2026 MOUNTAIN EMPIRE REDHAWKS PREVIEW

2026 EAST COUNTY PREP FOOTBALL

MOUNTAIN EMPIRE REDHAWKS PREVIEW

With guests DAVID ONEY, CHANCE ROSS, and AMAR MAHASIN

REDHAWKS HAVE BIGGER PLANS AFTER BREAKOUT SEASON

Keller’s first year changed expectations at Mountain Empire; Ross, Robinson lead experienced group into new Desert League

By Ramon Scott
EastCountySports.com

PINE VALLEY — After years of fluctuating results at one of San Diego County’s smallest and most geographically isolated football programs, Mountain Empire erupted for a 9-3 season in head coach Cameron Keller’s first year, won a playoff game and produced one of the county’s more explosive small-school offenses.

Mountain Empire suddenly looks the part.

Now comes the difficult part.

Doing it again.

And judging from quarterback Chance Ross, running back Elisha Robinson, athlete Amar Mahasin, linebacker David Oney and an experienced group of massive two-way linemen, the RedHawks believe last season represented a beginning rather than an aberration.

“I think with him we’re going to be very good for numerous amounts of years,” Oney said of Keller. “He’s just really bringing a light to Mountain Empire that we haven’t seen for a while.”

That light got considerably brighter in 2025.

A PROGRAM REAWAKENED

Mountain Empire went 9-3 after winning just nine games over the previous three seasons combined.

The RedHawks scored 347 points, averaging 28.9 per game, and at times turned games into something resembling an offense that was nearly unstoppable against equal competition.

They beat Victory Christian Academy twice, 36-35 during the regular season and 44-37 in the playoffs. They needed overtime to defeat Calipatria, 28-22. They opened the season with a 28-25 victory over Hamilton and later hung 54 points on Foothills Christian.

Mountain Empire also demonstrated it could dominate rather than merely outscore people, beating Nuview Bridge 37-0, Tri-City Christian 34-0 and O’Farrell Charter 29-3.

Eventually the RedHawks ran into a familiar obstacle.

Palo Verde Valley ended Mountain Empire’s season with a 46-8 playoff victory in Blythe.

For decades, that has often been Mountain Empire’s challenge.

The RedHawks have had good teams. They have won league championships, most recently in 2018, and have produced quality players and memorable seasons. But sustaining success against the established desert powers has proven more difficult.

Keller’s arrival offers the possibility that this run might be different.

Mountain Empire isn’t a place where a coach can simply replenish a roster through a steady flow of transfers. Pine Valley has its families, its community and its players, and coaches largely have to develop the athletes who come through the program.

Keller appears to have found something with this group.

“Coach K’s a really good coach,” Oney said. “He just watches out for all the players and he always makes sure we’re all geared up. He takes care of us and he just gets us ready for game day.”

Ross was even more succinct when asked about Keller’s ability to diagnose defenses.

“He’s got it,” Ross said. “He knows exactly what to do every single time.”

And Keller has plenty to work with.

ROSS RUNS THE SHOW

Mountain Empire doesn’t have to replace its quarterback after the breakthrough.

That’s important because Ross was one of the primary reasons the breakthrough happened.

As a junior, Ross completed 73 of 122 passes for 1,090 yards and 12 touchdowns against only two interceptions.

Those aren’t enormous passing totals in the modern game.

They’re enormously efficient ones.

Ross completed nearly 60 percent of his attempts, averaged almost 15 yards per completion and rarely put the football in danger.

Then there was the other dimension.

Ross rushed 60 times for 360 yards and 11 touchdowns, giving him 1,450 yards of total offense and 23 combined scores.

Mountain Empire didn’t need him throwing 35 times per game because its running attack routinely forced defenses to commit additional bodies to the box.

That’s precisely when Ross became dangerous.

“We could pound the rock and the defense would bite every single time,” Ross said. “We could do under-center play-action and throw a 40-yard bomb, 45-yard bomb.

“That’s what’s good about us. We can always take the top off whenever we need to, and I can scramble whenever we need to and we can run whenever we need to.”

The RedHawks aren’t married to one formation, either.

Ross said Mountain Empire can operate from the I-formation with a traditional fullback, spread the field or empty the backfield entirely.

That versatility becomes considerably more dangerous because the biggest piece of Mountain Empire’s running game is also back.

ROBINSON RETURNS AFTER 1,443-YARD SEASON

Elisha Robinson was only a sophomore when he became one of the county’s most productive running backs.

Robinson carried 168 times for 1,443 yards, an extraordinary 8.6 yards per attempt, and scored 17 rushing touchdowns.

He produced nine 100-yard rushing games.

And he’s still only a junior.

“Elisha is a really good running back,” Ross said. “He’s been playing his whole life. Whenever the coverage is strictly pass, we can always run the ball. He’s really fast, so we can always run to the outside, too, and beat those guys on the outside.”

Robinson won’t operate alone.

Mahasin quietly produced 570 yards from scrimmage last season, rushing for 324 yards on only 40 carries — 8.1 yards per attempt — while catching nine passes for another 246 yards.

Seven of his touches ended in touchdowns.

That’s an extraordinary rate of production for a player who wasn’t even the featured option.

Mahasin can run, receive and contribute defensively, giving Keller another chess piece to move around the formation.

Angel Avila returns as a junior fullback/linebacker, while sophomore Luke Mireles gives the RedHawks another option at running back.

WHO CATCHES THE FOOTBALL?

The significant offensive question comes at receiver.

Mountain Empire graduated their leading receiver from last season with 37 catches for 503 yards and five touchdowns, along with several other experienced targets.

But the RedHawks don’t sound particularly concerned.

“We definitely did lose some seniors that were starting at receiver,” Mahasin said. “So now we have CJ Bynum stepping up, Nick Terlann, of course, Jacob Arnold. We got Marcelo Gamez Cruz and Nick Santos. So I think we’ll be pretty good for receivers.”

Ross singled out Mahasin, Bynum and Terlann among the players who have impressed him.

The current roster also includes junior Donnie Louden, junior Jamie Reyes and junior Josiah Findahl at receiver.

Oney, meanwhile, provides Ross with a 5-foot-10, 195-pound tight end and potential safety valve.

“Those checkdowns are always needed,” Ross said.

Then he smiled and offered something more intriguing.

“You never know. We might come up with a flea-flicker possibly that’ll go deep to David.”

Oney probably wouldn’t object.

BIG MEN IN PINE VALLEY

For a school Mountain Empire’s size, the RedHawks have some remarkably big bodies.

Senior tackle Spencer Alvarez is 6-foot-1, 275 pounds. Senior Logan Snyder is 6-2, 280. Sophomore Julian Lopez is 6-3, 265.

And then there’s freshman Nathan Jimenez at 6-2, 280 pounds.

Senior center/defensive end Ezekiel Lopez checks in at 5-11, 220; junior David Oden is 5-8, 225; sophomore Nolyn Bean is 5-10, 220; sophomore Jose Ramirez is 215 and sophomore Garrett Steinsdoerfer is 235.

That is legitimate small-school size.

Mahasin made a point during the interview of naming the players who make the RedHawks’ skill-position production possible.

“We have to thank them, show them their appreciation,” Mahasin said. “They protect us when we run the ball and they obviously protect our quarterback.”

He specifically praised Alvarez, Oden, Ezekiel Lopez, Snyder and Steinsdoerfer.

“I think our offensive line is really good,” Mahasin said, “and they’ll protect us at all costs.”

The unit may be even more intriguing beyond 2026.

Alvarez and Snyder are seniors, but Julian Lopez, Bean, Ramirez, Jimenez and Steinsdoerfer are all freshmen or sophomores.

Keller isn’t merely trying to maximize one experienced senior class.

There are pieces for what comes next.

ONE QUESTION TO ANSWER ON DEFENSE

Mountain Empire’s defense could be the difference between another good season and a championship season.

The RedHawks recorded 24 sacks and 58 tackles for loss last year but surrendered 22.5 points per game. They could suffocate some opponents yet were vulnerable against better offenses.

Oney knows exactly where improvement is needed.

“We’re good at stopping the run, but what we can work on is our coverage,” Oney said. “I feel like that’s what kind of ruined us last year. But if we can work on our coverage defense, just get in the weight room a little bit, I think we’ll be really good and set to go undefeated this year.”

That’s a rather ambitious final sentence.

Oney isn’t backing away from expectations.

He’s moving into an expanded leadership role at middle linebacker after recording 43 tackles, 10 tackles for loss and five sacks as a junior.

“Stepping up at the Mike role, I have to be more vocal to make sure all my linebackers and defensive linemen know what they’re doing,” Oney said. “I think we have a really good front and a really good secondary as well because they all are on the same page and they’re going to do what it takes to win a championship.”

Oney identified Oden and Ezekiel Lopez at defensive end with Alvarez, Snyder and Steinsdoerfer among the interior linemen.

Avila, Arnold and Robinson join Oney in the linebacker group.

“All of them are dogs and willing to make the tackles they need so that we can win,” Oney said.

Santos, Bynum and Elias Gutierrez are among the cornerbacks, while Mountain Empire has multiple safety options.

There is a change coordinating the unit.

Eric Velasquez has taken over as defensive coordinator after previously working with the program and coming up through Mountain Empire’s middle-school pipeline.

“He’s very intense on us,” Oney said. “He makes sure we have stamina, we’re strong, and he never takes a load off us. He makes sure that we can be the best possible.”

That’s significant for another reason.

With only 27 players listed on the varsity roster, almost everyone matters twice.

“Mostly everybody on the offense” also plays defense, Ross said.

That’s small-school football.

Mountain Empire’s best 11 can’t simply dominate for a quarter. They have to survive 48 minutes.

A NEW LEAGUE, FAMILIAR OBSTACLES

Mountain Empire moves from the Sunset League into the Desert League, and the geography finally matches the football.

The RedHawks join Palo Verde Valley, Vincent Memorial, Southwest-El Centro and Calipatria, putting Mountain Empire into a league populated by programs it has encountered repeatedly over the years.

The preseason numbers make Palo Verde Valley the team to beat.

The Yellow Jackets return 15 starters from a team that beat Mountain Empire 46-7 last season and again ended the RedHawks’ season in the playoffs. Senior Christian Richards gives Palo Verde an established 1,000-yard runner, and experienced linemen Antonio Barron, Carlos Arevalo and Andrew Mojica help make the Yellow Jackets particularly formidable up front.

Palo Verde also enters this season amid tragedy following the death of its head coach, Wally Grant, this week, a loss felt well beyond Blythe and throughout the desert football community. He passed at age 61 following a battle with cancer. He led the Yellow Jackets to back-to-back CIF San Diego Section championships in 2021 and 2022.

Football considerations understandably become secondary in such circumstances, and the entire region enters the season mourning alongside the Yellow Jackets program.

On the field, however, Palo Verde remains the established standard Mountain Empire is trying to reach.

Vincent Memorial could be the league’s wild card. The Scots return only six starters but have been one of the desert area’s more successful small-school programs historically. Junior quarterback Juan Mendoza and Esteban Elorduy are candidates behind center, while Emiliano Sanchez and Victor De Leon should carry more of the rushing load.

Mountain Empire visits Calexico for that matchup on Oct. 2.

Oney already has it circled.

“I heard they’re a pretty good team,” Oney said. “I’ve never played them myself, but I heard they’re all pretty big, which I’m excited for. I feel like we have the tenacity and the aggression to match up with them.”

Southwest-El Centro brings back 14 starters after going 2-8, suggesting the Eagles should be improved. They also ended 2025 by snapping an 18-game losing streak and then beating Calipatria. Jaden Real anchors an experienced offensive front, while Adrian Jauregui and Ignacio Perez give Southwest veteran linebackers.

The analytics place Southwest almost exactly alongside Mountain Empire entering the season, making the Oct. 16 meeting in El Centro potentially important to the league standings.

Then there is Calipatria.

Mountain Empire needed overtime to beat the Hornets 28-22 last season, and Calipatria scored 32 points per game despite finishing only 4-6.

“We know what they got up their sleeve and we know how to handle them,” Mahasin said. “All of us have improved as players and individuals. So we’re looking to keep that winning streak going.”

Mountain Empire hosts that one Oct. 9.

The computer projections aren’t nearly as bullish on the RedHawks as the RedHawks are on themselves. The preseason model supplied to East County Sports projects Mountain Empire around 4-6 and third in the Desert League, with Palo Verde and Vincent Memorial rated ahead of the RedHawks.

There are legitimate reasons for caution.

Mountain Empire’s nine victories last year came against opponents that finished a combined 52-76. Maranatha Christian beat the RedHawks 41-0. Palo Verde overwhelmed them twice. And several of Mountain Empire’s victories came down to the final possession.

But those close wins can be interpreted another way.

A young team learned how to finish them.

And most of its most important offensive pieces came back.

THE ROAD STARTS AT HAMILTON

The RedHawks begin Aug. 21 at Hamilton, where last year’s 28-25 victory provided an early indication that Keller’s first team might be different.

Ross remembers that night less fondly than the final score suggests.

“We were really good in the beginning of the game,” Ross said. “It was around 21-6 … and then once the second half hit, we just shut down and we weren’t as good as in the first half. First-game jitters.”

Then comes a fascinating Aug. 29 trip to Linfield Christian, one of Mountain Empire’s biggest early tests.

“We haven’t — as long as I’ve played — played Linfield,” Ross said. “We’ve been working and we’re ready to just go out there and be dogs, and we’re expecting to come out with a win.”

Mountain Empire then faces O’Farrell Charter, Crawford, San Ysidro and Victory Christian Academy before Desert League play.

The Sept. 18 trip to San Ysidro offers an obvious opportunity for redemption. The Cougars handed Mountain Empire a 27-19 loss last season.

Victory Christian knows the RedHawks particularly well after those two wild one-point and seven-point games last season.

By the time Mountain Empire reaches October, it should know whether last season’s resurgence has become something more.

2026 MOUNTAIN EMPIRE SCHEDULE

Aug. 21 — at Hamilton
Aug. 29 — at Linfield Christian
Sept. 4 — vs. O’Farrell Charter
Sept. 11 — vs. Crawford
Sept. 18 — vs. San Ysidro
Sept. 25 — at Victory Christian Academy
Oct. 2 — vs. Vincent Memorial*
Oct. 9 — at Calipatria*
Oct. 16 — vs. Southwest-El Centro*
Oct. 30 — at Palo Verde Valley*

*Desert League game

MORE THAN A ONE-YEAR STORY?

There may be no better illustration of Mountain Empire football than its home stadium.

It isn’t big.

It doesn’t have to be.

“You know, it’s always loud in our little stadium that we got because it’s not as big as those bigger schools,” Ross said. “But when you got like 200 people in there, 300 people in there, it’s going to be loud all the time.”

That’s Pine Valley football.

Mountain Empire doesn’t have the enrollment of the county’s football factories. It doesn’t have a seemingly endless pool of players. The roster currently lists 27, and many of them will rarely leave the field.

What the RedHawks do have is a quarterback who accounted for 23 touchdowns and threw only two interceptions.

They have a junior running back who rushed for more than 1,400 yards as a sophomore.

They have another explosive senior athlete in Mahasin.

They have an experienced middle linebacker in Oney.

And they have enough 220-, 235-, 265-, 275- and 280-pound linemen that nobody should confuse Mountain Empire’s small enrollment with a small football team.

Most of all, they have momentum.

Last year Mountain Empire went from an afterthought to 9-3.

This year the RedHawks aren’t sneaking up on anybody.

The analytics say Palo Verde Valley and Vincent Memorial begin ahead of them.

Oney says Mountain Empire can go undefeated.

Reality probably resides somewhere between those extremes.

Keller’s first Mountain Empire team learned how to win.

His second one appears to expect it.

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