It was the last week of the season, the week of the Lakewood game, and the Wilson Bruins were 1-8. It was just months after the school’s baseball team had won a national championship, and a few months before the girls’ soccer teams would win another. Coach Mario Morales knew he needed a spark—it was too late to salvage the 2007 campaign, but he had to ensure his Bruins would get a fresh start in 2008. He called a meeting. “We started talking about it the last week of the season,” said Morales. “We knew that it would be tough to deal with, and we told them how it was going to be, to start preparing now. Literally the following Monday they started lifting and running and looking towards this season. The kids have been working hard and staying focused. Nobody wants to go 1-9 again.”

After what must have felt like longest offseason in football history, the Bruins are glad to be suiting up under the lights again. They’ll be led by Jemari Roberts, possibly the best individual player in the Moore League. Roberts has already committed to Stanford, but the Bruins would like to hold on to their big-time receiver and return man for as long as they can. They’ll also be aided by Honduran native Carlos Manuel, who has grown within Morales’ system to become a featured back this year.

Roberts, Manuel, and a revamped 3-5 defense (similar to the one that LBCC is going to run) will try and keep the Bruins moving in the right direction this season. It’ll be hard coming out of the blocks, as Wilson plays their first three games on the road, and then comes home to play Los Al. The challenge for Roberts and the other returning starters will be to keep their teammates’ heads up if they stumble early. If they can, it should be a different atmosphere in the Wilson locker room before this season’s closer, once again facing Lakewood. Instead of reaching for hope, redemption should be in their grasp.

WILSON BRUINS 2008 SCHEDULE – All games start at 7pm
Sept. 5 vs. Inglewood at Coleman Stadium
Sept. 12 vs. Garden Grove Pacifica at Bolsa Grande HS
Sept. 19 at Ganesha
Sept. 26 vs. Los Alamitos
Oct. 3 at Millikan
Oct. 10 vs. Compton
Oct. 17 vs. Cabrillo
Oct. 24 vs. Poly at Veterans Stadium
Oct. 30 vs. Jordan
Nov. 7 at Lakewood