VALLEY / VENTURA COUNTY SPORTS : Notre Dame’s View From Top Is Crowded : Division III: Knights are perched above competitive field that includes defending champion Hart.

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

That’s what Notre Dame High has discovered since returning to Southern Section Division III after a one-year stopover in Division I.

The Knights are still a top Division III team, but they certainly aren’t alone.

“In a way, it was fun competing in Division I and we feel we could have been pretty competitive there this year,” Coach Kevin Rooney said.

“But Division III is very tough this year. I don’t see a whole heck of a lot of difference from last year [in Division I].”

Division III has changed a bit since Notre Dame was moved to the Division I Del Rey League by the Catholic Athletic Assn. after the 1997 season. For the first time in Rooney’s 20-year tenure, he’ll be looking over his shoulder at teams from the Foothill and Golden leagues, which moved from Division II to III last season.

The Foothill and Golden leagues have produced a section semifinalist or champion every year since 1993. Mission and Pacific are the other leagues in Division III.

With 14 returning starters from a team that finished 10-2 and did surprisingly well in Division I, Notre Dame is ranked No. 1 in the division.

“I feel good about this team, not just because we have a lot of guys returning but because they’re a real hard-working group of guys, real smart guys,” Rooney said.

Notre Dame will be pushed by Hart, defending division champion and one of the region’s most successful programs in the 1990s.

But Hart Coach Mike Herrington points out that the Indians lost five of seven all-section players to graduation.

“The top two teams are Valencia and Notre Dame,” Herrington said.

Still, with the exception of Rooney and Herrington, several coaches are already talking about a probable Notre Dame-Hart matchup in the division championship game.

“The Hart-Notre Dame game would probably be a very good football game,” Valencia Coach Brian Stiman said. “I’ll pick Hart. You’ve got to go with the defending champions.”

Stiman, like Herrington, is among several coaches who chooses to talk about other teams while downplaying his own in hopes of going unnoticed by opponents. The ploy works better for Stiman than others because Valencia only opened this decade.

“Valencia is not as well known,” said Canyon Coach Jack Bowman, the division’s commissioner. “You get away from this area and talk about Valencia and people don’t know them that well.”

This season should move Valencia, ranked No. 5 in the division, directly into the spotlight. With senior tailback Manuel White leading the way and within reach of a 6,000-yard career, the Vikings should improve on a 9-4 record with 13 returning starters.

Littlerock’s Jim Bauer is another coach hoping to divert attention.

The Lobos, who went undefeated through the regular season only to lose to Crespi in the first round of playoffs last year, are ranked ahead of Valencia at No. 4.

“I think we’re probably overrated,” Bauer said. “Right now I don’t think we’re the fourth-best team in Division III.”

A slew of injuries and academic disqualifications has further dismantled a team with only 28 players on the roster.

“I don’t mean to be a Lou Holtz, but I don’t think we deserve to be ranked,” Bauer said. “The good news is when we’re healthy and I have my skill kids on the field, we’re pretty good.”

Other teams garnering compliments and hype from opposing coaches include Arcadia and Crescenta Valley from the Pacific League.

Arcadia, which lost in the quarterfinals to St. Paul, 56-7, has four marquee players returning.

Crescenta Valley may have the largest offensive line around, which will give the Falcons’ new passing game plenty of time to strike.