Its final resting place lies the other side of a chain link fence behind home plate at the Rio Mesa High baseball field.

Until the end of the 2006 high school football season, it was one of the last of its kind — if not the last — shack (for a better word) that housed scoreboard operators for the school's home football games.

A wireless scoreboard purchased by the Oxnard Union High School District made the clock shack obsolete.

"I miss not being down there," said Noel Alaniz, who has teamed with Gary Bowman to operate the scoreboard for the last 12 years.

"We were up close and personal with the game. People would come by and talk to us during the game. The officials could come right up to us and tell us what they needed."

Alaniz was up close and personal with the wood box since his junior year at Rio Mesa, when he ran the clock for JV games. After graduation in 1995, Alaniz was asked by Rio Mesa athletic director Brian FitzGerald to return as the operator for varsity games.

Before each game, Alaniz and the 6-foot-5 Bowman would make their way up a ladder up to the booth, located 6 feet above the field.

"For a little guy like me, it wasn't that bad," said Alaniz. "It wasn't easy for Gary to squeeze in there."

The booth, stationed at the 20-yard line, was always a potential safety hazard to players.

"You'd see a hard push and people would be flying at our box," said Alaniz. "We had a few close calls over the years. You could see players trying to avoid it. If there had been a collision, the box would have won. It was really sturdy."

Being a scoreboard operator is a job that has been a matter of pride for Alaniz, who also works at Rio Mesa home basketball games.

"The game could come down to the last few seconds," said Alaniz. "In basketball, it can come down to 1.2 seconds. You have to pay attention to the technicalities."

Alaniz and Bowman have moved up to the press box for the 2007 football season, where their vision of the field has broadened.

But it doesn't beat the reach-out-and-touch feel of being at field level — or 6 feet above it.

Football showdowns: With three weeks left in the football season, a sense of urgency precedes league matchups.

Among the games to watch Friday:

• Thousand Oaks (4-3, 3-1 Marmonte) at Westlake (4-3, 3-1).

Westlake is the defending league champion, closes with Agoura and Moorpark the last two weeks. Thousand Oaks has a Nov. 9 showdown with unbeaten Newbury Park.

• Nordhoff (4-2-1, 2-0 Tri-Valley) at Oak Park (5-2, 2-0).

Although both teams are tied at the top of the Tri-Valley League standings, don't forget about Oaks Christian. There is still a chance of a three-way tie, should Nordhoff win Friday and lose the following week to Oaks Christian.

• Camarillo (5-2, 2-0 Pacific View) at Pacifica (4-3, 2-0).

For the first time in its program history, Pacifica is unbeaten after two league games and hunting for its first playoff appearance. There is no break for Camarillo and school record-setting QB Marcus Sanchez. Next week, the Scorpions play Oxnard (5-2, 2-0)

• Bishop Diego (7-1, 2-0 Frontier) vs. Santa Clara (4-1-1, 1-0) at Hueneme. The two teams tied Fillmore for the 2006 league championship. Bishop Diego's only loss was to highly rated St. Joseph/Santa Maria. Santa Clara features 2006 state sophomore of the year Cierre Wood.

Coaching milestones: Westlake's Jim Benkert is within one win of tying for second place on the all-time Ventura County coaches' win list.

Westlake's 31-21 win over Simi Valley last week was the 153rd of Benkert's career. Former Rio Mesa coach John Reardon won 154 games.

Former St. Bonaventure coach Jon Mack is the county's all-time wins leader with 163.

Cliff Farrar of Nordhoff ranks fourth with 145 wins.

Oak Park's Dick Billingsley moved into a tie with retired Channel Islands coach Joel Gershon for sixth place with 127 wins. Newbury Park's 7-0 start has increased coach George Hurley's career total to 126.

— Derry Eads' e-mail address is deads@VenturaCountyStar.com.