Call last weekend “2015: A football odyssey” for lack of a better title.
Indeed, there was a lot of football – high school, college or pro – that was played on area gridirons.
On Friday and Saturday, the San Diego Section held five divisional high school championship games at Southwestern College.
On Saturday afternoon, the 2015 Sports Authority Mountain West Conference championship game took place at Qualcomm Stadium between the San Diego State University Aztecs and the Air Force Falcons.
On Sunday, Qualcomm Stadium also served as the site for the San Diego Chargers-Denver Broncos’ NFL AFC West Division match-up.
It was a pigskin junky’s dream, and had to leave anyone attempting to catch events on all three days a bit breathless.
The Star-News sports staff (myself and photographer Jon Bigornia) did it, covering the entirety of four of the five CIF football finals, pregame warm-ups of the other, the first half of the MWC championship game and the NFL weekend-capper between the Chargers and Broncos.
I don’t know if I’ve ever experienced a weekend like that!
South Bay prep pigskin fans were rewarded with two Metro Conference teams winning coveted CIF division titles – Mater Dei Catholic in Division IV on Friday and Bonita Vista in Division III on Saturday. Both teams now advance to regional playoff games this Friday (playing at home at the same time).
The Aztecs, enjoying one of their most successful seasons in recent years, rewarded local college football fans with a rousing 27-24 victory to claim the MWC championship and a berth in the upcoming Hawaii Bowl.
The Chargers, who some believe are playing their last season in San Diego, did another belly-flop to reward a multitude of Denver fans who attended the game. Final score: Broncos 17, Chargers 3. The score pretty much says it all, though the Chargers’ downward spiral this season has certainly been interesting to watch. One has to wonder, with four games left in the NFL’s regular season schedule, just how it will all end for the Bolts. Will the team sink into a black hole and re-emerge in an alternate universe in Los Angeles next season? The local NFL team hasn’t done much to dispel all the conjecture.
Preps on parade
Top-seeded Mater Dei Catholic defeated the third-seeded Bishop’s Knights, 49-14, to claim the east side Chula Vista school’s first CIF football championship, and the first since 2003 when the school was known as Marian Catholic and its campus was located in South San Diego.
Mater Dei Catholic will host undefeated Riverside Notre Dame (14-0) in Friday’s (Dec. 11) upcoming Southern California Division V-AA regional playoff game. Kick-off is 7:30 p.m.
Bonita Vista, which will host Anaheim Canyon (9-5) in Friday’s upcoming SoCal Division IV-AA regional at SWC, captured its first-ever division title in its first-ever trip to the CIF finals. The school is celebrating its 50 anniversary this season and is the 49th season of varsity football at the school.
The home side of Devore Stadium was nearly full, with thousands of jubilant Baron fans soaking up the history-making occasion.
School pride is at an obvious high, according to BVHS principal Bettina Batista.
“It’s surreal,” Batista explained. “I am celebrating my 10th anniversary at the school and the pride has never been greater. I’m proud of all the football players and our coaching staff. They’ve definitely led the kids to great things this year – both on and off the field. These coaches have helped turn these young boys into young men.”
School pride at the moment at BVHS isn’t just being lavished on the football team.
“It’s not just the football team, but also the girls tennis team (CIF Division III champions), our girls volleyball players and the boys water polo team (CIF Division III runners-up),” Batista explained. “I’m happy with how many students – both girls and boys – are participating in sports. We’ve had a fantastic fall sports season this year.”
Bonita Vista athletic director Jason Murphy, a former soccer player while a student at BVHS, echoed Batista’s comments.
“Fifty years and this is the first time,” an obviously elated Murphy stated after the football game. “It’s incredible. This championship means so much for us. It was amazing. We’re ecstatic!”
Fans of the Oceanside Pirates also had to be ecstatic after their team won Friday’s Division I championship title. The Pirates won last year’s Open Division title but dropped to the Division I level for this year’s playoffs. Oceanside also was playing under new head coach David Rodriguez after the legendary John Carroll retired at the end of last season.
Carroll led the Pirates to 17 CIF finals appearances, winning 14 division championships – the first in 1995. (The Pirates have won 16 division titles in the school’s history.)
Rodriguez appears to have started a new era at Oceanside with this year’s Division I title – the school’s second consecutive CIF championship and 10th in 12 years in any division.
The Pirates fought back from an early 7-3 deficit against cross-town rival El Camino to lead, 17-7, before the third-seeded Wildcats put up a late challenge by pulling to within 17-14 on the scoreboard in the third quarter. The El Camino defense held off Oceanside with two interceptions in the red zone but couldn’t generate any additional offense to overcome the gap.
The Pirates (9-4) went ahead, 23-14, on a two-yard run by Nick Mageo late in the fourth quarter, and sealed the win on an interception by Isaia Paopao in the dying minutes of the game. Paopao, younger brother of former Southwestern College quarterback Tofi Paopao, had a big night for Oceanside with one touchdown reception, an interception and fumble recovery.
The game was physical and an emotional clash between longtime city rivals. Oceanside had to settle for a 23-yard field goal by Jake Gerardi for its first score after driving to the El Camino one-yard line. A blocked punt set up the Wildcats (7-6) for their first score – a 27-yard touchdown pass from Beau Gallegos to Christopher Brown.
Pirate QB Robby Beardsley scored on a one-yard run on fourth down to put his team ahead, 10-7, and later hit Paopao on an eight-yard scoring pass for what proved to be the winning touchdown.
Oceanside was buoyed by the return of two injured players from earlier in the season — Tevin Meadows and Paopao. Meadows rushed for 87 yards while Paopao was all over the field excelling both offensively and defensively.
Jaden Casey put El Camino within a field goal when he scored on a one-yard run with 1:04 to play in the third quarter. The Wildcats’ 15-play, 78-yard scoring drive was set up when Aleli Tuitasi recovered a fumble at the El Camino 22-yard line.
The Pirates continue their playoff journey with a road match at La Mirada (11-3) in a Southern California regional playoff game this Friday (Dec. 11).
This is the second year the CIF football finals have been held at Devore Stadium. Section commissioner Jerry Schniepp said the SWC venue continues to shine for the finals.
“We still believe this venue is the best site,” Schniepp said after the conclusion of Friday’s Division I championship game. “It’s the perfect venue in San Diego for us.”
(After going from Qualcomm Stadium back to SWC for the Open Division final, we have to concur. Put 8,000 fans in cavernous Qualcomm Stadium and the experience just isn’t the same — fans are located distantly from the field at the Q, while, at Devore Stadium, the standing-room-only crowd creates a raucous atmosphere that builds on itself in terms of spirit and electrically-charged atmosphere.)
Triple treat
The Barons kicked off Saturday’s line-up of three games at Devore Stadium. The Division II title game paired two Poway district schools – the second-seeded Rancho Bernardo Broncos and fourth-seeded Mt. Carmel Sundevils. The Broncos, like Mater Dei Catholic, was on a mission this year after placing runner-up in last year’s finals (to El Capitan).
Rancho Bernardo capped a year’s wait with a satisfying 41-23 win. While the Broncos prevailed, it wasn’t without some dramatic moments. RB raced out to a 21-0 lead before trailing, 23-21, at halftime.
Junior Milan Grice rushed for 181 yards and scored three touchdowns to lead Rancho Bernardo (11-2), which travels to Hesperia Oak Hills for Friday’s upcoming state regional playoff game. Silver Pigskin nominee Lucas Johnson, the quarterback for Mt. Carmel (9-4) finished the game with 240 passing yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.
Grice has rushed for 1,655 yards and scored 22 rushing touchdowns this season while Johnson finished the season with 2,571 yards and 26 TDs against four interceptions.
The nightcap of Saturday’s triple-header attracted an overflow crowd as the top-seeded Helix Highlanders and second-seeded St. Augustine Saints matched up in the Open Division championship game. Both teams entered the high profile contest with state bowl game championship designs.
Helix’s 44-30 win landed the Scotties (11-1) in the Division I-AA regionals at undefeated Mission Viejo (14-0) on Friday (Dec. 11), with the winner advancing to the state championship game at a site to be determined the following weekend.
For those who attended the game, there’s no disputing that Helix and St. Augustine were the top two teams in the section this season. The Grossmont Hills League champion Highlanders scored first, on a two-yard run by Nathen Stinson, but the City Conference Eastern League Saints (10-3) came back on a 41-yard breakaway run by quarterback Rodney Thompson to tie the score.
It took just two plays for Helix to retake the lead as Stinson broke away for an 80-yard score.
Thompson later scored on a three-yard quarterback sneak around end to deadlock the score 14-all, and scored on a two-run run with 4:23 left in the first half to put the upset-minded Saints up 21-14.
Turnabout was fair play, however, as the Scotties got their fans roaring when quarterback Michael Austin scored on an eight-yard run with 1:09 left.
21-21 at halftime.
But the night belonged to Stinson (246 rushing yards, five touchdowns) and the Helix defense (three interceptions, two sacks, three fumble recoveries).
The Saints had plenty of opportunities to contend with the Scotties but shot themselves in the foot throughout the game with ill-timed turnovers. Helix’s Evan Perkins intercepted a pass in the end zone to deny a potential St. Augustine touchdown on its first drive of the second half. It took the Highlanders three plays to score after taking over possession of the ball, with Stinson busting loose on a 76-yard sideline run.
The Saints drove to the Helix 27-yard line before Thompson, being chased, attempted to get rid of the ball but instead threw it into the hands of a diving Jihad Woods for the Highlanders. This time it took just one play for Helix to score, as Stinson motored into the end zone on a 69-yard breakaway run.
The Highlanders scored on both takeaways to lead 35-21. The Highlanders then recorded a safety to up their lead to 37-21.
Jacob Baker later recovered a fumble for St. Augustine and Preston would score on fourth-and-five to narrow the score to 37-27.
But the miscues by the Saints continued to the disappointment of their fans. Helix’s Scott Young recovered a fumble at the St. Augustine 45-yard line on the first play of the fourth quarter to halt another drive.
But St. Augustine proved persistent and managed to penetrate to the Highlander 11-yard line before settling for a 28-yard field goal by Liam Griste to further narrow the score to 37-30.
The Saints would have two more chances to tie the game before the Scotties would finally put the game away. The first St. Augustine possession ended in a punt to pin Helix at its own 10-yard line. After receiving the ball back, the Saints fumbled on fourth-and-three, with Young recovering the ball for Helix with 2:43 to play.
With Helix digging into what appeared to be a victory formation set, Stinson took everyone in the packed stadium by surprise by bolting through the St. Augustine defensive front for a 48-yard score that electrified the already ecstatic Highlander fans.
“Silver Pigskin! Silver Pigskin!” the Helix fans chanted loudly upon Stinon’s fifth TD of the game.
Leading by 14 points with 1:30 to play, the Highlander fans, sensing impending victory, quickly changed their chant to “CIF! CIF!”
When Ezekiel Noa intercepted Thompson with 14.2 seconds to play, the Helix celebration party could officially begin.
The game marked the final CIF championship for Helix head coach Troy Starr, who previously announced that he would be resigning at the end of the season. In his tenure with the Highlanders, he won two division titles in five title game appearances. His 2011 team also won a state championship title.
Helix senior defensive end Forrest Hanlon said winning another CIF title for their departing head coach was a big motivation factor.
“That was a big motivating factor,” Hanlon explained. “We’ve been through a lot together this year. We all did this for him.”
The defense ultimately rested for the Highlanders.
“It was very emotional,” said Noa, who leads Helix with xx tackles and xx sacks on the season. “It was a true blessing. After the play, I looked up at the sky and thanked God.”
Noa said the team’s bond was its strong point. “We got stronger (after last year) outside of just football, getting to know each other more and being like brothers,” he said. “It was fun.
“Our game plan was stopping No. 20 (Preston). He was their most dangerous player and we were definitely keying on him. We also knew their quarterback was a threat. We made some adjustments.”
The offensive accolades were ultimately reserved for Stinson, a leading candidate to win KUSI-TV’s coveted Silver Pigskin award, emblematic of the San Diego Section player of the year that will be awarded Dec. 15 during a gala on the deck of the USS Midway.
Stinson, who stands just 5-6 and weighs 175 pounds (seemingly all muscle), has rushed for 1,713 yards and scored a staggering 31 rushing touchdowns on the season. He also has one receiving touchdown for 32 total TDs to lead the team. He will attend Northern Arizona University as a freshman in college. NAU competes at the Division I Football Championship Subdivision level in the Big Sky Conference.
“We came out real hungry this year, real hungry,” he explained about the motivation to make amends for last year’s loss in the Open Division final to Oceanside.
Noa said he was “glad to play alongside a player” like Stinson. “Blocking for him, it’s a blessing to have a running back like that,” Noa said.
Saturday’s Open Divisional final paired Stinson and Preston in a marquee match-up of Silver Pigskin finalists. Stinson seemingly won the encounter with 322 total yards (246 yards rushing, 76 yards receiving), though many ballots were submitted prior to the Open Division championship game. Preston fumbled twice, rushed for 155 yards and scored one touchdown.
Thompson, the Saints junior signal-caller, rushed for 132 yards and scored three touchdowns. He actually led all players on the field with 347 total yards.
Both defenses were especially stubborn inside the 10-yard line. St. Augustine finished the game with four sacks, including two by Quinn Seau but failed to pick Helix’s Austin, who passed for 162 yards and one TD besides rushing for one score.
The Saints actually out-gamed the Highlanders 504-414 in total offensive yards and 594-454 in all-purpose yards.
“That’s a great football team,” St. Augustine head coach Richard Sanchez said in regard to Helix. “If we don’t play our best football, the game isn’t close. There are no words to describe Nathen Stinson. He’s explosive. He’s the best running back in San Diego County.”
The marquee game attracted more than 8,000 fans. Southwestern coach Ed Carberry said he has seen the stadium fuller only once before. That was in 1995 when Monte Vista and Helix squared off for the championship. Carberry was the coach of Monte Vista. He said about 2,000 fans were turned away from that game.
Aztec pride
SDSU entered Saturday’s MWC championship game riding an eight-game winning streak. The Aztecs had a touchdown called back because of a penalty in the first quarter before the MW Mountain Division champion Falcons went up, 7-0, on an eight-yard touchdown run by Timothy McVey with 38 seconds left in the opening quarter.
But the Aztecs charged back on a 24-yard touchdown reception by Donnell Pumphrey, one of three SDSU players named on the conference’s post-season honor roll.
Pumphrey was named the 2015 MWC Offensive Player of the Year after leading the Aztecs with 1,633 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns (16 rushing touchdowns) in regular season play. Teammate Damontae Kazee was named the MWC Defensive Player of the Year while kick-returner Rashaad Penny earned honors as the conference’s special teams player of the year.
Former Carlsbad High School quarterback Christian Chapman led SDSU on the field after an injury sidelined regular season starter Maxwell Smith in the team’s final regular season game. Chapman, a redshirt freshman, completed nine of 14 passing attempts for 203 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions or sacks.
Pumphrey rushed 16 times for 97 yards while teammate Chase Price gained 60 yards on 18 carries. Chapman chipped in with 32 yards on six rushing attempts.
The game would go down to the wire in front of a partisan crowd of 20,959.
Air Force went up, 10-7, on a 21-yard field goal by Luke Strebel. Jacobi Owens set up the Falcons’ go-ahead scoring drive on a 65-yard sprint to the SDSU six-yard line. However, the Aztec defense stiffened to force a field goal try.
The first half ended 10-10. SDSU (10-3) came back to tie the game on a 22-yard field goal by Donny Hageman with 1:44 left in the first half.
The Falcons’ opening touchdown was set up after Air Force had recovered a fumble on a punt at the SDSU 10-yard line.
The Aztecs played catch-up in the second half. AFA’s Owens (17 carries, 156 yards) broke away on another long romp to set up a three-yard scoring run by McVey (nine carries, 48 yards) to push the Falcons ahead, 17-10. But the hosts responded on a one-yard by fullback Dakota Gordon (five carries, 32 yards) to tie the score later in the third quarter.
SDSU went up 24-17 on a 28-yard run in the opening minute of the fourth quarter by Penny but AFA responded to tie the score, 24-24, on a two-yard run by McVey (his third touchdown of the game) with 11:49 to play.
Hageman kicked what proved to be the game-winning field goal with 5:10 left in the fourth quarter.
The SDSU defense then assured an Aztec victory by batting down a final Hail Mary pass by Falcon quarterback Karson Roberts (5-of-11, 35 passing yards) in the final second of the game.
Both teams had to piece together long drives for points. SDSU’s scoring drives included marches of 73, 58, 80, 74 and 56 yards while Air Force’s scoring drives went for 81, 75 and 56 yards besides the 10-yard drive on the fumble recovery.
The long field marches piled up the yardage. The Aztecs finished the game with 436 total offensive yards while the Falcons generated 340 total yards.
SDSU will face the Cincinnati Bearcats in the Hawaii Bowl on Dec. 24 while Air Force (8-5) will meet the Cal Bears in the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl on Dec. 29.
The Falcons won its MW division with a 6-2 record while the Aztecs finished conference play undefeated at 8-0.
SDSU head coach Rocky Long was obviously pleased by his team’s winning effort – the Aztecs’ ninth consecutive win of the season.
“We are excited as a football program to play Cincinnati in the Hawai‘i Bowl,” Long said. “(Hawaii) will be a nice place to spend a few days and Cincinnati will be a very challenging opponent. I know our players will be excited to play as well.”
This is SDSU’s first 10-win season since playing as an independent in 1977. The Aztecs are one win away from tying the school record of 11 wins in one season previously attained in 1966 (at the Division II level) and in 1969 (the school’s first year in Division I play).
The SDSU roster features 19 players with San Diego County high school ties, including former Mater Dei Catholic standout Nico Siragusa (left guard). Siragusa, along with former El Capitan standout Robert Craighead (right guard), have helped buttress the Aztec front line in opening holes for Pumphrey & Co.
Long was impressed by his team’s ability to withstand moments of adversity in the MWC championship game.
“I thought it was a great football game,” Long told the media after the game. “I thought that both teams played extremely well. I thought there were some turning points in the game where we could have given up. We dropped the punt, we gave them three really long runs, we even caused a fumble that was actually a 50-yard gain for them. When those things happen you start to wonder if you have what it takes to win the game. Most teams will give up and not keep playing but our team did not do that. They kept playing, they kept struggling, and they finally found a way to win. That is how you know there is a lot of character on your football team.
“Over the last six years we have been getting a little bit better every year. That is how you build a program. This is going to be our sixth straight bowl game. I was told the fact that the Mountain West has been in existence for 17 years and the first 11 of those years San Diego State did not have a winning record. Obviously, the last six we have. I think that the program is moving in the right direction and hopefully we can continue the climb.”
Long credited Aztec fans with energizing his team down the stretch.
“I didn’t hear the crowd, I hate to say that, but I was too worried about trying to stop them on the last drive to wonder what was going on around me,” Long admitted. “I was told that the crowd was lively and that the “I Believe” chant started and went all the way around the stadium, that is really cool. I’m sure that the crowd helped our team get over some humps and I think that is the home field advantage. I don’t think it is the grass, or the stadium, or the comfort of being in the locker room I think it is the crowd that brings energy to the game when you most need it. I’m sure that the crowd helped us a lot tonight.
The best thing about this team is that they are all team-oriented guys. It is the team first and the individual second. At this age group you don’t find many teams that are really, truly that way. Our team is. So I know that they would keep fighting and I knew that they would keep playing hard but exciting plays and playing hard are two different things. So they did a great job of exciting on offense and defense and giving themselves a chance to win. They have great character, I knew that they were going to play hard, but that doesn’t mean you’re going to win. Air Force played really hard.”
Long also praised the performance of Chapman, thrust into the starting position in a game of premier importance.
“It is really exciting to me,” Long said. “We believe that Christian is going to be a great quarterback. There was some interest in fall camp of making him the starting quarterback right from the beginning. There was great competition between him and Maxwell Smith. We went with Maxwell because of his experience and he did a great job all season to get us into this position. I thought Christian did a nice job last week when he came in. So we thought he would play well, we had a lot of confidence that he would play well, we had no idea that he would play as well as he did. And thank goodness he did because we needed him to play like that in order to win. It was a pleasant surprise, I thought it was unbelievable for a young, backup quarterback to come in and play like that.”
“I am still waiting on the emotions to set in,” Chapman admitted. “It is so unreal. I dreamed about moments like this.
“We had to keep going. We had confidence. We just kept going after them.”
In other bowl game match-ups, Boise State (8-4) from the MWC will play Northern Illinois (8-5) in the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl Dec. 23 at Qualcomm Stadium (1:30 p.m. PT kick-off) while USC (8-5) and Wisconsin (9-3) will battle in the Holiday Bowl Dec. 30 at the Q (7:30 p.m. kick-off). Both games will be telecast on ESPN.
Charged up
The 68.631 fans who gathered at Qualcomm Stadium on Sunday likely witnessed a changing of the guard for the visiting Broncos. Veteran quarterback Peyton Manning did not make the trip to San Diego from Denver while back-up Brock Osweiler started his third consecutive game and led the AFC West leading Broncos to their third straight win.
Osweiler completed 16 of 26 passing attempts for 166 yards with one touchdown and one interception for a 76.8 quarterback rating.
In four games this season, Osweiler has thrown for 832 yards with five touchdowns and three interceptions to go with a quarterback rating of 85.8.
Manning leads the NFL in career passing yards (71,871) and career touchdown passes (539) – breaking records held by Brett Favre in both cases. Manning has passed for 2,180 yards with nine touchdowns and 17 interceptions this season for a quarterback rating of 67.6.
Denver improved to 10-2 with the win over the Chargers, who saw their AFC wildcard playoff hopes all but end with the loss.
San Diego dropped to 3-9 overall. Nine AFC teams vying for wildcard playoff berths possess better records with four regular season games remaining. The Pittsburgh Steelers, Kansas City Chiefs and New York Jets are all 7-5 while the Buffalo Bills and Houston Texans are both 6-6 to add their names to the playoff hunt.
Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers threw for 202 yards but had one pass intercepted (by Bronco Danny Trevathan) for a 25-yard touchdown return. Rivers has thrown a league-high five pick-sixes this season.
Rivers had another pick-six in the game nullified by a penalty. The San Diego signal-caller was sacked four times in the game. He finished contest with a 57.1 QB rating against the NFL’s No. 1 defense.
Rivers was 29-of-43 for 300 yards and four touchdowns in a 31-25 win at Jacksonville the previous week as the Bolts snapped a six-game losing streak.
Injuries have plagued the Chargers throughout the season and the team had two players carted off the field in Sunday’s contest: Dontrelle Inman and Brandon Flowers. The hosts lost two more players later in the game: Joe Barksdale and Stevie Johnson.
The team’s depleted roster has had much to do with its woes this season. The Chargers could muster just two field goal attempts in the first half – a miss by rookie Josh Lambo and a 51-yard conversion with 1:41 remaining in the first half for the team’s only points in the contest.
The Broncos, supported by a sea of Orange jerseys in the stadium that effectively turned the contest into a Denver home game, built a 17-0 lead on a three-yard scoring pass from Osweiler to Damaryius Thomas (six catches, 61 yards), the pick-six return by Trevathan and a 23-yard field goal by Brandon McManus.
Denver lost a couple of high profiles players: running back C.J. Anderson and tight end Vernon Davis. Anderson scored on a 48-yard run in overtime to had the New England Patriots their first loss of the season amid a snowstorm on a Sunday Night Football broadcast the previous week.
Former SDSU player Ronnie Hillman returned to Qualcomm Stadium with the Broncos. He had 19 carries for 56 yards.
San Diego rookie Melvin Gordon rushed 12 times for 55 yards and fumbled twice. He was yanked from the field and sat the bench after coughing up the ball the second time.
Veteran Antonio Gates was targeted nine times and caught six passes for 50 yards. Running back Danny Woodhead was targeted seven times but caught only three passes for 24 yards. Donald Brown had one catch for 31 yards and Javontee Herndon caught both passes aimed his way for 30 yards. Jason Verrett picked off Osweiler in the end zone while Denzel Perryman led the SD defense with 10 tackles.
The Chargers defense played well against the division-leading Broncos, giving up just 10 offensive points. The team’s offense continues to struggle, however.
The Chargers host the Miami Dolphins on Dec. 20 in what could be their last game played in San Diego.
The NFL is expected to announce its intentions to return to Los Angeles in January. The Chargers, Oakland Raiders and St. Louis Rams have all expressed in relocation their franchises to the City of Angels. The Chargers and Rams seem to be the leading contenders at the present time.
Locals only
The Chargers honored their weekly high school coaches of the week winners at halftime. Among the winners were five Metro Conference coaches: Bonita Vista’s Chris Thompson, Eastlake’s Lee Price, Olympian’s Paul Van Nostrand, Mar Vista’s Tyler Arciaga and Otay Ranch’s Lance Christensen.
The Barons received an added bonus when the Chargers named Thompson as the coach of the year. The BVHS program received an additional donation of $2,500 from the Chargers. Each program received $1,500 for the individual weekly awards.
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Thompson was further honored by being named the San Diego Section’s football coach of the year. He said he was “humbled and honored” to receive both awards.
“I have to thank my coaching staff and team for their commitment and hard work they put into this magical season,” he said.
Arciaga lauded the hard work put in by his fellow Metron coaches.
“There were a lot of guys who are fantastic coaches who were honored and it’s humbling to be included,” the MVHS sideline boss explained. “It’s nice that five Metro coaches got recognition because the South Bay can be overlooked at times.
“Coach Van was my social science teacher in ninth grade and Lance was my wife’s master teacher (while she student taught at Bonita Vista), so there’s a good amount of connections there. I know it’s always nice to get a little boost in the football funds as well with all the expenses that need to be fund-raised.”
NFL Star Watch
In other NFL games on Dec. 6:
Quarterback Alex Smith (Bonita Vista Middle School) led the Kansas City Chiefs to their sixth consecutive win, 34-20, over the host Oakland Raiders. Smith finished the game with a 123.7 quarterback rating after completing 16 of 22 passing attempts for 162 yards and two touchdowns. He also had five carries for 23 yards and one touchdown.
Kansas City improved to 7-5 and in the lead contention for an AFC wild card playoff berth. Smith has thrown for 2,843 yards with 14 touchdowns and three interceptions this year.
Jeremy Maclin (nine catches, 95 yards) had two touchdown receptions while Spencer Ware (seven carries, 26 yards) scored one rushing touchdown. The Chiefs rallied from a 14-7 halftime deficit.
Eastlake High School alumnus Tony Jefferson and the NFC West leading Arizona Cardinals improved to 10-2 after defeating the host Rams, 27-3, on Sunday. Jefferson was credited with one tackle and one quarterback hit. Arizona quarterback Carson Palmer passed for 356 yards and two touchdowns. John Brown (six catches, 113 yards) and Michael Floyd (seven catches, 104 yards) both finished with more than 100 receiving yards.
Jefferson has amassed 55 tackles on the season. He had four tackles, one sack and one quarterback hit in a 19-13 divisional win Nov. 29 at San Francisco.
He had four tackles, one sack and one quarterback hit in a19-13 divisional win at San Francisco on Nov. 29.
With Seattle’s 38-7 win at Minnesota, the Cardinals continue to lead the NFC West by a three-game margin over the Seahawks (7-5) with four games to play. Arizona can wrap up the division title with a win over the visiting Vikings on Thursday night.
Chicago head coach John Fox (Castle Park High School) and the Bears dropped a 26-20 NFC non-divisional contest in overtime to the San Francisco 49ers. The loss, which came after a thrilling 17-13 win at Green Bay on Thanksgiving Day, dropped Chicago to 5-7 on the season.
Jay Cutler threw for 202 yards with no touchdowns and one interception in the loss to the 49ers. Matt Forte rushed for 84 yards and one TD.
Blaine Gabbert led San Francisco with 196 passing yards and one touchdown while also rushing for 75 yards and one TD.
Chicago’s Robbie Gould missed a potential game-winning field goal at the end of regulation.
Cutler threw for 200 yards with one touchdown in the rain-drenched win over Green Bay while Jeremy Langford (12 carries, 48 yards) scored one rushing touchdown. Gould kicked a 21-yard field goal.
The Bears defense made key plays to fend off Packers QB Aaron Rodgers (202 passing yards, one touchdown, one interception) with an interception by Tracy Porter, a fumble recovery by Lamarr Houston and two sacks (one each by Houston and Willie Young). Rodgers led his team on one final drive to the Chicago five-yard line in the dying seconds before his fourth-down pass went incomplete in the end zone.
