{"id":296683,"date":"2026-05-02T14:50:18","date_gmt":"2026-05-02T14:50:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/296683\/"},"modified":"2026-05-02T14:50:18","modified_gmt":"2026-05-02T14:50:18","slug":"long-beach-wilson-football-previews-upcoming-season-by-showcasing-new-qbs-press-telegram","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/296683\/","title":{"rendered":"Long Beach Wilson football previews upcoming season by showcasing new QBs \u2013 Press Telegram"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson quarterback Jacob Powell gets a throw in during a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson assistant coach Larmar Avila addresses players during a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson quarterback Jacob Powell takes part in a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson quarterback Jacob Powell takes part in a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson quarterback loosens up with teammates during a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson quarterback Logan Trafas participates in a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson quarterback Logan Trafas chats with teammates during a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson head coach Raudric Curtis oversees a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Paramount<\/p>\n

Paramount Pirates players participate in a a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Cerritos<\/p>\n

Cerritos head football coach Demel Franklin looks on during a spring showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, hosted by Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson quarterback Jacob Powell takes part in a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson quarterback Jacob Powell takes part in a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson quarterback Jacob Powell takes part in a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson quarterback Jacob Powell takes part in a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson running back \/ defensive back Jemel Grigsby takes part in a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson running back \/ defensive back Jemel Grigsby takes part in a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson receiver and defensive back Kyle Harris takes part in a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson quarterback Jacob Powell throws a pass during a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

\"Wilson<\/p>\n

Wilson receiver and defensive back Kyle Harris takes part in a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

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Wilson quarterback Jacob Powell gets a throw in during a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n

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LONG BEACH \u2014 The Long Beach Wilson football program has a new standard after winning the Moore League title last season for the first time in decades.<\/p>\n

Freshman quarterback Jacob Powell, who transferred from Servite, is expected to be a big part of the team\u2019s success going forward.<\/p>\n

He made his offseason debut at Wilson\u2019s four-team spring football showcase that included Cerritos, Paramount and South East High Friday night. A handful of college coaches attend the event.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a showcase of all the hard work we put in day in and day out,\u201d said Powell, who already has a scholarship offer from San Diego State. \u201cI work with my receivers four times a week.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wilson went 9-2 last season, including 6-0 in the Moore League. It was the first time the Bruins won an outright league title since 1991.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think last year is going to remain for success here for everybody after,\u201d Wilson coach Raudric Curtis said. \u201cNobody is going to be the first team to beat Poly, nobody is going to be the first team to upset a stalwart, perennial power like Millikan, and to win a championship for the first time in 34 years.\u201d<\/p>\n

Powell is ready for the challenge.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat just means that we have to keep that trophy,\u201d Powell continued. \u201cIt\u2019s not just Moore League anymore. We run Long Beach, and we need to run California. We need to win a CIF state championship.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coach Curtis believes Powell, who is 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds, has all of the intangibles to be a three-year starter.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that Jacob is ready,\u201d Curtis explained<\/a>. \u201cJacob has shown that in the weight room, in the locker room, on the field in tournaments and he is a baller.\u201d<\/p>\n

The soon-to-be second-year coach also believes junior quarterback Logan Trafas, the team\u2019s backup last season, is also more than capable.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re both going to have their opportunity to show what they\u2019ve got this year,\u201d Curtis added.<\/p>\n

Powell is ready for the competition.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not throwing each other down,\u201d Powell continued. We\u2019re lifting each other up and we\u2019re lifting the team up. It\u2019s like having another friend who plays quarterback. We\u2019re just building that (quarterback) room.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Bruins sophomore receiver Kyle Harris, who recently ran a school record 10.65 in the 100, is eager to keep improving.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt shows that I worked and I have to keep working,\u201d Harris said. \u201cI\u2019m not the best. I\u2019m not better than anybody else. I have to keep working and reach my goal and that\u2019s to be the best.\u201d<\/p>\n

Harris said he\u2019s known and played with Powell since middle school, and he played junior varsity football with Trafas, so he has a relationship with both signal callers.<\/p>\n

Wilson\u2019s nonleague schedule includes an early-season game at JSerra on August 28.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s about leveling up as much as you can within a place of we\u2019ve earned a chance to go compete at that level,\u201d Curtis said.<\/p>\n

They will play a four-game league schedule against Jordan, Long Beach Poly, Lakewood, and Millikan.<\/p>\n

\"CerritosCerritos head football coach Demel Franklin looks on during a spring showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, hosted by Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)<\/p>\n

Cerritos football is moving up into the Gateway League<\/p>\n

Cerritos coach Demel Franklin said he\u2019s enjoying the process of building a more competitive program entering a move from the 605 League into the Gateway League.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur new league, every week is going to be a dogfight,\u201d Franklin said. \u201cWe have to play our best game just to get a win. I\u2019m excited but we have to execute better. I like what I saw but we have a lot of work to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

In his first season, Coach Franklin led the program to a CIF Southern Section Division 12 title in 2023. Cerritos has continued to make the playoffs but has not found the same level of postseason success since.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey have to know it\u2019s going to be bigger, stronger, faster,\u201d Franklin explained. \u201cWe\u2019ve been hitting it super hard in the weight room. We have a bunch of pr\u2019s and the quality of football is better.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Dons went 9-3 overall and won the 605 League last season. Cerritos\u2019 season ended with a loss in the Division 9 quarterfinals.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to put us in uncomfortable situations,\u201d Franklin continued, \u201cso then I can see what we\u2019re really made of because we\u2019re going to be in some games and it\u2019s going to be uncomfortable and I have to know who I can count on.\u201d<\/p>\n

Paramount football has a new head coach<\/p>\n

The Paramount football program is hopeful it is in the midst of a quick turnaround despite a losing season.<\/p>\n

The Pirates went 3-7 overall, including 0-5 in the Gateway League last season.<\/p>\n

However, Malik \u201cFig\u201d James has been hired as the program\u2019s new coach. He said he decided to take on this opportunity because he has a 9-year-old son that he wants to inspire through a new form of leadership.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything for me is new,\u201d James said. \u201cI\u2019m excited. My staff is excited and we\u2019re ready to gear it up and get ready for August.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coach James is well known behind the scenes in the high school football landscape, most recently as an assistant coach who helped develop Inglewood High into a Division 1 playoff team alongside his brother Mil\u2019von James.<\/p>\n

He is also known in the 7-on-7 world as the founder of Premium Sports.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe plan is still the same,\u201d James continued. \u201cKeep the main thing, the main thing. Hard work and dedication, which we believe in. Fast, physical and efficient. As long as you have those philosophies and you go with that mantra, your program can definitely move forward. You just have to stick to it and be true to yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Pirates will play in the Mid-Cities League this fall. James replaced longtime coach Matt Howard.<\/p>\n

\"ParamountParamount Pirates players participate in a a spring football showcase on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Wilson High School in Long Beach. (Photo by Howard Freshman, Contributing Photographer)<\/p>\n

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