digital weekly 39 dec. 22, 2015 state bowl special edition
De La Salle’s Anthony Sweeney
Del Oro’s Ray Thomas hoists up Jackson Taylor, son of coach Casey Taylor, after Del Oro’s 16-13 Div. II-AA State Bowl victory over Camrillo.
2015 CIF
statechampionships bowl OPEN: De La Salle-Concord 28, Centennial-Corona 21 OPEN-SMALL SCHOOL: Central Catholic 56, San Marino 21 DIVISION I-AA: Mission Viejo 24, Bellarmine-San Jose 0 DIVISION I-A: Narbonne-Harbor City 28, Clayton Valley Charter-Concord 14 DIVISION II-AA: Del Oro-Loomis 16, Camarillo 13 DIVISION II-A: Citrus Hill-Perris 23, St. Francis-Mountain View 20 DIVISION III-AA: La Mirada 27, Campolindo-Moraga 3 DIVISION III-A: Rancho Bernardo-San Diego 35, Sacred Heart Prep-Atherton 14 DIVISION IV-AA: Hanford 33, Bonita Vista-Chula Vista 21 DIVISION IV-A: Sierra-Manteca 20, Chowchilla 15 DIVISION V-AA: Mater Dei Catholic-Chula Vista 56, Immanuel-Reedley 21 DIVISION V-A: St. Bernard’s-Eureka 28, Saddleback Valley Christian-San Juan Capistrano 21 DIVISION VI-AA: East Nicolaus 16, Coronado 6
Inside This Issue De La Salle Wins Its Seventh Bowl Title Exclusive: Final Norcal Top 20 Central Catholic Cements Its Dynasty Status Del Oro Proves To Be Ultimate Survivor Norcal Roundup: Sierra Captures First State Bowl Photo Finish
the defense
RESTS Boss Tagaloa and Devin Asiasi anchored a defense that was every bit the champion.
De La Salle closed out another state championship season behind a defense with nothing left to prove Story by Chace Bryson • Photos by Phillip Walton
I
n the aftermath of a record seventh CIF State Bowl Championship victory — after a series of hugs and accolades from members of the school and coaching staff — there came a brief moment when De La Salle High defensive coordinator Terry Eidson stood alone surveying the celebration of his players and colleagues. His smile beamed with pride. One year after apologizing to head coach Justin Alumbaugh for his defense allowing a programworst 42 points in a shootout CIF Bowl victory over Centennial-Corona, Eidson and his defense stole the show in a 28-21 Open Division victory over those same Huskies — which entered as the No. 1 team in the nation, according to MaxPreps.com. “I am so proud of those boys,” Eidson said. “I told them last night, ‘I don’t even have to show up to the game. You know what you need to do, just go do it.’” And did they ever. Centennial entered the game averaging 56.5 points per game and more than 500 yards of total offense. Prior to facing De La Salle, the least the Huskies had scored on the season was 35 points. Each of their other 13 wins featured at least 42 points. They had scored more than 50 on nine occasions. The Spartans defense held Centennial to 377 yards of total offense and forced them to turn the ball over on downs five different times during the championship tilt. Two of those times occurred inside the De La Salle red zone. The last time came on a 4th-and-11 from the De La Salle 45 with 1:04 left in the game. “Awesome,” Alumbaugh said describing his defense in one word. “Our whole defensive staff, all those guys did a really really good job. Our defense has been really good all year, but — man, to hold those guys to 21? That’s incredible. That’s a really really good effort. It’s gratifying to watch our guys play how they did.” The game-winning touchdown, a 26-yard run by quarterback Anthony Sweeney with 9:57 left in the game, was set up by one of De La Salle’s biggest defensive plays of the night. It was a play made by one of the unit’s less-celebrated and unsung standouts. With the score tied 21-21, linebacker Nick Lopez stepped in front of an Anthony Catalano pass and returned it 15 yards to the Centennial 27-yard line. The play was the very proof of what Eidson had told his defense the night before. Lopez knew what he needed to do. And he did it. “That’s just something that the coaches had preached to look out for, the double slants,” Lopez said. “I just saw it and read it, picked it off and made the play.” The play led Eidson to bestow upon Lopez perhaps the finest compliment one can receive in the De La Salle program. “He’s what I define as a True Spartan,” the coach
Nick Lopez returns his game-changing interception. said. “The kid grinds. He studies his scout. He knows what everyone is going to do. I’ll always remember Nick for that play. If it was going to happen to anyone, I’m glad it was Nick.” The defense held twice more following Sweeney’s touchdown, and then the senior running back tandem of Antoine Custer and Drew Hernandez sealed the game with three carries to pick up the first down before running out the clock. Custer led the team with 117 yards and two touchdowns. Hernandez finished with 40 yards rushing and Sweeney had 71. “It’s just been great,” Custer said. “Drew, Anthony and I all came up together in our sophomore year. Closing it out together felt good.” The seniors on the defense came up big too. Linebacker Keanu Andrade had a team-leading 11 tackles, lineman Boss Tagaloa had 10 tackles and defensive end Devin Asiasi had eight tackles (three for loss). “All those guys have been incredible,” Alumbaugh said of his seniors. “It’s bittersweet. I’m getting choked up thinking about it. I love those kids. I really do. Those guys. They work hard. They do. I’ve got a lot of love for them.” ✪
Anthony Sweeney scores the game-winning touchdown
A closer look into De La Salle’s CIF State Bowl history after 10 years of playing on California’s biggest stage. 2006 DIVISION I
Canyon-Canyon Country
LOSS
27-13
2007 DIVISION I
Centennial-Corona
WIN
37-31
2008 DIVISION I
Centennial-Corona
LOSS
21-16
2009 OPEN
Crenshaw-Los Angeles
WIN
28-14
2010 OPEN
Servite-Anaheim
WIN 48-8
2011 OPEN
Westlake-Westlake Village
WIN
2012 OPEN
Centennial-Corona
WIN 48-28
2013 OPEN
St. John Bosco-Bellflower
LOSS
2014 OPEN
Centennial-Corona
WIN 63-42
2015 OPEN
Centennial-Corona
WIN 28-21
35-0
20-14
State Bowl Records ›› The Spartans’ 2011 win over Westlake was the only shutout in Bowl history until Mission Viejo’s 24-0 win in this year’s Division I-AA Bowl. ›› De La Salle’s 559 rushing yards in its 2014 win over Centennial is the most in any Bowl game. Its 595 yards of total offense from that game is also an overall Bowl record. ›› The team’s 9 rushing touchdowns in its 2014 win is an Open Bowl record and tied with Central Catholic-Modesto (2012, Div. IV) for the overall Bowl mark. ›› The program’s 10 appearances — having never missed one — is a record. Centennial is second on the list with six. The 7 wins is also a record, besting Central Catholic by three. ›› Their four consecutive wins from 2009-12 is an Open Div. record. They share the Bowl-wide record with Central Catholic, which won its fourth straight this season.
Tiapepe Vitale of the 2012 Spartans
Records are FINAL 1. (1) — De La Salle-Concord (13-1) Won 14 straight after losing opener in Texas and closed by knocking off a national No. 1. 2. (6) ▲ Bellarmine-San Jose (13-2) Bells clinched No. 2 spot by snapping Folsom’s state-best 30-game winning streak in CIF I-AA NorCal Bowl. 2. (3) ▼ Folsom (14-1) These Bulldogs weren’t as explosive as their immediate predecessor, but were still incredibly good. 4. (11) ▲ Central Catholic-Modesto (16-0) Raiders arguably completed Northern California’s best small school season ever. 5. (4) ▼ Elk Grove (13-1) Thundering Herd’s only loss was a 35-27 defeat at the hands of Folsom. 6. (3) ▼ Clayton Valley Charter-Concord (13-2) Banged up and limited, Ugly Eagles still scraped their way back to CIF Bowl games. 7. (5) ▼ Foothill-Pleasanton (12-1) Senior-laden Falcons beat every team they faced except the best team in the state. 8. (8) — St. Francis-Mountain View (12-3) Lancers fell three points shy of going on the road and winning the CIF II-A Bowl over Citrus Hill-Perris. 9. (9) — Antioch (11-1) School’s best team in decades literally came inches shy of reaching NCS Div. I final, losing 55-54 to Foothill. 10. (12) ▲ Oak Ridge-El Dorado Hills (10-3) Trojans had key wins over CIF II-AA champ Del Oro, as well as Rocklin and Granite Bay. 11. (NR) ▲ Del Oro-Loomis (10-6) Resilient Golden Eagles close season on an 8-game win streak to claim an improbable state bowl title.
De La Salle’s Jonathan Harvey 14. (NR) ▲ St. Mary’s-Stockton (10-3) Rams closed the season strong, nearly knocking off Folsom, and return the talent to open 2016 in Top 5. 15. (15) — Napa (11-1) Began year 11-0 before falling to St. Mary’s-Stockton (28-14) in an SJS Div. I quarterfinal. 16. (16) — Campolindo-Moraga (14-2) Cougars defeated former-No. 19 Milpitas, a school three times Campo’s size, to win CIF III-AA NorCal Bowl. 17. (7) ▼ Grant-Sacramento (10-2) Pacers season was unfairly derailed by emotional devastation caused by the death of J.J. Clavo. 18. (18) — Serra-San Mateo (6-4) It’s our belief the Padres could’ve done some serious damage had they not had postseason ban. 19. (10) ▼ Valley Christian-San Jose (8-4) Despite injuries to key players, Warriors were still one of the toughest teams in WCAL.
12. (NR) ▲ Oak Grove-San Jose (11-3) Only loss the CCS Open Div. II champ didn’t avenge was its last, a 21-3 result to Clayton Valley.
20. (NR) ▲ Oakdale (12-2) Mustangs only losses on the year were both to undefeated Central Catholic, by 5 and 14 points.
13. (13) — Pittsburg (10-3) Pirates fine season — like many NCS Div. I teams — ended in a defeat to De La Salle.
Dropped Out: No. 14 Riordan-S.F., No. 17 Antelope, No. 19 Milpitas and No. 20 Palma-Salinas.
Teams Remaining From Preseason Rankings: 15
MIC DROP Cole Montgomery holds the Small School Open Division trophy as coach Roger Canepa beams.
Central Catholic-Modesto won its fourth bowl in four years and has never looked more dominant Story by Chace Bryson • Photos by Phillip Walton
T
hrough 15 games, the Central Catholic High football team was about as dominant a team as the Central Valley had ever produced. That’s saying quite a bit, considering the Modesto-based program was already a threetime defending CIF State Bowl Champion. But when it arrived at Sacramento State on Dec. 19, the Raiders were still trying to do something they’d never done before — finish undefeated. “We haven’t lost the last game of the year (since 2011),” Central Catholic coach Roger Canepa said. “And I was thinking earlier today, ‘What if we lost?’ But then I decided, ‘Nah, don’t think about that.’” It was a topic easy for Canepa to joke about after his Raiders rolled to a 56-21 win over San Marino in the Small School Open Division Bowl. In becoming just the second program in CIF Bowl history to win four straight bowl games, Central Catholic never trailed and put the game away with an explosive 35-point third quarter. Central Catholic led just 21-14 at halftime, and its star running back Justin Rice had managed just 44 yards on 10 carries. But some adjustments by the coaching staff remedied that rather quickly in the second half. Rice needed just seven carries to rush for 149 yards and two touchdowns — in the third quarter alone. He would finish the night with 19 carries for 216 yards. However, in addition to jump-starting the team’s running game in that third quarter, Rice deserves partial credit for a pair of defensive scores that helped blow the game wide open. “I told my defensive backs coach I was tired and was like, ‘let DaRon (Bland) go in. DaRon is fine. He can cover the guy. He’s fast.’” Add talent evaluator to Rice’s long list of things he was good at in 2015. Bland returned a pair of interceptions for touchdowns in the third quarter. The first was a 43-yard return that increased the lead to 35-14. His second return went for 39 yards and pushed the lead to 49-14. He’s the first player in CIF Bowl history to return two interceptions for touchdowns in the same game. The victory was dominant in just about every phase of the game. Prior to Rice and the rushing attack breaking loose, senior quarterback Hunter Petlantsky shined throughout the first half. He threw touchdown passes of 22 and 34 yards, and also scored on a 17yard rush. “It’s awesome,” the quarterback said. “This one is definitely the most special for me. My senior year. We went 16-0. Had a great season. It’s been fun.” In addition to Bland’s two interceptions for touchdowns, the Raiders defense had three more takeaways. Jacob Days had a fumble recovery and an
DaRon Bland interception and Montell Bland (DaRon’s cousin) also had an interception. Central Catholic also logged three sacks on the afternoon and six total tackles for loss. Making Central Catholic’s undefeated season and fourth bowl title even more impressive is that it came in a year where the Raiders were moved up a division within the Sac-Joaquin Section. Central Catholic won its first SJS Div. III crown and then was placed in the new Small School Open Division by the CIF. Canepa was asked afterward if it all made bowl win No. 4 the sweetest title? “They’re all sweet,” he said with a giant grin. “Hey, we’re a school of 360 (students). We keep getting bumped up in division, but we don’t complain. I told the kids, we’ll just do what they tell us to do. We’ll just keep playing football. ... It’s amazing. I’ll put our school against anybody in football.” ✪
Montell Bland
Camrion Davis
that’s
enough With a record of 2-6 and players losing faith, Del Oro put its foot down and produced an epic championship run Story by Jim McCue • Photos by James K. Leash
L
oomis met Hollywood in Sacramento on Friday night as Del Oro capped a storybook season with a 16-13 victory over Camarillo in the CIF State Division II-AA Bowl Championship. From a 2-6 start to the season, to a state bowl championship, to a prime time performance by junior Camrion Davis, a movie script about the Golden Eagles’ season would likely be thrown out for being too far-fetched. Davis earned the starring role in the Cinderella story by rushing for a career-high 197 yards and two touchdowns and helping on several key stops on defense, including a Camarillo 4th-and-1 on Del Oro’s 21 in the fourth quarter. “Me making plays tonight, that just happens. That’s destiny,” Davis said of his breakout performance. “Every day a new player makes plays and tonight it was me.” Davis’ improbable run to glory started with a supporting role as a second back behind senior Dalton Gee, but evolved into a starring role. At the start of the season, he played only on defense while a hyperextended elbow healed, and then took over as Del Oro’s workhorse when Gee was hobbled late in the season. In the Golden Eagle’s first eight games, Davis carried the ball just 34 times for 109 yards and one touchdown. But, after the 2-6 start, Davis erupted for 793 yards, including 577 yards and nine TDs in six playoff games. During the amazing eight-week stretch of success, head coach Casey Taylor got big plays from his offense, defense and special teams. From the end of October to mid-December, every Golden Eagles game was essentially an elimination game. The final victory produced the first-ever six-loss state champion and the Sac-Joaquin Section’s eighth state bowl football championship. “It feels good,” a relieved Taylor said after the game. “It is so hard to get here, so to do what we did to get here, we had to win. “It’s a great validation of what we are about.” Del Oro has been about developing quality student-athletes through the tough competition of a challenging schedule, community service and teamwork in the 15 years Taylor has led the program. Character is emphasized, which made the Golden Eagles’ midseason doubts after a 2-6 start as unlikely as the turnaround that followed. “We had some tough losses and started to not believe anymore,” senior wide receiver and defensive back Trey Udoffia said. “That’s when we got together as a team and said, ‘That’s enough!’” With a 24-7 win over Woodcreek and a narrow 17-14 victory over Sierra Foothill League-rival Granite Bay, Del Oro earned a section playoff berth. It allowed the team to reset its record with a renewed belief in itself and its chances to get a third shot at a state bowl championship. In their first two trips to the
Stone Smartt
Pablo Miller CIF State Bowl Championships, the Golden Eagles fell victim to the potent speed of Helix (2011) and Bakersfield (2013) at The Home Depot Center in Carson, where the first nine state championships were played. This year, the top five games were slated for Sacramento State to give Sac-Joaquin Section teams — and Sacramento Area teams in particular — virtual home games for the state’s biggest stage. Del Oro avenged an earlier loss to SFL foe Rocklin in the SJS final at Sac State and needed a road win at Liberty-Bakersfield in the NorCal regional championship to earn a trip home to state. Then the Hornet Stadium field became a classic underdog-overcomes-adversity movie set as Del Oro flipped the script on the previously-unbeaten Scorpions from Camarillo. “It’s funny because the other night at dinner we talked about how if we won, we could make some
money on this with Hollywood,” Udoffia said. Now, like an Oscar that can never be taken away, the Del Oro Golden Eagles will forever have a CIF State Bowl Championship trophy that will forever symbolize the magical ending to their blockbuster season. ✪
STATE BOWL
roundup Sierra-Manteca clinches first CIF title on last-minute drive
Clayton Valley Charter’s Ray Jackson
C
inderella was not alone at the ball. While much of the attention in Northern California, and in the Sac-Joaquin Section in particular, was the unlikely run to a CIF State Football Bowl Championship by left-for-dead Del Oro in Division IIAA, a similar story was unfolding in the Central Valley. Sierra-Manteca completed a run of six consecutive elimination games to bring the Division IV-AA Bowl title home to Manteca with a narrow 20-15 win over host Chowchilla. The Timberwolves (10-5) claimed the program’s first-ever CIF State Bowl Championship despite trailing with 2:28 remaining in the game on a muddy field in front of a throng of Redskins boosters. More than six weeks earlier, Sierra faced a mustwin game at home against Valley Oak League-foe Weston Ranch-Stockton just to qualify for the postseason. With both teams at 2-4 in VOL play and needing a win to earn a playoff berth, the Timberwolves rallied for a 34-27 victory. Sierra’s wild ride included games in San Andreas, Elk Grove, and Yuba City before the ultimate road trip down Highway 99 to Chowchilla for the state final. And the state final was wilder than the unexpected route to glory. Chowchilla’s Alex Gutierrez ran for a touchdown and added the two-point conversion to give the Redskins a 15-14 lead with 2:28 left in the game and
Bellarmine’s Antonio Garcia whip the home crowd into a frenzy. Sierra junior quarterback Mark Vicente, though, remained steady and guided the Timberwolves on a 10-play, 81-yard drive that culminated with a 9-yard scoring strike to senior running back Mark Paule, Jr. The drive included a pair of 24-yard completions, including one on a 4thand-10 play, and a 21-yard scramble by the cool QB. The happy ending for Sierra proved that there is another monster NorCal football league that produces state champions, and another foot that fits the glass slipper. Division I-AA: Mission Viejo 24, Bellarmine 0 — One week after taking down previouslyunbeaten Folsom, Bellarmine-San Jose was no match for the Diablos (16-0) in the CIF State Division I-AA Bowl Championship at Sacramento State. The Bells were held to negative 22 yards through three quarters and could not slow down a potent Mission Viejo offense that rolled behind workhorse running back Colin Schooler after a slow start. “They were fast, big strong, physical, the whole thing,” said Bellarmine head coach Mike Janda. “We knew it going in. Things had to go our way early and they didn’t.” Schooler rushed for 224 yards and a pair of third quarter touchdowns on 31 carries, and Mission Viejo wore down Bellarmine on both sides of the ball. The Diablos extended their state-best winning streak to 28
games with the victory and claimed the program’s first CIF State Bowl Championship. Head coach Bob Johnson, whose grandson Brock Johnson threw for two touchdowns in the game, earned career win number 330 along with the State Bowl trophy. “Tonight wasn’t our night,” Janda said after the game. “We won the WCAL, the CCS, and Northern California, so we have a lot to be proud of.” Division I-A: Narbonne-Harbor City 28, Clayton Valley Charter-Concord 14 — Despite gritty efforts from running back Ray Jackson III and two-way talent Jake Peralta, the Ugly Eagles were just a little too banged up to fend off the talented Gauchos. Jackson III, who was running on a sore knee, still had 139 yards and one touchdown on 32 carries. Peralta, the team’s starting free safety, was also forced into quarterback duties due to injuries and rushed for 123 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries. Narbonne, who became the first Los Angeles City Section team to win a state football title of any kind since 1917, never trailed in the game. “I thought we played pretty good,” Clayton Valley coach Tim Murphy said. “(Narbonne’s) size on defense was impressive. It was tough to push those guys around, and their speed on offense, they could just make things happen.” ✪ —SportStars staff
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Bellarmine-San Jose senior Jordan Serrano, left, takes a taste of the rain following the national anthem prior to the CIF Division I-AA Bowl on Dec. 18 while teammate Austin Ajiake gets his helmet ready. Photo by James K. Leash