High Desert Football Preview: Sultana is on the rebuild following several key departures

With a new head coach and losing a pair of three-year starting elite players, the Sultana football team is entering a completely new era.

Obie Galindo, the long-time Sultana softball and girl’s basketball head coach, is returning in an official capacity at the varsity level as he replaces Terry Cleveland.

Galindo has been in and around the program for years, most recently serving as the team’s freshman coach. Earlier this year, Cleveland stepped down from the program, joining the coaching staff at Victor Valley College.

Galindo is eyeing a culture change for the program in his first year at the helm.

Sultana is coming off a three-win season in which the team picked up just one victory in Mojave River League action, a year after going 6-5 and reaching the CIF-SS playoffs for just the second time in the last 10 years.

“We’re just trying to undergo a little culture change, get the mentality right,” Galindo said. “It’s just getting that mentality that it is us again and let’s just go play football. I want them to start thinking they can win games.”

Sultans say goodbye to Higgs and Waller

Jacob Higgs and LaMason Waller III both earned starting jobs as freshmen three seasons ago and quickly became a force for the Sultans.

But earlier this year, Higgs, a quarterback, and Waller, a wide receiver, both transferred to other schools within the MRL. Higgs will now be the signal-caller for Apple Valley while Waller will be a target in Oak Hills’ passing game.

Now, the Sultans have to find success without their two best players from last year’s team.

“They’re both great kids and I wish them well at both schools. When they were here they were great kids,” Galindo said. “It is what it is. My big purpose here is making them (Sultana) believe in what they can do.”

One player who looks to step up and help the passing game in the absence of Waller is Joey De Leon, a senior wide receiver. De Leon said he learned a lot playing alongside Waller and is ready to take the mantle as a leader not just of the wide receiver room, but the team as a whole.

“I’m just trying to keep being who I am and be a role model for these kids coming up, to show them who they can be since I came from nothing,” De Leon said. “I just want everyone to form as a team because last year we weren’t bonded.”

Rome Thomas has also taken the responsibility of being a leader for this team seriously. Although he is not directly replacing Higgs or Waller, the linebacker and fullback has emerged as one of the most promising players on the team who is a vocal leader on both sides of the ball.

“I’m just trying to bring us all together so we can dominate,” said Thomas, who is also entering his senior season.

Creating something for the future

Galindo’s goal for the Sultans entering every season is to make the playoffs like they did in 2022. While Sultana is not losing sight of that goal, Galindo is entering his first year as head coach with a similar mindset as he had when he took over Sultana’s softball program.

“I refer back to softball. When I took over the program, I think they were 2-26 or something like that. That first year we went 10-16. After that it’s been history,” Galindo said. “They’ve never had consistency of someone staying here. I have nothing but the best interests of the program. I want to build it and when I leave it, I want to leave it better than I found it.”

The road ahead

Four of Sultana’s five preseason games are against the same teams as last season with the lone exception being Los Osos. Sultana went 2-2 against those four similar opponents last season and the team knows how important those games are this year.

“The preseason is huge for us. We really know who the two top dogs are but that leaves that third or fourth position for an at-large bid and the way it is formatted this year, it can really benefit us,” Galindo said.

Sultana opens MRL play on October 4 by hosting Higgs and Apple Valley. Three weeks later, Sultana will host Waller and Oak Hills as well.

Sultana wraps up the season on the road against Hesperia in the 29th edition of the Key Game. The Sultans lost 31-24 to Hesperia in last year’s Key Game.

Sultana High School's 2024 football schedule

• Fri. Aug. 23 — Lancaster at Sultana, 7 p.m.
• Thurs. Aug. 29 — Sultana at Liberty, 7:30 p.m.
• Fri. Sept. 6 — Poly at Sultana, 7 p.m.
• Fri. Sept. 13 — Sultana at La Quinta, 7 p.m.
• Thurs. Sept. 19 — Sultana at Los Osos, 7 p.m.
• Fri. Oct. 4 — Apple Valley at Sultana, 7 p.m.
• Fri. Oct. 11 — Sultana at Burroughs, 7 p.m.
• Thurs. Oct. 17 — Sultana at Serrano, 7 p.m.
• Thurs. Oct. 24 — Oak Hills at Sultana, 7:30 p.m.
• Fri. Nov. 1 — Sultana at Hesperia, 7 p.m.

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: High Desert Football Preview: Sultana is on the rebuild following several key departures