Redondo Youth Huddle Around Pop Warner Program

The Redondo Pop Warner season is under way and the stadium at Redondo Union High was filled with families again on Saturday, cheering on the youth football teams.

"We have seven teams this year and close to 200 kids,'' said Conrad Rubio, who has been the league president for the past three years. ''They start practicing five days a week on Aug. 1 and they put in a lot of hard work before the season starts. Now they practice three days a week and play games on Saturday.

"We have some great parents involved in the league. But like any league, we need more parents to help out. We're out here for the kids, to make sure they have fun and to make sure they are doing something positive for themselves."

With four league games and four non-league games and possible playoff games, it takes a lot of volunteers. The other teams in the league are Torrance, Palos Verdes, Crenshaw and South Los Angeles. They are part of the Southern California Conference.

The teams will travel as far as Pasadena, Yorba Linda, Long Beach and San Diego for some non-league games. Not every league has teams in each division so the Redondo teams will sometimes play games in several cities. The playoffs will be in Arizona this year and the finals will be in Florida.

Residents from Redondo Beach, Manhattan Beach and Hermosa Beach can play on the Redondo teams. 

The Redondo league has seven teams in various divisions based on age and weight. They have two flag teams for kids from 5 to 7 years old and one team in the Mighty Mites for children 6 to 8 years old. There also is a Junior Pee Wee division (7 to 9 years old), Pee Wee (8-10), Junior Midgets (9-11) and Midgets (11-13).

Every player has to play a minimum number of plays based on how many players are on the team.

Each player must weigh in before each game and the kids are very careful to maintain their proper weight. "The kids know they have to eat right. It's very rarely that someone will not make the weight. They know the team is depending on them," Rubio said.

Last week the Redondo Junior Midgets beat Garden Grove 20-0, the defense recording shutouts in its first two games. Michael Hubert led the rushing game and had a 53-yard touchdown run to open the scoring. Hunter Silva had an interception that he ran back 40 yards for a touchdown, while quarterback Preston Faecher led the team on a 65-yard drive that was capped off with his 8-yard touchdown run.

"We played a pretty good football team today and we will play better teams in the future. So we are going to have to grow ourselves as a team and get better. Every time you win a football game it feels great!" Coach Jimmy Faecher said.