Robinson

By Keith Niebuhr
Published August 31, 2007

Multiple Choice

If he stays healthy, senior quarterback Justin Le will:

A) Rank among the county's top signal callers

B) Produce only modest statistics

C) Throw for 1,750 or more yards

D) A and C

Answer: D. Le has the arm, savvy and offensive coordinator (Rob Burns) to post all-county numbers. Time will tell, however, if he has the receivers. Playing in the shadows of Robert Marve (Plant) and Stephen Garcia (Jefferson) last fall, Le got little publicity. But in his first year as a starter, he passed for more than 1,500 yards and steadily improved throughout the season. Greg Ellingson, who caught everything in sight, graduated but the Knights are hopeful players such as Herb Hogan and Imani Wade will be solid playmakers.e_SClBTrue-False

Burns is one of the area's elite offensive coordinators.

Answer: True. The numbers speak for themselves. The Knights produce - and entertain - every fall, so clearly Burns is doing something right. The funny thing is, Burns played linebacker in high school and coached defense before Mike DePue became head coach. "I made him offensive coordinator because he knew what could give defenses trouble," DePue said.

Yes or No

Will depth be a major concern because the Knights have only 31 players?

Answer: Yes. The bad news is that Robinson lacks numbers. The good news is that, as usual, the Knights still have some talent. In an effort to keep the team fresh in the second half, the coaching staff hopes to play few, if any, linemen both ways. Several skill players, however, will log double duty.

Essay

Hillsborough coach Earl Garcia on Robinson:

"That is a well-coached football team. That whole bunch does an excellent job."

DePue on the Knights:

"Robinson has a history of being a no-quit team. This squad is going to be the epitome of that."

Extra Credit

Five of the Knights' eight coaches played at Robinson. One assistant, Jason Miska, started at linebacker for Auburn. ...DePue has a busy off-the-field load. He teaches advanced placement European history and AP human geography. ... Running back Marco Cobb is the brother of former Robinson star Javier Arenas, who is now at Alabama. ... Robinson will run a multiple-set spread offense and a 4-3 defense.

Keith Niebuhr, Times staff writer

[Last modified August 29, 2007, 15:35:49]