Down by two points in the final minute of the CIF Division 6-A championship game, a field goal attempt wasn’t even on the mind of St. Patrick-St. Vincent head coach Lane Hawkins. Hawkins had called a two-play sequence on third-and-goal, knowing he didn’t have any timeouts to stop the clock if the first play did not work.
“We had already called both plays to be run, and our guys knew to get right back on the line and snap the ball if we didn’t score on the first play,” Hawkins said. “But then Marshel (Martin) got knocked out of bounds, and we realized we had time to run the field goal team out there.”
Merely sending out the field goal unit, however, didn’t ensure any success, going for the win against previously unbeaten Strathmore. Kicker Gabe Fuentes had an extra-point blocked earlier in the game, but for Hawkins, it was an opportunity for one of his players to create a memorable confidence-inspiring moment in his life.
“It’s not about winning or losing, what we are doing,” Hawkins said. “It’s about building confidence, growing up as young men. And Gabe will remember that kick for the rest of his life. It’s something he will tell his grandkids about.”
Fuentes drilled the 19-yard field goal with six seconds remaining, lifting the Bruins to the 29-28 win in what Hawkins has termed their ‘redemption year’, just one season removed from a 2-8 regular season.
Fuentes’ field goal completed a 15-play, 82-yard drive, and completed a come-from-behind win, one in which the Bruins had trailed 28-14 at the half. But Martin broke off a 72-yard scoring run early in the final quarter, after sophomore quarterback Akil Edwards had scored from six yards out, four minutes into the third quarter.
St. Pat’s appeared to have drawn closer later in the third quarter, when Isaiah Tobias took a gift-wrapped interception, and avoided all Strathmore defenders on his way to a 70-yard interception return. But when Martin laid out a Spartans’ player giving chase, two steps away from Tobias, the officials ruled it unnecessary roughness and called back the touchdown.
Edwards and senior Michael Pappas split time at quarterback in the win, as Pappas returned from a separated shoulder. The TCAL-Rock Division’s Offensive Player of the Year returned to throw for 203 yards, including a 13-yard touchdown pass to Marquel Johnson.
“It was great to get Michael back on the field, back as a commander of the offense,” Hawkins said. “He made some great adjustments on the field.”
Pappas also ran for a score, and Hawkins used both quarterbacks throughout the game, more frequently in the second half as Edwards could not throw after suffering an injury to his throwing arm early in the game. The sophomore, however, ran for 73 yards and a score as the pair combined to create a dual-threat behind center.
In the end, however, it was a team and season-long effort that Hawkins couldn’t help but credit in the wake of the school’s first state title in football.
“This team, and especially this senior class, took ownership of the program and their own success level,” Hawkins said. “This was a player-driven team, and everything ran through them. They get all the credit. They set the tone for this to be possible.”
Cougars claim second CIF title in three seasons
In a game somewhat emblematic of this year’s Campolindo squad, the Cougars methodically pulled away from Bakersfield Christian to capture the CIF 4-AA championship, 31-7.
Jacob Westphal threw for 194 yards and two touchdowns, while junior John Torchio put forth a standout display on both sides of the ball, intercepting two passes against the Eagles’ prolific passing attack, while also hauling in a 19-yard scoring pass from Westphal early in the fourth quarter.
Quarterback Braden Wingle’s 28-yard touchdown pass to Alex Wallace tied the game at seven, early in the second quarter. Campolindo’s Seppi Ortman gave the Cougars back the lead before halftime, though, with his 30-yard field goal.
“It was a really calm locker room at halftime,” Westphal said. “We knew they were a second-half team, but we didn’t change much. We just kept our composure, and capitalized on their turnovers.”
That included a fumble on the second-half kickoff, which gave the ball immediately back to Campolindo. The Cougars took advantage, going ahead 17-7 on a one-yard run by short-yardage back Branden Bocobo. Torchio’s first interception, at the end of third quarter, then led to his scoring reception early in the fourth.
Torchio’s second interception thwarted another Bakersfield drive, before Matty Ringquist sealed things with a 35-yard burst to the end zone. Ringquist finished the game with 100 yards rushing on 12 carries.
“You really just have to credit our composure and our preparation,” Westphal added. “We arrived around four (pm), and both sides of the stadium were packed, just a great atmosphere. We found out early that their defense was really fast, but we just played a real smart football game.”
The Cougars took their early lead when Westphal hit Kannah Cruickshank on a four-yard touchdown pass. That touchdown, however, was set up by a big third-and-long conversion, one in which Westphal connected with Vincent Mossotti.
Mossotti ran a corner route from the slot, and when the cornerback stayed up on the outside receiver, Westphal hit Mossotti in stride, who beat the safety for the first down. It was just an early example of the clutch play which carried Campolindo to its second state championship.
O’Dowd, McClymonds make Oakland history
The city of Oakland had never won a state championship in football, but captured two titles on Saturday night as the Dragons and the Warriors both came home victorious.
Bishop O’Dowd sophomore running back Austin Jones ran the ball 26 times for 196 yards and three touchdowns, as the Dragons downed Valley View-Moreno Valley, 43-24. Minutes later, McClymonds completed a 20-17 win over La Jolla Country Day.
“Austin (Jones) tore it up,” stated Bishop O’Dowd coach Napoleon Kaufman. “I’m just in shock. We did it. Our keys to the game were stopping their run and eliminating number 11 (Valley View receiver Robert Heiermann). Once we did that, we were confident we could run the ball and saw a lot of holes in their pass defense.”
O’Dowd senior quarterback Joe Deluca also threw for 149 yards and a score, as the Dragons totaled 423 yards of offense and forced two turnovers with their defense.
McClymonds, meanwhile, used a stingy defense and a huge kickoff return to claim its first state title, and stun one of the top passing attacks in the state.
Country Day quarterback Braxton Burmeister entered the game with 4,335 passing yards and 53 touchdowns, but the Warriors’ defense, spearheaded by Cal linebacker commit Paul Scott, held him to a paltry 8-of-25 performance, for just 124 yards.
Despite the tremendous defensive performance, Mack was tied at 14 near the end of the first half. The Warriors lost three fumbles in the first half, and the final one led to the game-tying touchdown with 21 seconds left in the second quarter. That was when Devin White struck like a lightning bolt, returning the ensuing kickoff 78 yards for a touchdown, and a lead that would never be relinquished.
