Meet the 2011-12 Foothill College Owls

Foothill College has a large number of newcomers and Coach Shanan Rosenberg believes his squad will be up for the annual challenge as a member of the always tough Coast Conference.

"We should have a really competitive team," Rosenberg said. "Our guards are good, we have reasonable size and some really good guys. It's a cohesive group and they've been putting in the time in the weight room."

The Owls sport four sophomores and therefore quite a number of freshman.

Also, as president of the California Community College Men's Basketball Association (CCCMBA), Rosenberg was instrumental in the development of a new site for men's basketball coverage. It's comprehensive, containing rosters, statistics, a scoreboard and forum, among other elements. Here is the CCCMBA link (and do bookmark it).

Here's the 2011-12 Foothill roster:

Spencer Britschki, 5-foot-9, freshman (St. Francis)

Britschki redshirted at Chaminade (in Hawaii) last season -- was All-WCAL as a senior as St. Francis finished as Northern California Champions and state runner-up.

Ryan Cali, 5-foot-10, freshman (Harker)

Cali redshirted at Foothill last year -- was a first-teamer on the West Bay Athletic League.

Brendan Carroll, 6-foot-3, freshman (St. Lawrence Academy)

Another 2010-11 redshirt.

David Fullenwiley, 6-foot-4, sophomore (Minnesota)

Rosenberg is looking for a solid effort inside from one of his few veterans who plays bigger than his actual height.

Momir Gataric, 6-foot-5, freshman (Homestead)

A two-time Santa Clara Valley Athletic League Most Valuable Player, Gataric poured in 23 points per game as a senior.

Kirby Johnston, 6-foot-6, freshman (Vancouver)

Checking in at 240 pounds, Johnston will back up in the middle.

Brett McConnell, 6-foot-6, freshman (Mountain View)

Suhail Mohammadi, 6-foot-0, freshman (Carlmont)

He's another former high school most valuable player and also a redshirt.

Ben Neves, 5-foot-11, sophomore (Westmont)

Sohn Nijor, 6-foot-4, freshman (Leigh)
He earned co-MVP honors in Mt. Hamilton League last season and will probably redshirt this season.

Jimmy Renneke, 6-foot-5, sophomore (Willow Glen)

Renneke is another vet who also plays larger than his height.
 
Thanos Thados, 7-foot-0, freshman (Greece)

A native of a town just outside Athens, Thados will eventually be moving on to UC irvine after two years at Foothill. He's not starting but in the rotation.

James Weimer, 6-foot-1, sophomore (Westmont)

Darryl Wong, 6-foot-2, freshman (Mills)

A shooting guard, Wong started out as UC San Diego before transferring.

The other members of the Foothill coaching staff are:

Assistant Head Coach Jimmy Herrera

Assistant Coach Larry Lumpkins

Assistant Coach - Chris Petiti

The Foothill JC Summer Jam is fast approaching

Start making plans because the Foothill JC Summer Jam hosted by Coach Shanan Rosenberg is not all that far away -- July 8-9 in Los Altos Hills.

 

It's an NCAA certified event, meaning colleges coaches will certainly be there, and a series of matchups between many of the best junior college teams in northern California.

It should also be the first opportunity to see 7-foot-1, 240 pound Thamos Thodos playing for Foothill.

Foothill College lands a big

Caught on the 'net that 7-foot-1, 240 pound  Thamos Thodos, out of Greece and most recently at Lee Academy in Maine, is enrolled at Foothill College.

Thodos signed a letter-of-intent in November with UC Irvine. From this article, Irvine Coach Russell Turner offered this quote at the time: "Thanos has great hands, impressive basketball IQ and the aggressive mentality I look for in young big players. He is very long, with a 7'5" wingspan and he has the potential to become a difference maker for us inside as he matures physically."

Here's an undated ESPN evaluation.

Foothill Coach Shanan Rosenberg knew Turner and Assistant Coach Doug Oliver from the pair's days just up the road at Stanford. A year or two in Los Altos will give Thodos the opportunity to work on both his body and his game.