Faith, family values highlight Rancho Christian HS football program

In today’s economy, many private schools are struggling to keep attendance up. The same could apply to Rancho Christian High School in Temecula, but not if Kenric Jameison has anything to say about it.

Rancho Christian High School football program readies for the season. (Jay M. Stevens/SWRNN)

The school’s fledgling football program has been around for two years — this being their first year of varsity football — but Coach Jameison has lured an impressive amount of talent to allow a small group of students the chance to compete against the best schools in the state, both private and public.

“My philosophy for success is to hire as many people better than yourself as possible,” Coach Jameison said. “The only way to be the best is to be around the best.”

To make good on his word, Rancho Christian’s coaching staff features the likes of many NJFL Coaches that include:

Terrell Davis, two-time Super Bowl Champion and League MVP (Denver Broncos); Tyree Washington, World Games gold medalist and 2003 fastest man in the world (San Diego Chargers); Ben Coleman, 10-year NFL starting guard and offensive lineman (Arizona Cardinals, Jacksonville Jaguars, Washington Redskins and San Diego Chargers); Byron Chamberlain, nine-year NFL starter, two-time Super Bowl Champion and Pro Bowl tight end/wide receiver;  Travis Davis, defensive back for Jacksonville Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers; Jimmy Kemmis , 2009 CIF Champion coach; Ray Anderson 38-year USAW Certified Olympic power lifting coach.

“This may seem surprising, but I don’t care about football,” Coach Jameison said. “I care about developing great young men who will be successful in the future. Football is a family sport, and … when kids reach high school, they start to lose that connection with their family. During their four years here, I want to try and shape them into family men.”

Coach Jameison said he wants his team to stand head and shoulders above the rest of the high school football world.

“I want to have the best offense and defense in the city and the state. You can’t have one without the other.”

In terms of the school’s varsity program, Jameison said he’s confident of his team’s ability. Among his superstars to watch for are Bezhawn Hill (quarterback/running back), Darius Geater (quarterback/wide receiver/safety), Hassan Morris (quarterback/wide receiver), and Aireon Brown (center/defensive line).

“If we can get a few more linemen, we can make a strong run in the playoffs. We lost a few good players last year, but I’ll go with what God has blessed me with.”

Jameison describes himself as a man of strong faith and he hopes to impart the values his faith teaches to his team.

“Too many coaches are trying to run guys out of their program, and not enough people care about them, pray about them, love them. When one of our members isn’t doing well, we pray for them and help them as best we can. We believe in lifting people up, not tearing them down. I have 45 people here and I’d love to have 145. If God blessed me with 145 boys, they’d leave this program as 145 men.”

“In the end,” he says, “I don’t care about football. I care about developing strong husbands and strong fathers –in that order. I care about making sure our players come here as boys and leave here as men.”

To learn more about the program or to keep tabs on the team’s schedule, visit ranchochristian.org.

Jay M. Stevens is a local writer and regular contributor to SWRNN.