by Kyle Englehart on December 12, 2009
Twelve seconds remained and Vista stood but 15 yards away from the tying score in the D-1 CIF championship game against Eastlake. Down 21-0 in the 3rd quarter, the Panthers clawed their way back into the game; both teams’ entire seasons boiled down to these final seconds. QB Christian Gallardi snapped the ball, rolled to his left, and tossed it towards the end zone. Qualcomm Stadium was silent as the entire crowd held their collective breaths.
With a tremendous leaping grab, Daniel Johnson intercepted his third pass of the game to secure the D-1 CIF Championship for Eastlake High School (11-0-2). The Titan’s 21-14 victory over Vista High School (10-3) brought Eastlake the school’s first ever CIF title.
Similar to last week’s semifinal game against Escondido, the Titan offense started sluggishly. But behind star running back and top college recruit Tony Jefferson, Eastlake found the scoreboard late in the 1st quarter. A 14-0 lead coming out of half was quickly enlarged by a 52-yard TD hookup between QB D’angelo Barksdale and WR Jordan Hines.
Read more and hear interviews with Tony Jefferson and coach John McFadden after the jump:
Continue Reading →
by Kyle Englehart on November 21, 2009
There was an offensive explosion Friday night at Scripps Ranch High School. The scoring frenzy left one casualty: the Orange Glen defense. Scripps Ranch lit up the scoreboard all night long scoring a season high 63 points.
Orange Glen fought hard, but Brennan Clay and the Scripps Ranch offense were too much to handle. Routing the Patriots 63-34, the Falcons (6-5) soared their way into the quarterfinals of the Division II CIF Playoffs, where they will face Lincoln. Clay, a University of Oklahoma commit, looked spectacular rushing for over 150 yards with two touchdowns; all in less than two quarters of play.
The Falcon offense was firing on all cylinders throughout the game. In the first half, Scripps Ranch got into the end zone on all but one drive. After trailing early 14-7, the Falcons quickly rallied and entered the half with a 42-14 lead. Déjà vu struck in the last 42 seconds of the half when QB Jake Fish found WR Jeff Brown for two 10-yard TD strikes.
“Tonight we came together and played well, these past few weeks this offense has been out of sync,” said Clay post-game. “We finally got this offense clicking. With the offense clicking it brings the defense together and makes them play harder.”
Read more and listen to an interview on-field with Brennan Clay after the jump: Continue Reading →
