The Santa Clara Bruins football program has long been an afterthought in the local community. Santa Clara hasn’t had a winning football season since 2018 and even then, its 5-1 record was still overshadowed by cross-town rival Wilcox. Those Chargers went 14-1 and won a pair of CIF State Championship contests.
Perhaps, though, the 2025 Bruins football team can take some inspiration from the school’s baseball team. This past spring, the Bruins baseball squad won the school’s first-ever CCS Championship on the diamond. Like the football program, the baseball team had long been thought of as the ignored younger brother to the superstar older brother, Wilcox. Yet over the past handful of years, the baseball team has transformed under Head Coach Pedro Martinez to become a quality, A-level program.
Can Coach Nelson Gifford’s football squad pull off a similar turnaround? The baseball team’s revival wasn’t immediate, but the football team is certainly confident that it can prove its doubters wrong this season.
“We can use sports like baseball as motivation for sure,” responded Bruins senior wide receiver and cornerback David Ovasisi. “Coach Gifford is the Athletic Director, and he reminded us that baseball came back and won a CCS Championship.”
“I think we can surprise some people,” chimed Santiago Lopez. “I feel like if our team can get in that mindset, since baseball turned it around, we can move up in our league too.”
“I feel like we can really put some things out there and put Santa Clara football on the map,” added Joseph Ting. “With the skills we have, we are working hard to give everybody a real look at what we can do.”
“Looking at the baseball team and seeing where they came from and what they’ve been made into, it definitely inspires us to become a better program as well,” echoed junior Jack Edens.
“100%, 100%,” repeated coach Gifford for emphasis on using the baseball team’s success as a template for believing things can be turned around. “Competition is the same. Whatever kind of game it is, the way you have to compete is the same, with full commitment, effort, dedication, showing up every day. All the habits that come with being a championship program. It doesn’t matter what sport it is, basketball, baseball, wrestling, etc. We had a lot of sports do really well last year, and the other teams are looking around and saying, ‘I want that too.’ You need to have that belief that it can happen, and when I look around, I see a lot of belief.”
The Bruins may believe the team can open some eyes this season, but it will open up the schedule against a team just as hungry to do the same. Santa Clara will host the MacDonald Condors, who are eager for revenge after the Bruins crushed them out in shutout fashion a year ago, 40-0.
That Week 1 rematch will take place on Friday, Aug. 29 at 7 p.m.
