William Jones Jr., head coach of the Castaic girls flag football program, was honored by the Los Angeles Rams as the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Southern Section Girls Flag Football Coach of the Year.

The recognition comes after Castaic’s inaugural flag football season, which concluded with a CIF-SS Division 5 championship appearance.

Jones was first informed of his nomination just weeks after the season ended.

“I first learned I was nominated when I received an email from the Los Angeles Rams, back in late November, early December,” said Jones. “From that point, the Castaic and SCV community went to work. Voting and supporting me through the L.A. Rams website.”

In addition to the award, Jones also secured a $4,000 check for the Castaic program.

Image courtesy of William Jones.

“This is huge for our program, as you know all of our program’s needs are purchased solely through the money we raise,” said Jones. “So to start out with $4,000 from the L.A. Rams & Gatorade is a big deal. This will allow us to purchase new uniforms, Footballs, Flags, Branded PopUp tents, etc.”

Jones was named the winner alongside fellow finalists Nadia Bernal of Bell High School (CIF Los Angeles) and Leslie Villalobos-Hernandez of the Preuss School (CIF San Diego).

Image courtesy of William Jones.

“To just be mentioned as a finalist alongside the other amazing coaches was awesome. It’s a testament to this team and how hard we all worked to have a successful season,” said Jones. “So when they actually called my name, I was a little bit in shock. Of course, you hope you’ll win, but until it happens, you never know.”

Castaic’s on-field success was reflected in the statistics. The Coyotes produced the top three rushers in the Foothill League, led by Sarah Khalil with 1,005 yards, followed by Pyper Ormes with 908 and Larkin “LuLu” Smith with 773. Smith also finished second in the Foothill League with 2,980 passing yards.

Defensively, Castaic made its mark as well, with Khloe Duran leading the league with 23 sacks.

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