DELANO, Calif. — One of Kern County’s best teams from 2018 is looking for continued success in the new season. Kennedy High School went 13-2 overall with a trip to the CIF 4-A Southern California Regional Final Bowl.
Head coach Mario Millan says he has nearly 12 returners from last year who are ready to build on success from their first few years as Thunderbirds.
“That last group that we had last year, they worked, really hard,” he said. “These guys saw that and the good thing is that our juniors, now seniors, this upcoming season were freshman champions, JV champions, and they were valley champions last year. So they understand the concept of winning and what it takes.”
One of those guys is senior QB Jose Cota who took over as the starter midway through last season and led Kennedy on their run. Cota understands he has new responsibilities as he emerges as the starter from day one.
“I expect to be more of a leader, lead my team since I know that I’m going to be the starting quarterback from now,” Cota said. “I can start from the beginning, lead from the beginning.”
Kennedy will begin with a target on their back as one of the top dogs in the Central Valley. They will open up at home against Foothill High School.
Catch 23ABC Sports' "2-A-Days" segment previewing all Kern County high school football teams daily at 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. leading up to the opening week of the 2019 season.
