s first year with the Bulldogs.

But there’s no better time than early September for optimism and swagger, and there’s no shortage of that in Horton’s voice when he breakdown the Bulldogs’ Week Zero matchup. 

“We have nothing to lose, they’re going to be tight,” Horton said. “They’re supposed to blow us out.”

Horton has spent this week driving home those facts to his players, while using examples of other notable upsets from both the high school and college levels.

When Horton was a defensive coordinator at Inglewood High School, the Sentinels shocked powerhouse Charter Oaks in their season opener one year. Horton also spoke to when UCLA shocked USC 13-9 in 2006 to keep the Trojans out of the BCS National Championship game. 

Upsets happen all the time, and Horton sees no reason why the Bulldogs aren’t up to the task.

Two things will go a long way toward determining if the Bulldogs can pull off the shocker. For one, they have to avoid falling into an early hole.

If Alemany leaps out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter, all of the aforementioned bravado could quickly turn into self-doubt. 

“The first five minutes of the game really are going to be big because the longer the game goes and it’s closer the more confidence we’ll get,” Horton said.

The other key will be the Bulldog’s ability to keep the Warriors away from junior quarterback Brandon Cox.

Alemany will be one of the biggest teams Pasadena faces this year with a number of players at 250 pounds or heavier. But Horton has been impressed with how the Bulldogs have attacked the weight room this summer, citing how all five starting offensive linemen can bench press more than 300 pounds.

If Cox has time to sit back in the pocket and deliver the ball to a Marcus Green, a C.J. Collins or an Armon Easley, Horton thinks good things will happen.

“We’re very quick and athletic, and we’ve done a lot of running,” Horton said. “As far as our skill positions, we’re right there with them.”