Los Gatos

South Bay Youth Football Team Heading to Pop Warner Super Bowl

NBC Universal, Inc.

A South Bay youth football team is headed to the Pop Warner Super Bowl.

The Los Gatos-Campbell Longhorns are fired up to head to the Pop Warner Super Bowl in Florida later this week. These 13- and 14-year-old boys are from different backgrounds and cities including San Mateo, San Jose, Campbell, Los Gatos and Morgan Hill.

They started out their season as strangers, not just each other but to the game of football.

“Most of the guys, 75% of them had never played tackle football before,” said Josh Visperas, defensive coordinator for the Los Gatos Campbell Longhorns.

The beginning was rough, they lost several games and took a beating from bigger opponents.

“Once we saw some of the teams, we were playing. We were outsized by hundreds of pounds literally,” Vispera said.

But then something clicked, players said they picked up their speed, listened more to their coaches. They tapped in on their secret weapon, their connection to each other.

“We really bonded together as a team and we are really close. So, I kind of knew, we were going to be special,” said Longhorns player Lane Newman.

With intense practice, they started winning, ending the season 9-3 and clinching the Pacific Northwest U-14 Pop Warner Championship in Reno, Nevada.

Now, the Longhorns are heading to the Pop Warner Super Bowl in Orlando, one of only eight teams in the nation to compete.

“We are ready to go out and have fun. It’s gonna be a battle,” said Longhorns player Chase Graff.

Because they never thought they’d get this far, the team is now scrambling to raise money to pay for travel expenses to get to Florida.

“That’s basically our mindset. To try our best and see what happens,” Newman said.

The Longhorns said they don’t call each other teammates. They refer to each other as "brothers."

While the team hopes to win the national championship, they said the real victory is discovering a second family with a passion for football.

Contact Us