With the Escalon High School student section chanting “Just like ‘05” as the final seconds ticked off the clock in the Cougar Dome, the host varsity basketball boys defeated visiting Ripon on Wednesday, Feb. 12. The regular season final home game was a special occasion – the freshman, JV and varsity sweep of Ripon that evening aside – as the community gathered to commemorate the Section title brought home by the 2004-05 varsity boys team.

Nearly all of the players from that team were able to attend and the recognition ceremony was hosted in between the JV and varsity contests. Those attending were, in alphabetical order, Marc Backovich, Scott Backovich, Andrew Beam, Brian Beeman, Joseph Dalpogetti, Israel Flores, Steve Gentry, Grant Goedhart, Steve Largent, Scott Sand, Geoff Smith and Anthony Suniga. Not in attendance were Travis Hooks and Marcus Savage.

Teresa Backovich, wife of the late coach Mike Backovich, attended as well. A longtime teacher and coach at the high school, Backovich was head coach for the team, assisted by Greg Largent, who taught at El Portal for many years. Both Backovich and Largent have since passed away but were fondly remembered during the ceremony.

The team compiled an overall record of 23-8 for the 2004-05 season and faced off with Trans-Valley League rival Ripon in the championship game, played at Arco Arena in Sacramento.

Taking second place in the TVL that season, the Cougars received the number three seed in the Division 4 playoffs.

“They would go on to etch their names in stone as legends after embarking on a tremendous journey together,” said emcee Steve Largent, Greg’s oldest son, handling double duty by providing the commentary during the ceremony as well as taking time to pose for some photos as one of the sophomores that joined the team for the playoff run.

Of the team members, juniors during the Section title run included Joseph Dalpogetti and Andrew Beam; Dalpogetti currently serves as the varsity girls basketball head coach for EHS while Beam is the head varsity football coach and the EHS Athletic Director.

“Some of these athletes would go on to compete in the sport at the next level,” added Largent.

Coach Backovich, Largent explained, was the varsity head boys basketball coach for many years, along with serving as defensive backs and secondary coach for the varsity football team.

“He taught PE and conditioning here at Escalon High School and was a teacher or coach here at EHS for 38 total years,” Largent said.

Greg Largent, who served as varsity assistant, was a close friend of Backovich and coached the JV basketball boys as well.

Former Riverbank head varsity boys basketball coach Jeff Jennings classified Backovich as one of his “all-time favorite coaches” and said ‘Backo’ was unparallelled in his approach to the game; he was someone, Jennings said, that he was glad to call a friend.

Introduced following the members of the team, representing husband Mike at the ceremony, Teresa Backovich received a thunderous round of applause from the crowd on hand.

“A perfect honor, to see my husband honored in the way he was; he gave everything to this school,” Teresa shared following the ceremony. “Every week, every day, every Friday night, every Tuesday, Thursday night … there wasn’t a day at home that he didn’t have his checkers out either for football or basketball.”

When the chance to play Ripon a third time in the same season came up – with the Section title on the line – Teresa said her husband thought long and hard, got quiet and came up with a game plan that worked.

“He was never a zone man, he never cared for zone,” she explained of the defensive scheme. “He completely changed it to a zone game and it turned the entire game around. He was definitely someone who could step out of his comfort zone if he knew it was better for the kids.”

She said a unique thing about the 2004-05 team was that many of the players did travel basketball together for years and – coincidentally – had been on the same travel team with some of the players from Ripon.

“There was a lot of connection there, not just a team against a team,” Teresa said. “It was a magical ride.”

Coach Backovich passed away in February of 2017; Coach Largent passed in September of 2022.

“The Cougars are going to Arco,” emcee Steve Largent said of Backovich’s statement to his young team the night before they started that playoff run two decades ago. “It’s going to be our time.”

Backovich and his team made good on the coach’s prediction, as they defeated Linden, then defending Section champion Colfax, went on to Tokay High School in Lodi to face off with and defeat Encina, and finally met league rival Ripon in the title contest. The game was in early March of 2005. Escalon, after having lost twice to Ripon during the regular season, got their postseason revenge in the form of a 62-38 victory that secured the championship banner.

“Despite the fact Coach Backovich and Coach Largent are no longer with us, if you look around the rafters, if you listen closely and if you were a student or a player of theirs and you continue to speak their name and tell your stories to your own children and to your own family members,” Largent said, “you’ll truly understand the meaning of the phrase, that ‘Legends Never Die’.”