SAN RAMON, Calif. - Bob Ladouceur doesn't bite his tongue often.
Pepe Vitale has now rushed for
19 touchdowns on the season.
File photo by Dennis Lee
But the legendary and straight forward
De La Salle (Concord) football coach chose his words carefully following a regular-season ending 27-14 victory at
California (San Ramon) on Friday night.
"Our defense played well," Ladouceur said. "Our running backs ran hard. Let's leave it at that."
After 33 seasons, 394 wins, half dozen national championships and three consecutive CIF State Open Division bowl titles, it's hard to be nit-picky, but the Spartans (10-0) haven't been real crisp this season.
And despite 192 yards rushing and three touchdowns from
Tiapepe Vitale and a scintillating 80-yard touchdown run at the end of the first half by
Das Tautalatasii, De La Salle struggled on offense.
Relatively speaking, of course.
Quarterback
Chris Williams fumbled at the goal line after the Spartans took the second half kickoff and marched 81 yards down field. California (8-2) recovered in the end zone and after it punted, De La Salle fumbled the ball away again on its next play, which set up a 1-yard touchdown run by
Karris Johnson, cutting the lead to 14-7 with 2:16 left in the third quarter.
After a brilliant 85-yard touchdown march to start the game, the Spartans had three consecutive 3-and-out drives, which rarely happens even once a season for De La Salle over the last three decades.
"We're just making too many mistakes," Ladouceur said, finally opening up. "We're just too inconsistent on offense."
Indeed, after Williams' touchdown, the Spartans looked like the team that hasn't lost to a Northern California team in a staggering 232 games by driving 65 yards in just four plays, capped by Vitale's second touchdown, a 16-yarder. He rambled for 40 yards on the previous play to set up the score.
Vitale added a 1-yard TD run with 4:50 left in the game before California scored a touchdown in the final minute, a 25-yard pass from
Cameron Owen to
C.J. Cornwell (eight catches, 87 yards).
California finished with 239 yards and controlled the ball most of the first half. Owen was sacked six times. De La Salle finished with 403 including 120 yards rushing on just seven carries by Tautalatasi, whose run at the end of the half turned the game around.
The Grizzlies were inside De La Salle's 20, but the Spartans recorded a couple sacks and a long field goal failed. Tautalatasi took a pitch from Williams, rambled around the right side, cut to the De La Salle sideline, then weaved beautifully through the California secondary for the backbreaking touchdown and sequence.
"He's really been running well lately," Ladouceur said of Tautalatasi.
De La Salle will likely get a bye in the first round of NCS Division I playoffs and Ladouceur said he wouldn't be surprised to see California again. He also mentioned Freedom and San Ramon Valley, which upended Monte Vista Friday night, as potential tough opponents. James Logan (Union City), at 9-1, is another possible stout opponent.
The Spartans were missing one of their key two-way players, receiver and safety
Andrew Buckley, out with an injury.
"I'm looking forward to the week off," Ladouceur said. "We need it. ... We haven't been healthy all year. The break will help with that too."
