Pirates Prominent in All-SCFA Northern Conference Awards

See Complete All-SCFA Northern Conference Awards

The Pirate football team was prominent on the Southern California Football Association's All-Northern Conference awards announced earlier this month. VC had 14 first team selections, including eight individuals who were unanimously chosen for nine categories. Tayvion McCoy led the honorees as he was a unanimous pick as a wide receiver and punt return specialist and safety Charlie Neos was VC's lone unanimous pick on defense.

Other unanimous all-conference honorees on offense included tight end Ryan Gillum, all-purpose selection Koen Glover, placekicker Bohdie Ing, quarterback Braesen Leon, offensive lineman Jackson Perkins and center Jack Sloniker. Utility back Love Adebayo, lineman Nathan Gonzales and running back Javarien Salter also earned first team honors on the offensive side of the ball while cornerback Malik Bates and safety Marcellus Brigham were listed among the first team defensive all-conference award winners. 

McCoy, a sophomore from Grove Heights, MN, was the most productive of the Pirates wide receivers, catching 45 passes for a team-high 728 yards and 13 touchdowns. He also had 11 punt returns for an average of 23.2 yards per return.

A Rio Mesa High School product, Neos was second on the team in tackles from his safety spot with 59, including 28 solo stops. The sophomore also picked off four passes and had 70 return yards and added seven pass break-ups in the defensive backfield.

Leon, a freshman, took over the starting role behind center in the fourth game of the season and never looked back. The Gilbert, AZ native completed nearly 71 percent of his passes on the year, throwing for 2,638 yards and 28 touchdowns.  He had just two interceptions on the year until tossing three in the final game of the season at eventual state runner-up Golden West. 

Gillum, a sophomore out of Newbury Park High School, caught 33 passes from his tight end position for 430 yards and a pair of scores. He was also an important blocker in the Ventura run game throughout the season. He missed the season-ending loss at Golden West due to injury, a tough absence for the Pirate line-up in that contest. 

St. Bonaventure High School graduate Glover was another standout out in the offensive backfield for VC. The first-year running back totaled 682 yards rushing on 103 carries, an average of 6.6 yards per attempt. He scored a team-best 10 touchdowns on the ground. Additionally he had 13 catches for 144 yards, an average of 11.1 yards per catch, and averaged 25.4 yards on 19 kick-off returns. Glover had a team-high 1,308 all-purpose yards on the season for the Pirates.

Meanwhile Ing was Ventura's linchpin on offense, totaling 94 points on the season. The freshman from Newbury Park made 58 of 60 extra point attempts and also connected on 12 of 19 field goal attempts as VC's placekicker, leading the team in scoring.

Sloniker, a sophomore from Ventura High School, started the season as a guard and moved to center midway through the season. He, along with right tackle Jackson Perkins, who hails from Las Vegas, NV, were stalwarts on the O-line for the Pirates in both the running and passing game. 

Adebayo, a freshman from West St. Paul, MN, and Salter, a sophomore from Ocala, FL, gave VC three running backs on the first team all-conference list. Offensive lineman Gonzales,a sophomore from Ventura High School, gave Ventura 11 of the 19 first team nods on offense.  

A freshman from Shreveport, LA, Bates earned first team all-SCFA from his cornerback position while Brigham, a first-year player from Augusta, GA, was on the first team list as a safety.

Offensive lineman Angel Rosales and wide receivers Silas Kemp and Elijah Davis earned second team All-Northern Conference honors on offense while cornerback James Rose, defensive end Domata Peko Jr., edge rusher Angeles Faataape, and punter Lucas Clothier were named second team All-SCFA on defense.

The Pirates were co-champions of the Northern Conference in 2025, their fifth conference crown in the last six seasons and the 10th in the 15-year tenure of head coach Steve Mooshagian. VC advanced to the SCFA Regional Playoffs as the No. 4 seed, defeating Cerritos in the opening round before falling to No. 1-seed and eventual state runner-up Golden West. Ventura had an overall record of 10-2 in 2025.