Bigger, better California keeping it simple
California head coach Darrin Dillow has his team running drills during practice.
California’s head coach Darrin Dillow has his team running drills during practice.
California’s Kass Taylor during practice.
When Darrin Dillow described California’s 2015 defense at the team’s media day earlier this month, he used the phrase “pretty solid.”
The Trojans allowed 36.8 points a game in what was his first season as head coach, including 72 points in a shutout loss to Clairton, 64 to Beth-Center, 42 to Avella, 49 to Bentworth and 50 in a shutout against Frazier.
Confused by his word choice? Dillow understands. Let him explain. “We were so young last year. We made a lot of mistakes. When I say ‘playing solid’ we’re in the right spots, we’re doing the right things, we’re making the right reads,” Dillow said. “Now, this year, a year older, we should be making plays at those spots.”
Time will tell whether that happens, but basic knowledge and awareness is an encouraging foundation to build from for a program that has struggled so far this decade. The Trojans last made the playoffs in 2011, also their most recent winning season. They went out in the first round.
“It’s a mindset. It’s hard to change that attitude. It’s very difficult,” Dillow said of sustained losing.
He believes broken plays, general confusion and special teams errors led to the lopsided scores. All are easy enough fixes in his mind. An increased emphasis on weight training this offseason has built confidence among the players, some of whom added 20 pounds of muscle, he said.
Junior linebacker Ben Bilitski said dwelling on the team’s past performances accomplishes nothing, so no one is.
“You can’t think about that,” Bilitski said. “You have to think about the next game.”
This short-term focus applies when looking ahead as well as behind. Bilitski said the team hasn’t set conditions for its success this season beyond just improving, explaining that focusing on specific win totals, playoff qualification or conference championships would distract from the day-to-day task of becoming better. Bilitski expressed confidence that losses by large margins are in the past for he and his teammates because they know what they’re doing on the field this season.
“We’re keeping it simple,” Dillow said of the defensive approach. “They knew what we were doing last year, so we get to put another layer on.”
According to Bilitski, Dillow’s Year 2 change in approach includes pushing the players harder in the offseason than he did a year ago.
The loss of just five seniors, only two of whom started, gives Dillow confidence that he and the current players can advance beyond their sixth-place Tri-County South Conference finish and 2-7 overall record.
One intriguing position battle that will have major implications is at quarterback, where three players, Cass Taylor, Collin Phillips and Austin Grillo, competed for the job. Dillow said he would be open to rotating two or even all three throughout the season. A year ago, he alternated two quarterbacks. “We’re going to have different packages for different quarterbacks,” Dillow said. “If one kid’s a better thrower with the deep ball, if we want to go deep, maybe we’ll put (that player) in.”
An added benefit of having more than one backfield option is the Trojans won’t panic if one person suffers an injury. “Injuries happen every year. And you never know what’s going to happen,” Dillow said. “So you have to have that next guy ready all the time anyhow, so that helps.”
Dillow added that the linebacker spots are open along with a guard or center slot on the offensive line. Competition for the open positions has been widespread in large part because of the number of players (32) on the team.
Adding to Dillow’s enthusiasm about his team’s chances of returning to the playoffs for the first time since 2011 is the altered Tri-County South. Beth-Center and Frazier have moved to Class AA with Fort Cherry and Monessen taking their place, creating parity.
“Our conference will be a lot easier this year,” Bilitski said. “We should have more success.”
Dillow agrees.
“They know what they’re doing now,” he said. “They know what to expect.”