Rushing to the Falcons’ forefront

Seeking an offensive overhaul prior to the 2008 season, the Crescenta Valley High football team spread out its offense, spiced up the playbook and made a commitment to the vertical passing game. But before they could rev up the sparkling new engine under the hood, the Falcons still needed a good set of wheels to carry it all.

The task fell to Harry Pessy, who now hopes to lead Crescenta Valley back to the playoffs and farther in his second year as the Falcons’ feature running back.

In addition to piling up yards and end zone appearances out of the backfield, Pessy has been a critical component of the team’s aerial success at the same time, providing valuable balance and an essential nuance to the offense that keeps it multi-dimensional and keeps defenses on their toes.

“Even though we’re a spread offense, our objective is always to be balanced,” Crescenta Valley Coach Tony Zarrillo says. “We’ve usually thrown and run for the same number of yards in most of our games [this season] and we take great pride in that. You’re spreading the defense so you can run the ball and Harry is a major part of what we do offensively.

“He’s a threat and the first thing most teams do when they look at us is focus on No. 24 and figure out where he is and what he does that they have to stop.”

The Falcons’ 2008 offensive shift coincided with Pessy’s first year as a varsity starter. Some in his position might have seen the move to a spread offense from the previous run-based look, one that would have likely featured him as the true focal point, as a reduction of his involvement. But while it might have meant fewer carries for Pessy, the importance of his role wasn’t diminished in the slightest.

“I knew I had my role as running back, protecting the quarterback and then I would get my opportunity to run the ball,” Pessy says. “But I wasn’t looking at it as an opportunity lost for me. It made me go even harder the next time I got the ball.

“We’ve got to keep the defense honest. We run the ball and bring in their linebackers and we’ve got a lot of powerful weapons on this offense, so we’ve got an opportunity to make a really good team.”