La Jolla High's mascot leads a humongous crowd in
boisterous cheering before the LJHS side was silenced
by a sizeable point deficit in the second half.
(Photo by Ed Piper)
La Jolla took some uppercuts to the jaw from the Bishop's football team and fell, 42-7, in a dominating win by the Knights, whose whiteout nearly blanked out the Vikings' blackout Sept. 5.
Viking quarterback Collin Rugg completed nine passes in 18 attempts for 100 yards. But the Knights' defenders were not surprised by much of what La Jolla threw at them--except Rugg's 23-yard strike to a wide-open Carlton O'Neal in the center of the field in the first series of the third quarter, after Joe Vang softened up the defense with back-to-back scintillating runs. The sophomore running back's rushes went for 25 and 15 yards, respectively. But LJHS wouldn't threaten again.
Vang played the game of his young career, repeatedly having his number called and forcing tacklers to ride with him for a while on some carries. He has had an opening at the start of the season while second-team all-league back Reid Martin recovers from a broken bone.
A huge crowd for each local school witnessed what, from early on, showed itself to be Bishop's Night. One number placed advanced ticket sales for La Jolla High at 500. A Knights staff member projected his school's cheering section to reach 300. In any case, Bishop's constructed a 14-0 lead on touchdown passes by quarterback Griffin Seaman of 18 and 38 yards in the latter half of the first quarter.
Mozes Mooney, a freshman at the private school, then gathered in his second touchdown reception from Seaman, this one four yards into the right side of the end zone, with 8:20 left in the second quarter for a 21-0 lead. Except for the Vikings' quick score after halftime, closing the gap to 21-7, Bishop's never looked back.
La Jolla coach Jason Carter's strategy to force opponents to play a "fifth quarter", in effect, due to the Vikings' no-huddle offense and the accumulated high number of plays Rugg and gang can reel off when they get their way, never materialized on this night. Bishop's players, several playing both ways, did not tire as their defense was able to stymie La Jolla and limit its time on the field.
In fact, Knight running back Bulla Graft, who rushed for 117 yards on 10 carries, as well as Reggie Davis and A.J. Britanico, had as much pop at the end as at the beginning. Davis carried the ball 12 times for 38 yards. Britanico ran 15 times for 22 yards and added 26 receiving yards. Graft went both ways, playing safety on the defensive side.
Seaman played an excellent game, going 14 for 22 passing for 186 yards. La Jolla's over-worked defense had no answer for Graft or Seaman. Bishop's held a large advantage in time of possession.
Viking Brandon Bonham, featured in the new role of kick returner besides his usual wide receiver slot, provided plenty of excitement for LJHS fans on multiple runs zigzagging across the field and barely eluding kick coverage for gains. For example, "Bongo" returned his first opportunity 21 yards. That was especially nifty, because a short time later in the same possession in the opening period, the sure-handed senior snagged a Collin Rugg pass for a 19-yard gain. Unfortunately, the red and black eventually turned the ball over on downs.
Bonham had an even longer return his next time up, bringing the ball up to the midfield line on an outstanding 35-yard run. But the return was nullified by a La Jolla personal foul, putting the ball back on the Vikings' own 15-yard line. Once again, the hosts had to give the ball up, with Trenton Fudge forced to punt from the end zone--not a safe place to punt from.
Thus, La Jolla, playing in the first triangular competition among the city's high schools, gained the first rung with its 64-19 pounding of Country Day in week one of the football season. But Bishop's scaled the second rung, winning the first Pearl St. trophy in this new football rivalry with LJHS--and the right to chant "We run LJ", as the whited-out student section did after Mooney intercepted a Rugg pass early in the fourth quarter with their boys leading 35-7.
Copyright 2014 Ed Piper
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