Sitting in the coaching office of Florida State’s Jay Norvell last month in Tallahassee surrounded by his parents, two sisters and twin brother, Newbury Park quarterback Brady Smigiel blurted words to Norvell that pretty much stunned everyone: “I want to be a ‘Nole.”
His mother and sisters broke out in tears. His father wasn’t far behind. Brother Beau was so happy he freaked out with a loud roar.
“They’re going to push me in every aspect,” Smigiel said of choosing Florida State as his college choice.
Smigiel, who passed for 52 touchdowns as a sophomore and 46 as a freshman, still has two years of high school football left. He appeared Wednesday at a media gathering of new members for the Conejo Coast League now made up of the Panthers, Calabasas, Thousand Oaks Rio Mesa, Santa Barbara and Westlake.
“It’s going to be a great quarterback league for sure,” Newbury Park coach Joe Smigiel said.
Besides Brady Smigiel, the league also will feature Thousand Oaks’ Jackson Taylor, a rising junior. Rio Mesa’s JJ Bittner has grown to 6 feet 3, 190 pounds and should be one of the best threats running and passing in Ventura County. Laird Fink has transferred back to Santa Barbara after being the quarterback at Bishop Alemany.
Calabasas is hopeful that with four returning starters on its offensive line, it can put together a productive offensive scheme.
Santa Barbara has a top offensive lineman in 6-foot-4, 270-pound junior Malachi Johnston, who has long blond hair and can hold his own on a surfboard.
Schools in the league will have a challenge during the season playing a game on a Saturday, then coming back with a game on Thursday because of Jewish holidays.
Thousand Oaks coach Ben McEnroe said he would have to make sure players were ready physically and get scouting finished early to deal with the short work week.
The big game of league play should be Thousand Oaks at Newbury Park on Oct. 25. Brady Smigiel has been intercepted six times by the Lancers over two seasons and will try to change circumstances this season.
“I think I need to try not to be Superman,” he said. “It’s not fun throwing interceptions.”
Westlake is adjusting to a new coach, Carnell Henderson, after the resignation in June of coach Jesse Craven. Birmingham transfer Ronnell Hewitt, a running back/linebacker, figures to be an impact player for the Warriors.