This preview is the first in a series of articles highlighting the local 11-man high school football teams ahead of the 2026 season, which begins with Week Zero on Friday, Aug. 21.
Carpinteria High football has missed out on the CIF-SS playoffs every season since 2017, but a 2025 season in which the Warriors fell one win short of the postseason is leaving the program hungry to return.
The Warriors went into a regular-season finale last year against Channel Islands in which the winner earned an automatic bid into the playoffs, and Channel Islands came out on top, 34-21.
Since then, Carpinteria High has used the offseason to reflect on what it will take to make its long-awaited return to postseason play.
“We were very upset we didn’t get into [the playoffs],” Carpinteria High senior lineman and captain Edwin Nova said. “I think that makes us more determined to get into it now. It makes us strive to achieve what we want.
“I feel like the loss really just made us see what we really could accomplish. It’s making us realize what we’re good at and what we’re bad at. So I feel like in the offseason, we have been trying to work at what we’re bad at and perfect what we’re good at.”
Longtime Carpinteria High coaches Van Latham and Henry Gonzales are heading into their third season at the helm of the program, and Latham is encouraged by the steps the team has taken in the summer months.
“We’ve had a good off-season,” Latham said. “I was impressed with what we accomplished during the summer. The kids have been working hard; they’ve bought into what we’re doing.”
Offense Built in the Trenches
The Warriors will lean on experience in the trenches heading into the season, as four of five members of the offensive line return from last year’s team and many will make an impact on the defensive line as well.
“The offensive line is also the core of our leadership group, with both our team captains being linemen,” Latham said. “I think that’s good because the line is the heart of the team. They’re the unsung heroes. We’ll go as far as they can take us.”
Nova (5-10, 220) is the centerpiece of that returning group, alongside fellow returners in junior Erasmo Frausto-Elizarraraz (5-11, 230), senior Peter Casas (5-10, 185) and senior Caleb Kelly (5-10, 220).
“When [the offensive line] first played together, we were a little iffy and not really as a team, but since then we built our connection over the years,” Nova said. “I feel like it’s made us stronger and really understand how we play.”
The big men will be tasked with protecting senior quarterback Isaac Neri (5-10, 150), who is coming off an All-Citrus Coast League Second Team season as a junior and will look to grow alongside the offensive scheme.
“I think [Neri] is ready to make the next step. He feels comfortable with what we’re doing. We are changing our offense a little bit, but nothing too drastic,” Latham said. “I think we’re going to put the ball in the air a little more because we have a good core of receivers we want to get the ball to.”
Neri is excited about the prospect of dropping back to pass a bit more this season, thanks in part to solid receiving options in junior Gabe Chung (5-8, 160), sophomore Brayden Real (5-10, 200), junior Jonah Hernandez (6-1, 190) and junior Emilio Trigueros (5-8, 150).
“I’ve just been working on the pass game and being more vocal as a person,” Neri said. “We should be passing it more, and we got good receivers to pass it to. From last year, they’ve improved a lot, so it should be fun to throw the ball more. The connection’s been very good with them.”
Warriors on Both Sides of the Ball
With a smaller student population, the Carpinteria High football program has been forced to have the majority of its starters playing on both offense and defense.
Latham expects the varsity roster to enter the season with no more than 30 players, forcing many players to dedicate themselves to getting on the field and never leaving.
“It’s not easy at all. I have to do a lot of conditioning,” said Nova, who will play right guard and nose tackle. “I try to prepare myself by not using too much energy, but also trying to go my hardest every play.
“It’s also a lot of determination. Even if I’m tired, I still try to stay in the game and help my team out as much as I can.”
Kelly and Frausto-Elizarraraz will also be key contributors on the defensive end, filling in at the linebacker positions to go along with their roles on the offensive line.
While the Warriors will have to emphasize staying healthy with the majority of players on both sides of the ball this season, an impressive 25-player incoming freshman class gives Latham and the program hope for the future.
“That’s going to bode well for the future, and it looks like it’s a pretty talented group,” Latham said of the freshmen. “I’m hoping that class will show people that we can be successful, and success breeds success, and that might get more kids interested in playing.
“If they can go through a successful JV schedule, I think it’s really gonna be a boost for our team. I don’t know much about what’s coming up from the eighth grade right now, but we’ll just take it year by year.”
Carpinteria High will begin its season at home against Royal High on Friday, Aug. 28, and will begin Citrus Coast League action on Friday, Oct. 2 with a road matchup against Channel Islands.
Carpinteria High Schedule
- Aug. 28 – Royal @ Carpinteria
- Sept. 4 – Heritage Christian @ Carpinteria
- Sept. 11 – Webb @ Carpinteria
- Sept. 18 – Carpinteria @ Fillmore
- Sept. 25 – Calvary Chapel @ Carpinteria
- Oct. 2 – Carpinteria @ Channel Islands*
- Oct. 9 – Carpinteria @ Santa Clara*
- Oct. 16 – Grace @ Carpinteria*
- Oct. 23 – Del Sol @ Carpinteria*
- Oct. 30 – Carpinteria @ Nordhoff*
* – Citrus Coast League game
