White wary of lofty status

Dave White smiled ever so slightly as he perused the latest prep

football rankings Wednesday, then gave a slight shake of his head as to

defy his grin from a few moments earlier.

There it was, in print: his Edison High Chargers were voted the

No. 2 team in the latest county poll.

Still further down the page were the CIF Southern Section

rankings, which had unbeaten Edison (3-0) tabbed as the seventh-rated

team in Division I.

White, in his 14th year as the school’s head coach, has had his

teams there before, but is more amused by the latest rankings, if

anything else.

‘It’s nice to see that we’re thought of so highly, but it’s way

too early to tell just how good any team is at this point of the season,’

he said. ‘I view these (latest) rankings as the fact that there is a lot

of parity in county football right now. There is no one dominant team,

and I don’t think many teams will finish the season undefeated.’

Finishing a season is a lofty goal for many teams, including

Edison: survive a five-game preseason, go unbeaten and win a league

title, then put it all in the line during the postseason and hope that a

Southern Section championship is the end result.

‘Yeah, but that doesn’t happen to too many teams,’ White said.

‘You not only have to be good, you have to have a little luck on your

side, too.’

Edison didn’t need any luck in its last unbeaten season. That’s

because the Chargers were loaded with talent during the 1980 season and

steamrolled their opponents in a 14-0 championship season.

It’s the defining year in Edison’s storied football history, but

the current Chargers are looking to regain that magic.

Edison was ranked among the country’s and Division I top 10 teams

at this point last season, carrying a 3-0 record into its nonleague

meeting with Long Beach Wilson. When the ensuing polls came out four days

following the Chargers-Bruins showdown, Edison was no where to be found

in the rankings after suffering a 64-34 drubbing to Wilson.

‘Simply put, we got embarrassed last year,’ White said. ‘That was

the turning point in a season that began with promise, but ended up at

the other end of the spectrum. We stumbled the rest of the season after

that game.’

With injuries to several key starters limiting their playing time,

Edison went on to endure a seven-game winless streak (0-6-1) during the

final seven weeks of the 1998 season - a school record for futility. But,

it’s a new season, and again, the Chargers, like their brethren of a year

ago, stand at 3-0.

And next up on their card is a date tonight with Long Beach

Wilson, a game which also serves as the Chargers’ home opener.

Will revenge be actor for Edison?

‘Our returning players certainly haven’t forgotten that game,

that’s for sure,’ White added. ‘Yeah, I think our kids are looking for a

little payback. We know if we can beat Wilson, then we’re closer to

getting through nonleague play undefeated. That would be a big boost for

us as we head into league play.

‘We definitely want to put on a good showing in our home opener.’