SALINAS >> To this day, two of Francisco Estrada’s best friends came from participating in a high school all-star football game that is now in its 39th season.

The Alisal football coach called it one of the best experiences of his life — an honor to have been nominated — while breaking barriers with rivals who became instant friends.

Two decades after quarterbacking one team, Estrada will be coaching one side Saturday in the annual Central Coast High School All-Star game at 7 p.m. at Salinas High.

“The biggest thing was the relationships I built with guys from different schools,” Estrada said. “It’s the camaraderie you feel from the players. No egos, no jealousy.”

With Estrada and his staff guiding one side, Juan Cuevas from Mission Division North champion North County will coach the other side with what he calls an all-star coaching staff.

“I think he even called Kyle Shanahan and Robert Saleh,” joked Estrada.

Cuevas, who has coached the game in the past, asked coaches from Rancho San Juan, Salinas and Alvarez to help him for the four scheduled practices, which concluded Tuesday.

“It’s people I’ve connected with through the years, either from this game or at previous stops,” Cuevas said. “They are people I like having around. It’s what makes this game fun.”

The rosters for both teams were selected from a list of senior players from the Pacific Coast Athletic League who were nominated by their coaches to participate.

The annual event also sports two nonprofit organizations, with Cuevas’ being Casa of Monterey County, which provides services for foster youths, and Estrada’s Era Training, which targets disadvantaged youths in east Salinas and the greater county.

The biggest obstacle for both coaches has been the timing of the event, and getting everyone on the field, as both sides have an abundance of players who are juggling winter sports.

“We’ve only had three practices, and one was in a downpour,” Cuevas said. “It’s going to make it challenging. But the football IQ of some of these kids is off the charts.”

Cuevas’ squad will include players from Salinas, Greenfield, King City, Alvarez, Rancho San Juan, North County, Soquel, Pajaro Valley, Pacific Grove, North Salinas and Scotts Valley.

Estrada’s roster will be filled with players from Alisal, Palma, Monterey, St. Francis, Monte Vista, Gonzales, Watsonville, Soledad, Hollister and Seaside.

Noticeably missing from the game are players from state champion Carmel, as seven of its seniors are playing basketball, while an eighth is already at the University of Alabama.

Understanding that it’s more than just a game, Estrada scheduled what he called an icebreaker on the first day of practice, which loosened the mood and brought a group of players together.

“I had each kid go meet two players, and later tell me their school and their birthday,” Estrada said. “It opened things up quickly, made them more approachable.”

A little hoarse from the excitement of yelling in practice, Estrada made it clear that as much as he wants players and coaches to have fun, he still wants to win.

“We’re going to have some fun,” Estrada said. “But no one plays to lose a game. If I’m playing rock, paper, scissors with my 10-year-old daughter, I’m playing to win.”

What Estrada has is arguably one of the more talented receivers in the county in Kavon Collins, who broke Monterey school records for receptions, yards and touchdowns.

With an offer on the table from Northern Arizona, Collins caught 52 passes for 841 yards and nine touchdowns this past fall.

Joining him on the outside is multi-purpose receiver Julius Escort, who produced 10 of Seaside’s 18 touchdowns this past year, compiling over 1,400 all-purpose yards.

“You can specialize more with all-stars,” Estrada insisted. “The thing that is most evident is the knowledge. If you tell them a football concept, they automatically know what you’re saying.”

While Marina single-game rushing record holder Donovan Meben and Soledad’s Julio Camacho are tailbacks, both could line up in the slot as receivers along with Alisal’s Caleb Gabriel, when Estrada goes to a spread attack.

“You want to keep it simple,” Estrada said. “Our run game will be straightforward. We want to hit you in the mouth. But our passing game will be very dynamic. It’s an all-star game. Let’s put on a show.”

St. Francis quarterback Javier Fonseca will run the offense, having thrown four touchdown passes in his final high school game last November.

“We have some size up front,” Estrada said. “I’m looking up at them instead of straight at them. I really like what I’m seeing on the defensive side.”

That unit includes lineman Elijah Fisher and Jayden Brown of Monterey, as well as linebackers Tommy Dayton of Stevenson, Caden Scherer of Palma and Efren Posadas of Alisal.

Dayton, Scherer, Fisher and Brown were all members of The Herald’s all-county team, while Posadas and Palma defensive back Dominic Chaidez were honorable mention selections.

Installing an offense has required creativity for Cuevas, whose quarterback AJ Gomez, has only made one practice because of basketball commitments.

Gomez threw for nearly 2,000 yards and 21 touchdowns last year in guiding the Condors to their first outright league title in 25 years.

“We don’t win a championship without AJ,” Cuevas said. “The good thing is he knows the system. He was teaching guys signals. We’ll be fine.”

With size in the trenches, Cuevas believes his squad can control the ball and effectively run it with Salinas’ Dayven Marquez, Scotts Valley’s Eli Velez, Pacific Grove’s Gideon Llantero and Soquel’s TyReis Lundy

“We have got some speed,” Cuevas said. “What’s cool about this game is I coached Eli’s older brother a few years back in this game.”

That explosiveness that Cuevas talked about would include Salinas receiver Emarrcis Turner, arguably the most dynamic player on the field.

Last fall Turner caught 70 passes for nearly 1,100 yards and eight touchdowns. He also rushed for two touchdowns on jet sweeps and returned a fumble for six.

“We have a lot of plans to get him the ball quickly and let him run,” said Cuevas, who also coached Turner’s older brothers a decade ago in the all-star game.

Anchoring Cuevas’ defense will be a trio of Salinas products in linebacker Jake Mungaray, lineman Joshua Na and defensive back Wyatt Maravilla.

Mungaray recorded 154 tackles last year in 11 games for the Cowboys. Mission Division North Defensive Player of the Year Arnie Jimenez of North County will join the defense, along with Ben Garry of Pacific Grove and Naythen Hernndez of Greenfield.

“I expect more of a slugfest,” Cuevas said. “If we can score 10 touchdowns, we will. You just never know in these types of games. I just want it to be a memorable experience for the players.”