SD Prep Sports:

2006 Metro Conference

Prep Football Awards

Titans name their best at San Diego Hall of Champions

Posted Dec. 19, 2006
The 2006 high school football season might not have ended with a San Diego Section divisional championship but it was still very kind to the Eastlake Titans, who won a share of this year’s Mesa League championship (along with Otay Ranch and Chula Vista) and made it as far as the Division II playoff semifinals.

“It was a very good season,” Titans head coach John McFadden said after the team’s annual awards banquet Dec. 12 at the San Diego Hall of Champions sports museum. “We had 11 new players on defense. We ended up playing with a pretty good defense at the season, though the score in the semifinals against Oceanside — a 45-7 loss — might not reflect that. But that was due to turnovers.”

That Titans’ reworked defense, McFadden said, was showcased in an 18-6 victory against San Pasqual in the quarterfinals.
“San Pasqual was averaging about 30 points a game and we held them to one touchdown,” said the Eastlake coach, whose team finished 8-4 overall, 4-1 in league play. “It was a great season going to the semifinals — the first time for me as a head coach.”

Jeremiah Andujo earned honors as the team’s Most Valuable Player after rushing for 737 yards, catching 40 passes for 664 yards and scoring a total of 13 touchdowns for a team-leading 78 points. He rushed for 89 yards on 16 carries, scored two touchdowns and had seven catches for 80 yards in the win against San Pasqual.

Dyson Waddles and John Arnold were voted the team’s Best Co-Defensive Players of the Year. Both players recorded three interceptions on the season, with Waddles returning one pick for a touchdown.

As a team, the Titans registered seven interceptions, returning three for scores.

Will Duka earned recognition as the team’s Best Offensive Player of the Year after rushing for a team-leading 1,057 yards, catching 12 passes for 189 yards and scoring a total of 10 touchdowns. He rushed 21 times for 106 yards in the playoff win.
Quarterback Derek Witte received the team captain award after completing 62 percent of his passes (93 of 165 attempts) for 1,421 yards and 10 touchdowns (against four interceptions).

Waddles received further recognition as the team’s most inspirational player along with teammate Michael Cottingham.
The Alan B. Duke Tough Man Award, named in honor of the Titans’ first coach in school history, went to two players this season: Andres Sanchez and Jorge Covarrubias.

The awards ceremony drew 215 in attendance and was the second by the team to be held at the Hall of Champions, which pays tribute to the county’s top prep, amateur, collegiate and professional athletes and sports teams.