Fun SCCAL Nicknames

If anyone has ever looked at the site Basketball Reference (https://www.basketball-reference.com/#site_menu_link), the incredibly in-depth site that covers the NBA, the WNBA, the ABA, major European leagues, the G-League, and more, you’ll find that they also list the nicknames of all the players.

Charles Barkley has 15 (Chuckster, Chuckwagon, the Round Mound of Rebound, the Prince of Pizza, etc.). LeBron has 9 (King James, LBJ, the Chosen One, the L-Train, etc.). A’Ja Wilson is nicknamed M’VP. Candace Parker was known as Ace and CP3. Our own Steph Curry is fondly called Chef Curry, the Human Torch, and the Baby-Faced Assassin.

We thought that it would be a fun endeavor to list the nicknames of some of our distinguished SCCAL student-athletes and coaches. Many of these individuals are better known by their nicknames than their given names. If you know of a nickname that should be included, please let your local AD know.

Name & SchoolNicknameNotes
Paul Barrington – Aptos – coachBearThe Bear, coaching Aptos baseball in the mid 70’s and 80’s, won 4 SCCAL team championships.
Shawn Barron – Santa Cruz ’88BarneyCreator of the surfing “Barney Roll”, a 360-degree roll inside a barrel wave.
Randy Blankenship – Aptos – coachCoach BCoach B is only the 12th football coach to win 300+ games in CA history.
Lucas Bol – Aptos ’05 & coachThe BolmeisterLucas was an All-SCCAL volleyball player, and a multiple SCCAL championship-winning coach.
Brian Botu – Aptos ’96Brian Bo-ThreeBrian remains one of the leading 3-point shooters in SCCAL history.
Jason Collins – Santa Cruz ’92RatboyJason dominated the local surfing scene in the 90’s.
Alison Hanks-Sloan – Aptos – principalDr. AHSDr. AHS was the principal of AHS.
Ryan Lewis – Aptos ’96R-LooThe Offensive Player-of-the-Year in 1995, R-Loo went on to play football at Columbia University.
Tyler LaTorre – Aptos ’03 & coachTLTTLT was All-SCCAL in football & baseball, and he won an NAIA Baseball Natl. Championship as head coach at Westmont College, before moving-on to Pepperdine Univ.
Erin Loftin – Aptos ’01E-DogA warrior on the track, Erin was a multi-SCCAL champion, and she continued to run at Chico.
Kirsten Loftin – Aptos ’03K-DogErin’s younger sister, K-Dog was a two-time SCCAL pole vault champ, and a state-meet medalist.
Pat Lovell – past SCCAL CommissionerLumpyPat served as commissioner for 30+ years, and was an Olympic wrestler.
Mark Hull – Aptos – coachmhullo (pronounced ma-hullo)mhullo was a championship-winning head coach at Aptos, and served over 30 years as a boys and girls assistant coach.
Pete Newell – Santa Cruz – coachPistol PeteThe Pistol is one of the most successful basketball coaches in CCS history.
Andrew Ortega – Aptos ’04The A TrainThe A-Train was All-SCCAL in both football & baseball, and returned a kickoff for 99 yards vs. WHS in 2002.
Donna LaFever – Aptos ’05Fever LaDonnaDonna was a two-time All-SCCAL volleyball player and a league medalist in the pole vault.
Robert Oberst – Aptos ’03Obie (Obee)Obie was a regular contestant in the World’s Strongest Man competitions, and starred in the History Channel’s “The Strongest Man in History” TV show.
Hilding Ronning – Santa Cruz – coachTexTex was one of the most successful wrestling coaches in SCCAL history. He was also a football coach and educator.
Kelsey Siegal – Aptos ’08Special KSpecial K was an Aptos HS hurdler.
Kiersten Sambrailo – Aptos ’07SamboTwo-time SCCAL MVP in volleyball and SC Sentinel Athlete-of-the-Year in ’07; earned 3 PAC-10 All-Academic honors at OSU.
Jesse Trumball – Santa Cruz ’90BubbaBubba was a 3-sport athlete at Santa Cruz, and went on to become the head football, head baseball, and head girls flag football coach. He was also married on the Cardinal’s football field.
Darryl Virostko – Santa Cruz ’91FleaDarryl is a three-time Mavericks champion.
Stu Walters – Aptos ’77 & Soquel coach/ADStu BallA three-sport athlete, Stu is a member of the Aptos HS Sports Hall of Fame, and also one of the most successful basketball coaches in Soquel HS history.
Bill Warmerdam – Aptos – coachWarmerLike Pistol, Warmer is one of the greatest basketball coaches in CCS history, and their rivalry games were epic.
Watsonville HS Football ’90Black Death DefenseIn 12 games, the Wildcatz Black Death Defense only allowed 1 rushing TD all season, only 5.9 points per game, and pitched 5 shutouts.
Dwayne Whitley – Santa Cruz ’79Sweet PeteDwayne was an all-league player in football, basketball, and baseball.
Brant Wilson – Aptos ’93B-DubBrant was an All-County lineman who went on to play football at Bethel College, Kansas.
John Wilson – Soquel – coachJ-WillyAs head girls basketball coach at Soquel, J-Willy won 10 SCCAL championships.