In honor of Super Bowl LVIII being right around the corner, we are taking a look at some of our very own Santa Clarita athletes who have played in the championship game. 

Joe Knapp

The first SCV athlete to play in the Super Bowl was quarterback Joe Kapp. 

Kapp attended Hart High School from 1953 to 1955, where he also played for the school’s football program. 

During his college career, he played for the UC Berkeley Golden Bears before entering the 1959 NFL Draft. 

Kapp was selected by the Washington Redskins in the 18th round, but when they failed to contact him, Kapp joined the Calgary Stampeders (Canadian Football League). 

In 1967 Kapp made the move back to the United States, where he signed with the Minnesota Vikings. 

Kapp played in Super Bowl IV, where his team was defeated by the Kansas City Chiefs 23-7. 

He retired in 1971 and was hired by UC Berkeley as their head coach in 1982. 

Isaac Sopoaga

Next is defensive lineman Isaac Sopoaga. 

Sopoaga attended College of the Canyons from 1999 to 2000 and later committed to the University of Hawaii. 

Following his college career, Sopoaga was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the fourth round of the 2004 NFL Draft. 

He played for the 49ers in Super Bowl XLVII against the Baltimore Ravens,, which resulted in a 34-31 win for the Ravens. 

After leaving the 49ers, Sopoaga joined the Philadelphia Eagles, then the New England Patriots and finally the Arizona Cardinals before he retired in 2014.

J.J. Arrington

Next is J.J. Arrington who played football at COC from 2001-2002 — he later committed to UC Berkeley to continue his college career there. 

In the second round of the 2005 NFL Draft, Arrington was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals where he would eventually play in Super Bowl XLIII — the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated them 27-23. 

Arrington went on to play for the Denver Broncos, Philadelphia Eagles and the Las Vegas Locomotives (United Football League) before retiring in 2009. 

Matt Moore

Matt Moore is another talented Hart graduate who possesses impressive titles such as First-team All-State and First-team All-CIF SS. 

Moore Played at UCLA (2002-2003) and Oregon State (2005-2006) — in 2004, he attended COC but did not play for the school’s football program. 

To begin his professional career, Moore played for the Carolina Panthers and Miami Dolphins before he signed with the Chiefs. 

In Super Bowl LIV, the Chiefs met with the 49ers to ultimately claim victory in a 31-20 win. 

Jason Pierre-Paul

Linebacker Jason Pierre-Paul is a two-time Super Bowl champion (XLVI, LV) who attended COC for his freshman year in 2007. 

In Super Bowl XLVI, Pierre-Paul played for the New York Giants who defeated the Patriots with a score of 21-17. 

More recently, in 2021, Pierre-Paul and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were crowned victorious after a 31-9 win over the Chiefs. 

Pierre-Paul also accumulated a number of awards such as First-team All-Pro (2011), First-team All-American (2009) and First-team All-Big East (2009). 

Justin Tryon

Another Santa Clarita Super Bowl champion was Justin Tryon. 

Tryon played football at COC from 2010 to 2012 for both his freshman and sophomore years. 

He transferred to Arizona State University and later signed with the Washington Redskins to begin his professional career. 

Eventually, he was traded to the Indianapolis Colts before he ultimately signed with the Giants. 

Tryon played alongside Pierre-Paul in the Super Bowl XLVI championship game to help the Giants claim victory. 

Shane Vereen

Valencia High School graduate Shane Vereen was recruited to play football at UC Berkeley in 2007. 

Vereen was chosen by the Patriots in the second round of the 2011 NFL Draft and signed a four-year contract with them 

He was eventually named a Super Bowl champion after the Patriots’ triumph in the XLIX championship match against the Seattle Seahawks (28-24). 

Vereen would go on to play for the Giants and New Orleans Saints before retiring in 2019. 

Trenton Irwin

Lastly, wide receiver Trenton Irwin played football at Hart High School from 2011 to 2015. 

During his time at Hart, Irwin set state records for career receptions (285) and receiving yards (5268). 

He went on to play for Stanford’s football program before briefly signing with the Dolphins from April 2019 to August 2019. 

Irwin later signed with the Cincinnati Bengals as a member of the practice squad and was later moved up to the official roster in December 2019. 

Super Bowl LVI was played between the Bengals and the Los Angeles Rams where the latter prevailed victorious with a score of 23-20. 

We anticipate the appearance of even more SCV athletes in these nationwide sporting events as they continue to seek their professional careers on the field, court, track and so on. 

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