Football: Dylan Laurent leaves Estancia
Dylan Laurent came to Estancia High two years ago with his older brother, Christian. The two stood out on the football field together, leading the Eagles to an undefeated Orange Coast League title this past season.
The school is now losing both, Christian is graduating and Dylan is transferring. The first isn’t a surprise because Christian is a senior, but the latter raised an eyebrow or two.
Dylan said he plans to transfer to Los Alamitos High after starring at Estancia the last two seasons. The family, Dylan said, is in the process of moving to a one-story house in Los Alamitos that accommodates his grandmother, Francis, who has Parkinson’s disease. Don Laurent, Dylan’s father, said the family lived in a two-story house in Costa Mesa.
“It was really a hard decision,” Dylan said of leaving Estancia, “but I just needed to do what’s best for me and my future and get to where I want to be.”
The Eagles lose their most dynamic player in Dylan, who as a sophomore played running back, wide receiver, cornerback and returned punts and kickoffs. Dylan, who earned the Orange Coast League MVP award after he combined for 1,158 yards, rushed for 13 touchdowns, caught two touchdowns, and returned two kickoffs and two punts for touchdowns last season, said he has checked out of Estancia.
The move by Dylan did not surprise Coach Mike Bargas, whose Eagles finished 5-0 in league for the third time in five years. He said he had heard rumors about Dylan transferring, and when Dylan missed a couple of days during spring ball, Bargas figured his all-around threat was on his way out.
“It hurts us,” Bargas said of losing Dylan, who intercepted an area-best seven passes and made 77 tackles last season, earning him Daily Pilot Newport-Mesa Dream Team honors as a cornerback for a second straight year. “We wish Dylan the best, but this football program is made up of more than one player.”
With Dylan gone, Bargas said only quarterback Connor Brown, lineman Jason Jones, lineman Juan Lozada, D.J. Davis, a fullback and outside linebacker, safety Tyler Ross and kicker Chris Moya will return as starters off a team that went 8-3 overall and reached the CIF Southern Section Southern Division playoffs. The Eagles lost in the first round for the third straight year.
Dylan’s heading to a program that won a league crown (Sunset) and failed to get past the opening round of the playoffs (West Valley) last year. His new coach is one of the greats, John Barnes, who has the most wins in the history of Orange County with 319, ranking him fourth in the state.
Dylan said he’s looking forward to playing for Barnes. He added that he wouldn’t have to sit out the first 30 days of his junior football season because his family is making a change of residence.
Dylan is the second member of his family to switch high schools after his sophomore year. Christian left Edison, and it worked out for him. In his final year at Estancia, Christian made the All-Orange Coast League first team as a tailback.
Before the Laurent brothers move on, both will visit Jim Scott Stadium, the home of the Eagles, one more time. Christian graduates next week and Dylan will be in the stands supporting his brother.
“There’s always going to be the great memories of playing at Jim Scott Stadium,” said Dylan, who also plans to take up track and field at Los Alamitos and drop baseball, which he played at Estancia. “Jim Scott Stadium is where I first starting playing football.”