Welcome to tonight's 1999 season opening game which matches the visiting Quartz Hill Rebels against the defending CIF Division III Champions the Hart Indians. This game is a re-match of last year's opener in which Hart routed Quartz Hill 49-13 but later had to forfeit due to the use of an ineligible player late in the 4th quarter. With the forfeit win, the Rebels finished with an overall record of 2-8, 0-5 in Golden League play. Hart was 12-2 overall, 5-0 in the Foothill League.

The Indians enter this game with many key players from last year's championship team. Returning starters Pat Norton-LB, Chad Carlson-LB, Peter Dubsky-DT, Garrett Fuller-DB, and Travis Nicol-DB will anchor a solid defense.

On offense, WR's-Jared Bazar and Chris Ciccone, who combined for 84 catches and 16 touchdowns last season, could be the best receiving tandem in the area. Junior-Kyle Matter will take over the QB position and Sophomore-Tim Gregory will be the running back in Hart's run and shoot offense. The Indians' offensive line is anchored by returning Starters Joe Kusumi and Stephen Hoffmann.

Quartz Hill is coached by Pat Degnan, who begins his first season as the Rebels' head coach. Degnan has had previous stints as an assistant at Littlerock and as head coach at Alemany.

Senior QB-Jeff Williams ranked second in the Golden League in passing yards for Quartz Hill last season. Senior-Justin Waasdorp (6-3, 250) is one of the best linemen in the division. Senior-Keith Houser and Senior-Joe Lopez help anchor the lines. Junior-Derek Teal and Sophomore-Michael Williams will share the running back duties. LB-Chris Newling will spearhead the Rebel defense.

Hart leads the series with Quartz Hill, 13-6-1. Next week, the Rebels will take on Crespi High School. Hart will travel to Thousand Oaks to face the Lancers.

John McLaughlin, an All-League performer for the Indians in '92 and '93, was drafted in April by the Tampa Bay Bucs. This week, John learned he survived all the cuts and will be on the regular season roster. You can see him on Sundays playing primarily on special teams this season. McLaughlin, a fifth round pick, played the last two seasons for the Cal Golden Bears, where he played DE/OLB and was an All-PAC 10 performer as a special teams player. John becomes the fourth Hart alum to play in the NFL. Can you name the other three?