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Summer is the time for high school students to relax and soak up the world around them — or anything else unrelated to schoolwork.

Mountain View's Dan Moore spent time at the movies this summer, but his mind was never far from his big stage: the gridiron.

Senior fullback/linebacker, Mountain View

• On the best movie he saw this summer: "Had to be '300.' I loved the action sequences. That type of thing gets me going, gets me pumped up."

• On the year's most anticipated game: "The Salpointe game is always big. We haven't beaten them since I've been playing here. But this is the year. I know we are going to get them this time."

• On tackling: "I'm looking to run straight through whoever it is I'm going after."

• On being tackled: "Not gonna happen."

— Casey Crowe

Concussed twice in '06, Knitowski still seeing Ivy

Mike Knitowski is a valuable commodity to the Flowing Wells football team, but the talented two-way starter has more on his plate than just a busy Friday night schedule with the Caballeros.

Knitowski has a 4.05 grade-point average, is ranked eighth in his class and Ivy League schools have shown interest.

Senior quarterback/linebacker, Flowing Wells

• On David Beckham coming to America: "I am a big soccer fan. I like watching the World Cup, and if he can bring other stars over from Europe, then the MLS can really grow, I think. … I would watch Galaxy games just to see him."

• On his World Series favorite: "I am a huge Red Sox fan, and I think they will win the World Series. Back in sixth grade, we went on a family trip back east and visited Boston and toured Fenway Park, and ever since then, the Red Sox have been my team. I'm not worried about the Yankees."

• On coming back from two concussions in 2006: "I might think about (the concussions) before the game, but once I am on the field, then I have to worry about things that happen on the field. You can't predict what's going to happen, so hopefully I will stay healthy all year."

— Callaway Teel

Passes aplenty, Anaya hopes to rope 'em in

Underneath the helmet and pads of 5-foot-6-inch, 135-pound Mike Anaya is his alter ego: The Cowboy.

Anaya, one of Cholla's top athletes, is the latest member of his family to latch onto the rodeo scene. He has a passion for the sport, and he's got the pickup truck to prove it.

Senior receiver/defensive back, Cholla

• On his off-the-field talent: "I'm trying to go to Texas for college because there's a rodeo team there. I'm a roper, and I'm talking to the rodeo coach about a scholarship. … I've been roping since I was about 8. It's something that my whole family does."

• On Drew Carey hosting "The Price is Right": "I think Bob Barker is like a god, so no one can match him hosting 'The Price is Right.' I will try to watch Drew Carey to see how he does, though."

• On his favorite birthday present: "My parents just gave me a new truck. It's an '06 Ford F-150. It's white, fully loaded with leather seats and a six-CD changer. It's loaded. I'll have my friends park next to me at school so no one can touch it."

— Jamie M. Blanchard

Sahuarita in new region but not out of its league

Chance Miles hears the whispers. His team, Sahuarita, is now a 4A-II school after more than 30 years in 3A, and skeptics think the Mustangs face an uphill battle.

"It's just another level for us to prove ourselves," he said. "We're going to show everyone Sahuarita is not a team to be messed with."

Senior receiver/defensive back, Sahuarita

• On Harry Potter mania: "I watch the movies, but I don't read the books. I probably wouldn't stand in line all night for a book. I would rather just wait for the movie. But J.K. Rowling is a brilliant author though. If she can make people stand in line all night for a book, she's doing something right."

• On Michael Vick's alleged dogfighting involvement: "Since it's been brought this far, there's no turning back. He has to have some kind involvement, and that's just cruel. There should be no special treatment just because he's a football player. I think he's guilty as it stands. It's too hard to prove that he's not."

• On pro athletes using performance-enhancing drugs: "It does affect the game a lot because it's not them actually playing the sport, it's the steroids. … I think steroids are just an excuse to not be able to compete with other people around you."

— Jamie M. Blanchard