High school football: No. 19 American Heritage routs No. 25 Los Alamitos 56-27

By Thomas Frey Aug 27, 2022, 4:01pm

Ohio State commits Brandon Inniss and Mark Fletcher combine for three touchdowns in the rout.

Power running, precision passing and lockdown defense were major factors in a 56-27 win by No. 19 American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.) over No. 25 Los Alamitos (Calif.) Saturday in the GEICO High School Football Kickoff.

American Heritage, led by first-year head coach Mike Smith, improves to 8-2 all time against out-of-state opponents with more than 400 rushing yards in the win.

Patriots sophomore Byron Louis had one rushing score, while senior Ohio State commit Mark Fletcher plunged into the end zone twice for his 28th and 29th career touchdown runs.
American Heritage wide receiver Brandon Inniss helped lead the Patriots to a win over Los Alamitos Saturday.
American Heritage wide receiver Brandon Inniss helped lead the Patriots to a win over Los Alamitos Saturday.
Photo: Laura Martin
Fellow Ohio State commit Brandon Inniss, who had more than 200 receiving yards last week, also caught a first-half touchdown from senior quarterback Blake Murphy, who is committed to Louisiana Monroe.

Murphy had two passing touchdowns in the game and the Patriots extended their lead to 35-14 when he hit freshman Malachi Toney for a touchdown early in the third quarter.

Murphy used his legs the next two offensive possessions, running for 32 and 70-yard touchdowns to take a 49-14 lead later in the period.

Dia Bell, the son of former NBA player Raja Bell, came in for Murphy and threw a 70-yard pass on his first play. Two plays later, senior running back Jerry Dinkins ran in a score to make it 56-21.



Los Alamitos quarterback Malachi Nelson had three touchdown passes in the game. He hit fellow USC commit Makai Lemon for all three strikes into the end zone. Lemon had over 200 receiving yards in the contest.

Senior four-star defensive back Damari Brown patrolled the secondary with force for American Heritage. He broke up a touchdown in the end zone and stopped the Griffins in their tracks when he recorded an interception in the third quarter.

Up next for American Heritage (2-0), which has won five Florida state championships since 2013, is Lake Gibson (Lakeland, Fla.). Los Alamitos (1-1) takes on Basha (Chandler, Ariz.), which is the top-ranked team in the Grand Canyon State.