2009 CIF Bowl Games
All Games at the Home Depot Center, Carson
Friday
Kristoffer Olugbode and the Bells are going to state.
Photo by Matt Cohen
Small Schools: Parker-San Diego (San Diego Section Division V champion, 11-2) vs. Modesto Christian (Sac-Joaquin Division IV champion, 14-0), 4 p.m.
Division I: Oceanside (SDS Division II champion, 13-0) vs. Bellarmine Prep-San Jose (Central Coast Open Division champion, 11-1-1), 8 p.m.
Saturday
Division III: Serra-Gardena (Southern Northwest Division champion, 14-0) vs. Marin Catholic-Kentfield (North Coast Division III champion, 13-1), noon
Division II: Servite-Anaheim (Southern Pac-5 Division champion, 13-1) vs. Rocklin (SJS Division II champion, 14-0), 4 p.m.
Open Division: Crenshaw-Los Angeles (City Division I champion, 14-0) vs. De La Salle-Concord (North Coast Division I champion, 12-2), 8 p.m.
The much-anticipated and analyzed California Interscholastic Federation Bowl pairings were announced Sunday afternoon and there were few surprises.
CIF Executive Director Marie M. Ishida and Event Director Ken Gunn made the announcement for the fourth annual event that pits, in theory, the five top teams from the south region against the five top squads from the North.
Thus far the South leads 9 games to 2 (the first two years there was only a three-game format).
The games take place Friday and Saturday at the Home Depot Center in Carson.
The five selected teams from the North were: De La Salle-Concord (Open), Bellarmine-San Jose (Division I), Rocklin (Div. II), Marin Catholic (Div. III) and Modesto Christian (small schools). Others strongly considered, according to Gunn and Ishida, were Nevada Union-Grass Valley (Div. I), Del Campo-Fair Oaks (Div. II), Eureka (Div. II) and Carmel (Div. III).
The five selected from the South were Crenshaw-Los Angeles (Open), Oceanside (Div. I), Servite-Anaheim (Div. II), Serra-Gardena (Div. III) and Francis Parker-San Diego (small schools). Others strongly considered were Bullard-Fresno (Div. I), Westlake-Westlake Village (Div. II) and St. Margaret’s-San Juan Capistrano (small schools).
According to Gunn, the toughest picks were deciding whether Crenshaw or Servite should represent the Open Division spot. Both are Division II classification.
"That took up most of the 3½ hours," Gunn said. Later he said he was half kidding.
Possibly moving Modesto Christian up to the Division III slot was the most-discussed top among the Northern seleections, according to Gunn.
Another hot Northern debate was picking Bellarmine over Nevada Union in Division I and whether a key injury to Rocklin's starting quarterback contributed to the committee picking De La Salle over the Thunder in the open debate.
Bellarmine, who was bypassed last year for a Division I spot, got the nod on its body of work Gunn said and had nothing to do with last year's perceived snub.
Gunn also said no injuries from any of the team's were brought up by the commissioners.
Here’s a quick look at the matchups.
Open Division
De La Salle (12-2) vs. Crenshaw (14-0), 8 p.m. Saturday
De La Salle overcame a slow start and early-season losses to a pair of nationally-ranked teams Don Bosco Prep-Ramsey, N.J. (30-6) and Lakeland-Fla. (31-30) to win 11 straight including a remarkably strong run in the playoffs, winning four straight games by a combined 193-35 count.
The Spartans, making their fourth straight bowl appearance – the only school to do so, are led by the rushing tandem of Terron Ward and Tyler Anderson, who have combined for 3,048 rushing yards and 46 touchdowns. Sophomore Bart Houston took over the reins at midseason and that’s made a huge difference.
The defense is led by the stout junior tandem of Blake Renaud and Dylan Wynn.
Crenshaw had its greatest season ever and outscored opponents 685-158, including a 34-14 win over Narbonne in the Los Angeles City Section finals.
The Cougars beefed up their nonleague schedule considerably and defeated five Southern Section teams including particularly impressive wins over Lakewood (28-27) and Norco (47-44).
The offense is prolific with quarterback Marquis Thompson and a host of backs, led by Geoffrey Norwood, De Anthony Thomas and Hayes Pullard. Geno Hall’s is the team’s best receiver and linebacker Ronald Stovall is the squad’s top tackler.
Division I
Bellarmine Prep (11-1-1) vs. Oceanside (13-0), 8 p.m. Friday
Bellarmine won the Central Coast Section Open Division for the second straight season and it was something of a surprise. The Bells, who was left out of the Bowl picture last season in a very close vote with De La Salle and Grant-Sacramento, lost five Division I players to graduation but made up for it with the superb one-two running punch of running back Kyle Olugbode and quarterback Mike McGovern.
Kyle’s younger brother Kristopher is also another breakaway threat for this extremely balanced and cohesive squad.
The Bells haven’t lost since week 2 and have played one of Northern California’s toughest schedules with two wins over West Catholic Athletic League and NorCal powers St. Francis-Mountain View and Serra-San Mateo.
Oceanside makes a return visit after winning Division II in 2006 over Novato. The Pirates owns the state’s longest unbeaten streak at 38 (37-0-1) and have won six straight section titles.
With six Division I college players committed on the roster, this may be Oceanside’s most talented team, especially on defense. That’s a big reason why they’ve allowed a scant 97 points, the low of any team in the tournament. The Pirates have scored 493.
They are led offensive by quarterback Quentis Clark and a host of backs, including Jerry Whitaker, Rene Siluano and King Holder, among many. Linebacker T.J Suna leads a stout defense.
Division II
Rocklin (14-0) vs. Servite (13-1), 4 p.m. Saturday
Rocklin made a remarkable turnaround from a 4-6 season to go through an entire rugged schedule unscathed, including the championship of what most everyone agreed is the toughest playoff division in Northern California, the SJS II.
Among the impressive wins was 21-19 semifinal triumph over defending Open Division champion Grant-Sacramento. The Thunder, who reach their first state basketball championship in March, are led by that team’s point guard, running back Jackson Cummings (2,035 yards, 35 TDs), who had more than 200 yards and two scores in the team’s SJS title win over Del Oro.
The team sustained a big blow in that game when starting junior quarterback Jimmy Laughrea broke his left (non throwing) arm and will miss the title game. But the Thunder have a capable backup in Tiger Sorenson, the team’s part-time start in 2008. Sean Moore (91 tackles) leads an extremely active and hard-hitting defense.
Servite avenged its only loss, a 23-9 loss to nationally-ranked Edison-Huntington Beach on Sept. 25, with a resounding 16-6 victory in the Pac-5 finals on Saturday. It was the Friars’ fourth title but first since winning back-to-back titles starting in 1982 behind quarterback Steve Beurlein.
The new quarterback is Cody Fajardo, who is reminiscent of another Orange County standout Aaron Corp, who led Orange Lutheran to a state title in 2006 and is in line to start at USC next year. Under a down pour Saturday, he rushed for 95 yards and passed for 83 leading his team to victory. He’s passed for more than 2,000 yards and rushed for more than 1,000 this season.
Rudy Guerrero (48 catches, 704 yards, 7 TDs) and Sean DeRosa (664 rushing, 6 TDs) and Christopher Nichols (14 rushing TDs, 7 receiving TDs) are other offensive stars. The defense hasn’t given up more than 20 points since Nov. 6 against arguably the state’s most difficult schedule.
Division III
Marin Catholic (13-1) vs. Serra (14-0), noon Saturday
Serra accomplished the impossible over the weekend by upending the Oaks Christian Lions, ranked No. 4 in the nation by MaxPreps in the Xcellent 25, 42-41 in overtime. However to say it was impossible would be to undersell all that the Cavaliers have accomplished this year. Serra has gone 14-0 under coach Scott Altenberg and 27-1 over the past two seasons.
The only loss in that stretch? A 63-28 loss in the Northwest Division championship game last year to Oaks Christian.
The Cavaliers can match skill players with any team in the country. Besides Conner Preston, who threw for 2,976 yards and 38 touchdowns heading into the Oaks Christian game, Serra has three of the top receivers in California in Robert Woods (55-896-12), George Farmer (35-745-10) and Paul Richardson (27-516-6). Woods has also been nominated as a national player of the year candidate by the U.S. Army.
In the backfield, Shaquille Richard has also been stellar, racking up 941 yards on 110 carries with 16 touchdowns.
On defense, the trio of Josh Finau (5-10, 210, LB), Woodson Greer (6-2, 215, LB, Jr) and Sean Bacon (6-2, 214, DE) have been spectacular. Finau has an astounding 142 tackles while Greer has 114 and Bacon adds 110. Bacon also leads the team with 17 sacks while Jason Gibson (6-2, 211, DE) has 14 and Greer has 11. Woods leads the secondary with seven interceptions. He also had a pick of a Nick Montana pass in the end zone against Oaks Christian to end a Lion scoring threat.
Like Serra, Marin Catholic avenged a loss from last year to win a section title this season. The Wildcats fell to Encinal of Alameda 19-13 in last year’s semifinal, but defeated the defending champions 27-0 to win the North Coast Section Division III championship.
The Wildcats posted a 13-1 record this year, losing only St. Ignatius of San Francisco 29-28 in the first game of the season. Unlike Serra, however, Marin Catholic likes to keep the ball on the ground with a double-wing rushing attack that has allowed running back Chris Adams to rush for 2,326 yards and 29 touchdowns on the season. He had 120 yards on 21 carries with two scores in the win over Encinal.
While Marin Catholic only throws the ball about a dozen times a game, quarterback Nate Kristoff has proven to be efficient. He’s over 1,000 yards passing for the second straight year, throwing for 1,261 yards and 10 touchdowns this season.
Small Schools
Modesto Christian (13-0) vs. Francis Parker (12-1), 4 p.m. Friday
Parker was in the running for the Small School berth last year, going 12-1 and winning the San Diego Section Division V championship. However St. Margaret’s won the berth and went on to win the first ever CIF Small Schools state championship.
Parker dismissed any debate this year by playing St. Margaret’s in the second week of the season. Coming off a forfeit loss to Hoover, the Lancers downed the Tartans 28-20, ending St. Margaret’s 44-game win streak.
The Lancers (11-2) then lost to Mission Bay, the eventual San Diego Section Division IV champion, 43-28, before winning their next 10 games to claim a second straight Division V championship.
Parker has one of the more dynamic playmakers in the state of California in quarterback Deon Randall. An All-San Diego County pick and a MaxPreps All-State Small Schools selection as a junior, Randall has completed 91 of 144 passes this year for 1,335 yards and 13 touchdowns with just one interception. He has also rushed 157 times for 1,709 yards and 22 scores. He can also beat you on special teams, as his 66-yard punt return for a touchdown against Bishop’s in Parker’s 55-20 title win would attest. He was named the offensive MVP of the Coastal Conference this year.
Randall is not the only weapon, however. Kenny Brookins has rushed for 1,067 yards and 18 touchdowns including 127 yards and three scores against Bishop’s. There’s also Roland Jackson, who has caught 22 passes for 468 yards and nine scores.
Modesto Christian is the little team that could. Despite an enrollment of just 313 students, the Crusaders outlasted Placer of Auburn, a school with 1,379 enrollment, for the Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV championship. The Crusaders also knocked perennial Sac-Joaquin Section powerhouse Central Catholic 40-21 in the semifinals and twice beat an otherwise unbeaten Escalon team in posting a 14-0 record.
One of the highest scoring teams in Northern California, Modesto Christian outscored its opponents 691 to 214. Isaiah Burse quarterbacks the Crusaders much in the same form as Randall does for Parker. Heading into the Placer game, Burse had completed 63 of 112 passes for 1,480 yards and 22 touchdowns and had rushed 155 times for 1,552 yards and 23 touchdowns. He added two passing touchdowns and two rushing scores in the win over the Hillmen.
Kevin Roya and David Sjelin join Burse in the backfield. Roya had four touchdowns against Placer and has over 800 yards rushing with 14 scores. Sjelin is over 700 yards rushing with 10 touchdowns. Raymond Nelson, a 6-5, 215-pound junior tight end, leads the receiving corps with 25 catches for 570 yards. All three made the all-Trans Valley League team.
Senior writer Kevin Askeland contributed to this report.
