Week 5 Prep Blitz: Edison coach Matt Johnson in discovery mode

Matt Johnson’s cellphone buzzed with the midnight text two weeks ago, about 2 hours after Edison High’s 17-10 nonleague loss to Clovis North at Sunnyside Stadium.

The coach was asked: “You up?”

He answered: “Of course. I’m watching film and trying to find an offense.”

Imagine that: Only 10 months after his Tigers defeated Liberty-Bakersfield 21-14 for their first Central Section top division title in 39 years, inspiring mass celebration at the same venue, they’ve got the CEO in discovery mode.

Edison hasn’t given up 20 points in a game against top-shelf competition, yet is 1-3 because it has scored but six touchdowns.

The Tigers, in chronological order, lost to Buchanan 16-14, won 14-7 at Bakersfield and lost to Merced 18-6 before the Clovis North game.

Ranked 11th by The Bee in the section, they’ll play No. 5 Clovis West (2-1) on Friday night at McLane Stadium.

“We’re in an identity crisis,” said Johnson. “We’re trying to find out who we are.”

Perhaps it’s not a shock considering they lost six Bee All-Stars key to the offensive firepower of last year’s 12-2 team – quarterback Hunter Swearingen, running back Khai Williams, wide receivers A.J. Greeley, Tyler Horton and Kamron Lewis, and tight end Anthony Shepard.

Further, Will Lee – the Tigers’ most talented all-purpose threat this season – broke a foot against Bakersfield and isn’t expected back until a Nov. 6 County/Metro Athletic Conference finale against Bullard, or the playoffs.

“I’m not going to argue,” Johnson says, “that our talent is the same as last year; we had really skilled guys. Football is won with one-on-one matchups – blocking, tackling, running or catching. Last year, when the ball was in the air, we came down with it. This year, we just have not made those plays, yet.”

A potential boost, however, could be provided by quarterback Gerard Mendez, a sophomore transfer from Sunnyside, who will become eligible next week for a CMAC opener at Memorial. He started as a freshman for the Wildcats, but has been prohibited from playing in games this season per California Interscholastic Federation’s “30-day” transfer rule.

Will it be Mendez’s job next week? “No, I can’t say that,” Johnson says. “But he’s been practicing well, and he’s one of the best sophomores I’ve seen.”

Crews resigns at Avenal – The sixth stop on the Central Section coaching circuit in football for Mike Crews has found an unusual finish.

He resigned a month into his first season with the Buccaneers for personal reasons, Avenal athletic director Eric Smyers said.

Crews has been replaced on an interim basis, Smyers said, by Charles Price, who led Avenal to an 8-4 record and a Division VI runner-up finish to Kennedy last year in his only season as head coach.

The Buccaneers, in their first game after this season’s transition, lost 34-13 Saturday against Immanuel, which is 4-0 and top-ranked by The Bee in D-V a season after winning that division’s title.

Crews went 2-1 this season with Avenal, extending a 32-year, 133-195-2 career record preceded by jobs at Dinuba, Exeter, Porterville, Ridgeview and Selma, according to section historian Bob Barnett.

Games of the week (all Friday)

No. 3 Ridgeview (4-0) at No. 12 Bakersfield (2-2): You could rank Ridgeview No. 1 in the section and have no reason to apologize. The Wolf Pack, the defending D-II champion, has beaten D-I opposition in Frontier (36-30), Liberty-Bakersfield (29-14) and Stockdale (43-22). And now for the Drillers, 36-time section champions, before Ridgeview surely plucks away at South Yosemite League pigeons the next five weeks.

No. 5 Clovis West (2-1) vs. No. 11 Edison (1-3), at McLane: Your six bucks buys a showdown of major college defensive talent in this one in Clovis West linebacker Caleb Kelly and Edison nose guard Leevel Tatum. Kelly visited Michigan two weeks ago and has itineraries set for Oregon (Oct. 9), Texas (Nov. 6), Oklahoma (Nov. 20) and Notre Dame (Dec. 11). Those close to him say he’s long fancied Oklahoma. He’s ranked by Rivals.com as the 17th-best overall prospect in the nation and the No. 5 outside linebacker. Tatum has been offered by Fresno State, Nevada, Colorado State, New Mexico, UTEP and Northern Arizona.

No. 10 Buchanan (2-2) at Porterville (1-3): Not a good idea for the Bears to peek around the corner to a TRAC opener against Central next week while playing at Porterville, which nearly clipped No. 13 and unbeaten Hanford two weeks ago in a 27-21 loss before winning 28-27 at then-No. 18 Dinuba last week.

Dinuba (3-2) at No. 16 Tulare (4-0): Primary intrigue in this duel of perennial Tulare County powers is the question of Redskins coach Darren Bennett playing Romello Harris (broken left ring finger), the section’s fourth-leading career rusher. Harris has been cleared to play, but Bennett appears to be more concerned with November D-II playoffs than an early October nonleague game.

Madera South (3-1) at Liberty-Madera Ranchos (4-0): No more doubting the legitimacy of Madera South, which extended its winning streak to three with a 61-40 conquest of previously unbeaten Fresno last week. Winning streak? None better riding in the state at the moment than the Hawks’ 22.

Fowler (2-1) at Central Valley Christian (3-1): Solid matchup of Division V and IV teams, and don’t be fooled by CVC’s 56-3 win in this one a year ago. It was then that Fowler also lost 35-0 to Liberty-Madera Ranchos. But it was 40-37 Hawks two weeks ago in a game the Redcats led 21-7 at halftime.

This story was originally published October 1, 2015 at 3:20 PM with the headline "Week 5 Prep Blitz: Edison coach Matt Johnson in discovery mode."