TOUGHNESS—Justis Tinoco is a standout defensive end for the Rio Mesa High football team. Tinoco has two sacks and three QB hurries in three games for the Spartans. BOBBY CURTIS/Acorn Newspapers
FOOTBALL /// Rio Mesa Spartans
Justis Tinoco refused to back down.
He marched onto the field for Rio Mesa High freshman football tryouts. The 5-foot-6, 120-pound youngster was determined to play defensive end.
“Coaches said he was too small for that position, but he didn’t care,” said teammate Angel Plascencia.
LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON—Joe Tinoco holds his youngest son, Justis, who followed in his father’s footsteps as a defensive end for Rio Mesa’s football team.
What about linebacker? Cornerback? Safety?
No way.
“If I can’t play defensive end like my dad, then I don’t want to play,” Justis told his coaches.
Justis starred at defensive end, of course. He helped the Spartans surge to a 10-0 record that fall.
Just try to keep him off the field, and he’ll keep coming back stronger and better in every way.
This season, Justis continues to astound, dazzle and impress for the undefeated Spartans, ranked No. 1 in the CIF-Southern Section Division 8 poll after knocking off Camarillo, Simi Valley and Ventura.
ALL ABOUT FAMILY—Joe Tinoco, an Oxnard police officer, with three of his five children, from left, Justis, Joe and Denise.
The 17-year-old is not much bigger these days—he checks in at 5-foot-8, 155 pounds—but he’s tougher than a mongoose in cleats. In three games, he’s racked up 17 tackles, including three for loss of yards; he’s tied for second on the team with two sacks; he’s recovered one fumble and deflected a pass; and he shares the team lead with three quarterback hurries.
“He owns that position,” Plascencia said. “If you think he’s too small, he’ll prove you wrong.”
RELENTLESS—Rio Mesa High football defensive end Justis Tinoco, right, brings down Simi Valley QB Billy Martin during a 54-0 win on Sept. 1. Photos by BOBBY CURTIS/Acorn Newspapers
• • •
Justis wears No. 83, just like his dad.
Joe Tinoco, a 6-foot-2 defensive end, tormented opposing tackles and quarterbacks for Rio Mesa before graduating in 1986. He got married, raised five children and served 21 years in the Oxnard Police Department. Joe coached his youngest son when Justis started playing football in second grade with the Camarillo Cougars.
COMING FOR YOU—Rio Mesa senior Justis Tinoco has played defensive end since thefifth grade. Tinoco is a leader for the Spartans, ranked No. 1 in the CIF-Southern Section Division 8 poll.
“I look up to my dad,” Justis said.
Joe Tinoco died from pancreatic and liver cancer in his home on Aug. 28, 2012, one day before Justis’ first day of seventh grade.
There isn’t a moment that goes by that Justis doesn’t think about his dad.
There are good days, and bad, including a particularly turbulent spell last year when he vented to his mother, Barbara.
This is not fair. Dad should be here. He should see me playing football. He should see me wrestling. He should see me get married and have kids. It’s not fair.
Barbara, a paraeducator at Rio Mesa, soothed her son’s visceral emotions, still raw after five years.
It’s a challenge for all five Tinoco children.
“I know what they’re going through,” said Barbara, who lost her own father when she was 10. “There’s so many things that my dad missed out on for myself, and now they’re going through it.
“All the kids handled it differently. Justis didn’t talk about it. He was very quiet.”
He crawled into a shell, and his grades suffered that year.
“I couldn’t concentrate,” Justis said. “It was hard to think.”
Life without his dad is not easy, but Justis has made his family proud.
His grades bounced back in eighth grade, and now he sports a 3.2 grade-point average. He’s beloved by teammates, coaches and students. He is one of the most entertaining and talented football players in Ventura County.
“My dad never got to see me play,” Justis said. “I know he’s watching from heaven. I try to do my best. In my mind, I know he’s smiling down.”
• • •
Justis watches VHS tapes of his dad’s football highlights from back in the day. His uncles regale Justis with stories.
“Your dad was a great football player,” they tell him. “You resemble him.”
From the time Justis was 8 months old until two weeks before Joe died, the family went camping every summer at Lake Nacimiento. They’d go trout fishing in Bishop.
Justis misses laughing with his dad. He misses Sunday afternoons sitting and watching Oakland Raiders games together. He even misses getting yelled at by his dad if he missed a tackle in youth games.
The Spartan remains strong through all the adversity.
“His dad’s not here to watch,” Barbara said. “It’s just hard. I don’t know how to describe it. . . . Justis is doing really well in wrestling and now football. I’m so proud.”
Justis captured a Pacific View League wrestling title at 138 pounds last winter for the Spartans, who tied a school single season record for wins from 1988 by going 25-2 and reaching the CIF-SS Northern Division semifinals.
Teammates and coaches marvel at Justis’ athleticism, tenacity and intelligence.
“He’s got that inner toughness that you want football players to have,” head coach Jim Bittner said. “He gets after it play after play after play. I love the kid, and I love to have him out here.”
“Justis is a phenomenal player,” said Plascencia, a senior lineman who also wrestles. “He doesn’t brag about how good he is. He lets other people talk about him.”
“He’s aggressive, and he uses his wrestling moves sometimes,” said Matthew Roman, a senior lineman who wants to join the U.S. Marines after high school. “He’s small, but he’s strong.”
Justis is a loyal friend and teammate.
“He’s got my back all the time,” Roman said. “I can depend on him. He never lets me down.”
Justis’ older brother, Joe, helped the Rio Mesa water polo team win a CIF championship in 2014. His younger sister, Denise, a Rio Mesa junior, played basketball as a freshman and wrestled last year. His sister Desirae, 25, played softball at Rio Mesa and North Idaho College. Another sister, Dominique, 23, competed for track and field teams at Rio Mesa and Oxnard high schools. Barbara was a four-year varsity infielder for Oxnard.
Justis and the Spartans return to the football field at 7:30 tonight against Grace Brethren (2-1) at Moorpark College. It’s another game, but there’s no such thing as just another game for Justis Tinoco.
No. 83 plays for No. 83.
“I take pride in it,” Justis said. “I do it for him. I dedicate it to him.”
Email sports editor Eliav Appelbaum at eliav@theacorn.com.