CALABASAS — Sweat dripped down the face of Viewpoint football coach Ken Papotta during a weight room session for the team that followed an impassioned speech he made about effort on a scorching afternoon in late July.
The weight room work and the speech were all part of the team’s preparation for Saturday night’s season opener against Lake Mead Christian Academy in Henderson, Nev.
That July day marked the first time the team wore its red helmets to indoctrinate the 2026 season. But before the football came conditioning and lifting in the weight room.
Papotta was lifting with the team and engaged in the fitness work along with his team’s players.
“You have to live it yourself,” Papotta said.
His words and passion, he explained, stem from being a fourth-generation Sicilian-American from his father Ken Papotta Sr.’s side of the family.
Papotta remembered his father, an equipment mechanic for over 40 years, waking up at 4 a.m. before working a 12-hour shift, and then making it home in time to take his son to practice. Papotta Sr. never missed one of his son’s games.
“He was always rooting for me in the stands,” Papotta said of his father. “I worked the summers and the weekends with him turning wrenches. To feel what it was like to work that hard in the heat, in that cold. And I had so much respect for how he loved us, no matter what took place. He gave his heart to us every chance he got, and he gave his heart to his career.”
Papotta is the architect of a football program whose bedrock is founded on the principles he learned from his father. Approaching each day with intention, he puts pride and passion into his craft, whether that’s executing a block, running a route or making a tackle.
From father to son, coach to players, the gritty attitude has been instilled by Papotta at Viewpoint.
Viewpoint senior running back and cornerback Ben Burkin now finds himself passing the culture created by Papotta to the rest of the team.
“We do a good job of focusing on connection and playing as one,” Burkin said. “Knowing our strength as a smaller team and encouraging everyone to connect outside the field and bringing all the guys together.”
The arrival of Papotta, who started as an assistant at Viewpoint in 2022, coincided with the steady rise of the program, which at the time had fallen on challenging times. There were no winning seasons between 2016 and 2022, and the team had gone 11-29 between 2017 and 2021.
Interest in the sport at Viewpoint had waned before Papotta arrived and joined the staff of head coach Patrick Skahan.
“Skahan wanted to change the program,” Papotta said. “He asked me if I wanted to turn it around, and I said, ‘of course.’ At that point, no one had heard of Viewpoint football.
Papotta brought 34 years of coaching experience. He had been the head coach at Calabasas and Moorpark and served as an assistant under Ventura County Sports Hall of Famer Jim Benkert at Oaks Christian before taking the lead role at Simi Valley.
Papotta also worked at nearby Calabasas, where he has taught a business finance course for 25 years.
“I saw the opportunity to build something special in a small environment that cared about the education and about the community,” Papotta said. “(Viewpoint) cared about making kids world-ready. Football is a great avenue for that.”
A 2-8 season in 2022 was followed by a 6-4 record in 2023.
Papotta looked everywhere for kids that could fit the team’s culture and, based on his years of experience, had a coachable attitude.
Senior Ben Burkin, a running back and defensive back, and senior Shane Anderson were part of the program’s rise. They earned varsity letters as freshmen in 2023.
“Not many things in life besides football really put you through the struggle together,” Burkin said. “Football brings a bond between everyone as a family. I haven’t felt that besides football.”
Papotta was named head coach in 2024 and the team went 6-4. That season Burkin and Anderson became identities of the team.
Viewpoint, which plays its home games at Calabasas High, had a breakthrough season in 2025, as it went from being competitive to an upper-echelon team. Viewpoint finished 8-4 overall and earned its first playoff win since 2015. It defeated Fontana in the CIF Southern Section Division 13 playoffs.
Anderson blossomed into one of the best defensive backs in the state with eight interceptions and 81 tackles, and Burkin rushed for 537 yards and five touchdowns.
“I’ve watched this program scale and grow,” Anderson said. “We’re not just a smart, private and good educational school. We are here to play sports as well. Each year more and more fans are showing up, and right now it’s becoming more of a community feel.”
Viewpoint has won in the playoffs, and now the school of roughly 500 students, hopes to chase more milestones.
Capturing the Gold Coast League title, which has previously been commanded by Rio Hondo Prep and rival Brentwood School, is the first milestone that comes to mind. Then pushing toward winning a CIF-SS title.
“If we trust that the other person beside us on the other side of the field can do their job effectively,” Anderson said, “then we can do our job knowing the person right next to us is there to help.”
Tradition is being built at Viewpoint with Papotta using the lessons his father taught him to teach football and inspire a community.
“He’s a very old-school coach and that’s what makes him great,” Anderson said. “He’s always pushing and telling us that faith is at the top. We have to trust each other and trust our teammates. He’s become a father to all these kids and us.”
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