2026 EL CAPITAN VAQUEROS PREVIEW

2026 EAST COUNTY PREP FOOTBALL

EL CAPITAN VAQUEROS PREVIEW

With guests RYDER POWERS, ETHAN DUNCAN-CELESTE, BRAIDEN LINDER and DYLAN SCHMIDT

2026 EAST COUNTY PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW

El Capitan returns to familiar league with championship expectations

Vaqueros open with Hawaii trip, return 15 starters and move back into Grossmont Valley

By Ramon Scott
EastCountySports.com

LAKESIDE — For El Capitan, the difference between the Grossmont Hills League and Grossmont Valley League has been striking enough that the numbers almost tell the story by themselves.

Since winning the Grossmont Hills League during its historic 2014 season, El Capitan has gone 3-22 in Hills League games.

Since 2021, the Vaqueros are 19-2 in Grossmont Valley League games.

Now they’re going back.

After one season battling Granite Hills, Helix, Mount Miguel and Steele Canyon in the Hills, coach Ron Burner brings a veteran El Capitan team back to the Valley with 15 returning starters, an established quarterback, its leading rusher, an all-league tight end and an experienced offensive line.

Does that automatically make El Capitan the favorite?

Considering the program’s history in the Valley, it would almost be disrespectful not to start there.

But it won’t be that simple.

West Hills finished second behind Grossmont last season and returns an experienced team. Valhalla has been dramatically remade under new coach Jason Carter and has added a collection of high-profile transfers. Santana and Monte Vista remain dangerous, particularly with El Capitan visiting both.

Still, El Capitan won this league in 2022 and 2024, captured the 2024 CIF San Diego Section Division III championship, and advanced another round into the Southern California playoffs that season.

The projection ratings shows another major rebound coming.

But before any of that happens, the Vaqueros are getting on an airplane.

Vaqueros open season in Hawaii

El Capitan opens Friday, Aug. 21, against Pearl City on Oahu, the program’s first football trip to Hawaii in 14 years and its third all-time. Few coaches have taken as many trips to Hawaii as Burner has taken his Vaqueros.

The previous two produced dramatically different results.

El Capitan traveled to Maui in 2007 and defeated King Kekaulike, 51-35, then returned to the islands in 2012 and lost at Kealakehe, 17-6, on the Big Island.

Now comes Pearl City.

The players learned about the trip around the beginning of offseason training, and senior safety Ryder Powers said the program’s previous experience traveling to Hawaii helped make another trip possible.

“Our team did it a couple years ago — or a few years ago back in 2012 — and it’s the third time we’ve gone in our school history,” Powers said.

For junior lineman Dylan Schmidt, it has provided an offseason target unlike anything most San Diego high school players experience.

“Going to Hawaii, it’s going to be something that a lot of teams out here in San Diego don’t do,” Schmidt said. “I think everybody on the entire team is looking forward to it. We’re ready to go out there and show them who the El Cap Vaqueros are.”

The football part still matters most.

Senior lineman Ethan Duncan-Celeste said the Vaqueros know the travel, humidity and unfamiliar surroundings create another challenge.

“I think it’s going to take a lot of conditioning,” Duncan-Celeste said. “We’re going to have to do a little bit extra just to try and acclimate to it and make sure we’re ready for it.”

Last year’s 4-7 record requires some context

El Capitan’s 4-7 finish in 2025 was its first losing season since 2021, but it came with a major caveat.

The Vaqueros were playing up.

El Capitan opened disastrously, getting shut out by Mira Mesa, 11-0, and Montgomery, 14-0.

Then came a four-game winning streak.

The Vaqueros beat Chula Vista 17-14, Bonita Vista 21-7, Monte Vista 38-0 and West Hills 16-3.

At that point, they were 4-2.

Then Hills League play arrived.

Steele Canyon beat El Capitan 35-14. Helix won 41-21. Granite Hills won 42-6. Mount Miguel won 42-10.

A five-game losing streak, including a 22-7 first-round playoff loss to La Jolla Country Day, ended the season.

Powers doesn’t need anyone to explain the difference between the leagues.

“The Hills League, man, it was a tough league,” Powers said. “We faced Granite, Mount Miguel. Those had some guys. It was pretty hard.”

The experience may prove valuable now.

El Capitan is no longer preparing every week for a Hills gauntlet. It is bringing a team hardened by that schedule into a league in which the program has lost only twice in its last 21 games.

Passanisi enters Year 2 as the starter

Junior Hayden Passanisi is one of the primary reasons El Capitan expects to make a substantial jump.

Passanisi was inserted into the starting job as a sophomore and completed 76 of 155 passes for 1,014 yards and six touchdowns.

There were growing pains. He also threw six interceptions, and El Capitan averaged only 13.6 points per game.

But this is no longer a sophomore learning Burner’s offense.

Passanisi is listed among the county’s better returning quarterbacks, and his teammates believe the experience gained last season is already showing.

“Last year was definitely a big building year, especially Hayden having to fill in such big shoes,” senior tight end Braiden Linder said. “It’s a different quarterback stepping up this year with Hayden. Hayden’s definitely overcome a lot over the season and has put in the work to make the right reads he needs to make this year.”

Duncan-Celeste has watched the development from directly in front of him.

“I love blocking for him,” Duncan-Celeste said. “He’s a good guy. He helps our guys out if need be. Our line definitely likes him, too.”

More importantly, Passanisi should have significantly more help.

Castillo gives Vaqueros proven running game

Junior Michael Castillo returns after leading El Capitan with 558 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 116 carries as a sophomore.

He also caught 10 passes for 87 yards and contributed 202 return yards, finishing with 847 all-purpose yards.

Castillo was an all-league selection and enters 2026 as the clear centerpiece of the running game.

But he won’t necessarily be alone.

Senior Daunte Painter returns after limited action last season. The roster also includes Maverick Darnell, Drake Alduenda and sophomore Robinson Silva, while the players said during the preview that a transfer from Colorado known as Santi was working in the backfield.

One expected addition won’t be available immediately.

Transfer Anthony Mattar, a transfer from Granite Hills, is recovering from ACL surgery and was not expected to begin working back toward action until several weeks into the season.

That makes Castillo particularly important early.

And unlike last year, opposing defenses won’t necessarily be able to concentrate on him.

Passanisi has options everywhere

This may be the most intriguing part of El Capitan’s offense.

The Vaqueros lost leading receiver from last season who caught 25 passes for 477 yards and three touchdowns.

Almost everyone else is back.

Junior Micah Clark caught nine passes for 140 yards and two touchdowns in only six games and added 56 rushing yards and another score.

Senior Michael Valencia II produced 125 receiving yards and 85 rushing yards in only four games.

Linder caught 14 passes for 140 yards from tight end.

Junior Cota LaChappa, sophomore Shayne Whitmore and sophomore Zaine Burke add more options, while senior transfer Elijah Arzu as another player expected to contribute.

Linder particularly likes what he sees.

“He’s got more than enough of the weapons to do so this year,” Linder said of Passanisi.

Linder made the offensive possibilities even clearer.

“We definitely are not scared to air it out this year,” he said. “We definitely have some assets to air the ball out.”

Duncan-Celeste pointed specifically to Clark, LaChappa, Whitmore, Burke, Arzu and Valencia as players capable of contributing.

The potential result is an offense far less predictable than the one that scored 14 points or fewer in seven of 11 games last season.

Linder gives El Capitan something different

At 6-foot-5, 228 pounds, Linder is one of the most physically imposing returning players in the Grossmont Conference.

Linder is an all-league tight end, and is possibly El Capitan’s top college prospect and a potential Division I player.

His receiving numbers weren’t huge last season — 14 catches, 140 yards — but that’s substantial production from a high school tight end, particularly in an offense that completed only 90 passes all year.

Linder believes his role goes well beyond receptions.

“Even if I’m not getting the ball, I’m causing a diversion to take away from the defense,” he said. “I’m usually fairly involved with the play.”

That’s where Burner’s offense can become interesting.

El Capitan can line up with a legitimate blocking tight end and play physical football behind Castillo, then force a defense to account for Linder downfield along with several receivers.

“Coach B does do a really good job, I feel, spreading the ball out,” Linder said. “You never know what he’s going to pull or who the ball’s going to.”

Offensive line could be the foundation

If there is one area where El Capitan appears built to win immediately, it may be up front.

The offensive line returns intact with Duncan-Celeste, Schmidt and Gabriel Wolf.

The roster also includes Brady McDade, Brycen Vermilya, Diego Jones, Kingston Carnation, Ryder Schulte and others with significant size.

Duncan-Celeste is 6-3. Wolf is 6-4. McDade is listed at 255 pounds. Schulte is 250. Schmidt is 6-3, 230.

“We’re looking pretty good — pretty big, too,” Duncan-Celeste said. “Me and Gabe are over 270, and our guards are a little on the smaller side, but they’re tall and they’re strong.”

Duncan-Celeste said Schmidt has already bench-pressed 335 pounds.

That’s particularly notable because Schmidt didn’t play last season due to a knee injury

Schmidt’s return could be significant

Schmidt enters his junior season after missing his sophomore year following surgery.

He said he was sidelined for approximately seven months and eventually cleared after nine.

“It took a lot of adversity,” Schmidt said. “It showed how strong I really was to come back.”

Burner isn’t rushing the final stage.

Schmidt said the plan is to initially limit his workload before allowing him to become a full-time two-way player once he reaches one year from surgery.

“Coach Burner wants me to wait until it’s a full year from surgery so I can go out there and play both ways,” Schmidt said. “I know what I can do, and I know how much I can help this team excel.”

If healthy, his return essentially adds another starter to a team already bringing back 15.

Defense must replace some serious production

This is where the questions begin. El Capitan lost its four leading tacklers from last season. That’s a tremendous amount of defensive production walking out the door.

Powers and Linder both said they are trying to fill that leadership void.

“I’m more vocal, trying to lead the defense this year and calling the plays,” Powers said. “I’m just trying to follow in the roles of leaders.”

Linder has known this program much longer than high school.

“I’ve played — this is my 13th season so far of playing under the Vaqueros in football,” Linder said. “I’ve been here since I was a baby pretty much.”

He said he and Powers understand the responsibility left behind.

“That’s just the role and the footsteps we’re trying to follow in and make sure we keep everyone in line as well.”

Powers becomes leader of secondary

Powers may be El Capitan’s most proven returning defensive back.

He recorded 34 tackles, an interception and four passes defended last season while also handling return duties and all of the team’s documented placekicking.

His preparation for a larger senior role has been straightforward.

“Really just taking care of my body — ice bathing, eating good, going over a lot of plays,” Powers said. “Watching a lot of film, getting in the film room, getting in the weight room, just staying active and recovering.”

He won’t be alone in the secondary.

Senior Dominic Megginson had 14 tackles and an interception last season. Senior Kash Ludlum had nine tackles and a sack in limited documented action.

Colton Kidd is an addition to the defensive backfield, as well

Powers mentioned Kidd, Whitmore, Megginson and Ludlum when asked about his secondary.

“We got a lot of depth,” Powers said. “We’re looking pretty good in that part of the field.”

Silva could be breakout defender

Ask El Capitan’s players for a young name to remember and one comes up emphatically.

Robinson Silva.

The sophomore is listed at 5-10, 185 pounds and can play running back and middle linebacker.

Schmidt didn’t hedge when asked who had impressed him.

“If I was a coach, if I was a scout, that kid would definitely be on my list for sure,” Schmidt said. “He grinds the hardest throughout every single practice, every single weight room. He’s always pushing. He’s always doing the right thing.”

Silva and Ludlum are the anchors of the linebacking corps.

With so much linebacker production lost to graduation, Silva’s emergence could be one of the most important developments of the season.

Linder, Bond give defense size on edge

Linder will also play defensive end, giving El Capitan a 6-5, 228-pound presence on the edge.

Junior Landon Bond is another established piece after recording 30 tackles, 4½ tackles for loss and a sack in eight games as a sophomore.

The defensive-front rotation could also include Dalton Linder, Calloway Geter, Brandon Jimenez, Quillan White, Schmidt, Vermilya, McDade, Wolf and Kingston Carnation.

Powers acknowledged that the defense is younger than the offense but doesn’t view that as a reason to lower expectations.

“Our defense is looking really stacked this year,” Powers said. “We got a young defense. I’m hoping to lead them and try to set a good example.”

His conclusion was simpler.

“Defense wins ball games.”

Special teams could produce another weapon

Powers was nearly automatic as El Capitan’s kicker last season, making 17 of 18 PATs and all three field-goal attempts, including a long of 34 yards.

He also returned five punts for 64 yards.

But the Vaqueros apparently have another specialist ready.

Sophomore Bryce Robertson is listed as both kicker and punter.

His teammates were not shy about hyping him.

“Bryce Robertson — he’s going to be an amazing kicker,” Linder said. “This guy is already hitting like 50-, 60-yard field goals. It’s honestly mind-blowing, and he’s going to be a sophomore.”

We’ll wait for Friday nights before engraving the 60-yard plaque.

But if Robertson can consistently give El Capitan legitimate field-goal range, the Vaqueros could have a significant advantage in the close games that often decide the Valley race.

The schedule is dramatically different

The weaker league schedule is obvious. Gone are league games against Granite Hills, Helix and Mount Miguel.

Instead, El Capitan gets Santana, Monte Vista, West Hills, El Cajon Valley and Valhalla.

Before league, however, the Vaqueros have built a useful test.

After Pearl City, El Capitan visits Chula Vista on Aug. 28, hosts Ramona on Sept. 4, visits Bonita Vista on Sept. 11 and plays at Steele Canyon on Sept. 18.

Chula Vista and Bonita Vista are rematches from El Capitan victories last season.

Ramona traditionally provides the kind of physical matchup that should tell El Capitan something about itself.

And then comes Steele Canyon.

Steele Canyon is the measuring stick

If you want to know how much El Capitan has improved before the Valley schedule begins, circle Sept. 18.

The Vaqueros return to Steele Canyon, where the Cougars beat them 35-14 last season.

Duncan-Celeste considers the Cougars one of the biggest challenges on the schedule.

“Steele Canyon, they’ve had their guys,” he said. “They have a couple ranked D-linemen that I know. … They’re probably going to be our toughest, but I think we’re going to pull through this year.”

Powers remembers the loss, too.

“We’re looking forward to beating them this year,” he said. “We need it.”

Steele Canyon doesn’t determine El Capitan’s league championship chances.

It may tell us how high the Vaqueros’ ceiling actually is.

Then it’s back to the Valley

El Capitan opens league play Oct. 2 at Santana.

That isn’t an automatic win.

The Sultans return quarterback Ethan Miller, running back Julian Mayers, receivers Denton Goar and Josh Pehl and much of their offensive production.

Then comes another road game, Oct. 9 at Monte Vista.

El Capitan crushed the Monarchs 38-0 last season, but Monte Vista has historically been one of those teams nobody particularly enjoys playing, especially on its home field.

Win those two, and the Vaqueros return to Lakeside for what could be their first championship-level test.

Burner Trophy comes home

West Hills visits El Capitan on Oct. 16 for the Burner Trophy.

The Vaqueros own it. Usually it trades hands every year, but El Cap retained it last year.

El Capitan went to Santee last season and won 16-3, holding West Hills without a touchdown.

But the Wolf Pack recovered from its slow start and ultimately finished 4-1 in the Valley, one game behind champion Grossmont.

With Grossmont promoted to the Hills, West Hills is effectively the league’s top returning team.

That makes the trophy game about considerably more than the trophy.

El Capitan gets it at home.

And if the Vaqueros handle their first two league road games, this could be the night they establish themselves as the team everyone else must catch.

One major unknown wears orange

Then there’s Valhalla.

Nobody really knows yet what the Norsemen are going to become.

We know they have a new head coach in former Lincoln assistant Jason Carter.

We know quarterback Jeremiah Loper transferred from Mount Miguel.

We know other experienced players have followed.

And we know enough talent has arrived that Valhalla has gone from an afterthought to a legitimate Grossmont Valley championship candidate before playing a game.

But we haven’t seen it together yet.

Even Valhalla’s opener may not provide a definitive answer. The Norsemen beat San Jacinto Valley Academy in last year’s opener before struggling through the remainder of the season. Beating the same opponent — even convincingly — won’t necessarily prove this rebuilt version is ready to win the Valley.

Duncan-Celeste acknowledged Valhalla’s talent but wondered how quickly it can become a cohesive team.

“They’ve got a lot of team bonding they have to do,” he said. “They’ve all came from different schools and whatnot.”

That’s the question.

Not whether Valhalla has talent.

Whether it becomes a team quickly enough to challenge programs that already know exactly what they are.

Oct. 30 could decide everything

If the preseason expectations hold, there may be no better way to finish the Grossmont Valley season.

El Capitan at Valhalla. Oct. 30.

The established Valley power against the dramatically reconstructed challenger.

El Capitan’s continuity against Valhalla’s influx of talent.

Burner’s program against Carter’s new one. And potentially a league championship on the line.

There are too many games between now and then to declare it the championship game in August.

Carter was a major architect in Lincoln High’s rise to the upper tier of county programs at the top assistant to head coach David Dunn.

West Hills deserves considerably more respect than that. Santana and Monte Vista are capable of wrecking somebody’s season, too.

But if you were forced today to choose the regular-season finale most likely to determine the Grossmont Valley championship, El Capitan-Valhalla would be difficult to pass.

Back where they have been at their best

There is something almost cyclical about El Capitan’s recent history.

The Vaqueros won the Valley in 2022.

They won it again in 2024, then won the CIF Division III championship.

Now comes 2026.

Another even-numbered year.

Another return to the Valley.

And another roster that looks capable of playing into November.

The program has never found the same formula in the Hills. Since that magical 2014 team won the Hills League and a CIF championship, El Capitan is just 3-22 in Hills League games.

The Valley has been an entirely different story.

Since 2021, the Vaqueros are 19-2 there.

That doesn’t guarantee anything in 2026.

But it absolutely establishes the standard.

Outlook

El Capitan looks like one of East County’s strongest bounce-back candidates.

The 4-7 record from last season matters less than how it happened.

The Vaqueros were 4-2 before running into the Grossmont Hills League, and three of those four victories came against teams appearing on this year’s schedule.

Now they return 10 offensive starters and six defensive starters.

Passanisi has a full season behind him. Castillo already has proven he can carry the rushing load. Linder is an all-league tight end with legitimate size.

Clark, LaChappa, Valencia, Whitmore, Burke and Arzu could make the receiving corps substantially deeper.

Duncan-Celeste anchors an experienced line, and Schmidt’s return adds another potentially significant piece.

The defensive questions are legitimate. El Capitan lost its four leading tacklers and a tremendous amount of production. Powers, Megginson, Ludlum, Linder and Bond will have to provide the experience while players such as Silva emerge.

But this isn’t the Hills League anymore. The Vaqueros could effectively clear an 8-2 or 7-3 regular season, and a first-place Valley finish.

That is a reasonable goal for this program. So is calling El Capitan the preseason favorite.

West Hills earned the right to object. Valhalla may have accumulated enough talent to overturn the league immediately. Santana and Monte Vista won’t concede anything.

But until somebody proves otherwise, the program that has gone 19-2 in its last 21 Grossmont Valley League games and won championships in each of its last two seasons there deserves to begin at the front of the line.

First, though, comes something much more unusual.

A flight across the Pacific.

A Friday night at Pearl City.

And El Capitan’s first opportunity in 14 years to bring a victory home from Hawaii.

Key games: Sept. 18 at Steele Canyon, Oct. 16 vs. West Hills, Oct. 30 at Valhalla

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