Who’s the prep team to beat in Fresno area this fall? ‘Targets on our back’
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Central East enters 2025 season with fewer players but promising returning talent.
- Quarterback Jelani Dippel returns after 3,515 yards and 41 touchdowns in 2024.
- Coach Kyle Biggs scheduled tougher opponents to test strength before league play.
With the additions of Central West and Garza highs, Central East in recent years been feeling the impact of fewer players on its team.
Even with a smaller roster, Central East has found ways to be competitive — and in last season’s Central Section playoff run, plenty of talent got it done for the Bengals, formerly known as the Central East Grizzlies.
This year’s team makeup has the same energy and talent in hopes of a repeat run as the season kicks off.
Central East — The Bee’s No. 1 team in its first rankings of the season — will host Inglewood (0-1) at 7 p.m. Friday at Koligian Stadium.
“We do have a lot of less guys, but the talent is still there,” Central East wide receiver E.J. Morgan said.
“We still have a lot of players returning. We still have many big players.”
And that bodes well for the Bengals under head coach Kyle Biggs, but it is also why he scheduled tougher nonleague opponents, starting with Inglewood, which opened the season last week and lost to Los Alamitos 20-12.
After the game against the Stallions, Central East will visit NorCal power Grant-Sacramento.
“We’re going to find out who we are,” Biggs said. “We’re going to get punched in the mouth and figure it out. We have a long season to go, so we want to know where we are.”
While Central East didn’t win the Tri-River Athletic Conference last season, it rebounded with a strong run in the playoffs, capped by a 33-24 victory over TRAC champ Clovis East 33-24 in the Division I-AA championship.
The Bengals won the Northern California title and played in the Division 1-A championship, losing to Edison-Huntington Beach 21-14.
Experience alone is why running back Brandon Smith has confidence in his teammates as Central East attempts to get back there behind quarterback Jelani Dippel.
“Be more disciplined,” Smith said. “Working hard in the weight room and in practice. Pretty much more coachable, and overall we got some new kids coming up and they should be pretty good.”
Last season, Dippel completed 249 of 431 passes for 3,515 yards and 41 touchdowns against 10 interceptions. Then there was Smith, who ran 277 times for 1,871 yards and 25 touchdowns.
The contingent of the offense that led the spark are back except for leading wide receiver Daylon Scott, who graduated.
Morgan understands teams will be focused on the Bengals, but he’s trusting his teammates.
“We have the targets on our back,” he said. “We know the expectations are high, and we’re going to set them high. I mean, it feels great, honestly, to know that we’re the team that everybody wants to get because now it makes us want to try harder.”
Central East schedule
Friday vs. Inglewood, 7 p.m. (Koligian Stadium)
Aug. 29 at Grant-Sacramento, 7 p.m.
Sept. 5 vs. Turlock, 7 p.m. (Koligian Stadium)
Sept. 12 vs. Edison-Stockton, 7 p.m. (Koligian Stadium)
Sept. 19 at Liberty-Bakersfield, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 2 at Clovis North, 7 p.m. (Veterans Memorial Stadium)
Oct. 10 vs. Clovis East, 7 p.m.
Oct. 16 at Clovis West, 7 p.m. (Veterans Memorial Stadium)
Oct. 24 vs. Clovis, 7 p.m.
Oct. 30 at Buchanan, 7 p.m. (Veterans Memorial Stadium)
