High school football: Five weeks in, unbeatens are few in the Sacramento area

September 25 2011 by Taylah Cosgrove in Education Sport Tips |No Comments

It’s five weeks into the high school football season, and just three teams in the region remain unbeaten.

Because of parity, it appears that no Sacramento-area team will finish the regular season undefeated.

In a battle of unbeatens Friday, No. 3 Elk Grove (5-0) upended previous No. 3 Nevada Union 23-7 in Grass Valley. The Thundering Herd allowed no offensive touchdowns for the third time this season. Matt Nugent had two of his team’s six sacks, and Robert Frazier rushed for 198 yards for Elk Grove, which opens Delta Valley Conference play against No. 4 Grant on Oct. 7, then plays No. 9 Franklin and No. 12 Monterey Trail.

No. 14 Bear River (5-0) belted River Valley 41-0 a week after beating a 3-0 Woodcreek team that was averaging 54 points, 24-10. The Bruins open Pioneer Valley League play Oct. 7 against No. 10 Placer, which is averaging 63.3 points.

No. 18 Colfax (4-0) outlasted Davis 48-40 behind quarterback Austin Young, who tossed four touchdown passes. The Falcons of the PVL on Friday play at Northern Section power Wheatland (4-0) in a nonleague finale.

Just six other Sac-Joaquin teams have perfect records and it’s the second-largest section in the state with 194 schools.

Record receiver A week after Tanner Trosin of Folsom passed for a Northern California-record 601 yards, Vista del Lago wide receiver Logan Smith caught a NorCal all-time-best 24 passes from Aaron Young in a 41-33 overtime win over Liberty Ranch.

Smith’s effort is the third-best in state history, according to Cal-Hi Sports, but, remarkably, it was the second-best performance in the state that night. Jake Maulhardt of Camarillo had a state-record 28 catches in a 52-28 loss to Canyon of Canyon Country.

Smith had 318 receiving yards, shattering the section mark of 289 by Kyle Providence of Elk Grove against Folsom in 2003. Smith leads the state with 65 receptions.

Unbeaten no more Perfection came to a grinding halt for Bella Vista, Pioneer, Woodland, Rio Vista and Laguna Creek in every way imaginable.

Behind senior quarterback Jonah Lessard, El Camino blasted Bella Vista 51-14 to earn its first win.

Antelope got its first victory by squeezing past Pioneer 36-35, stopping the Patriots on a two-point conversion attempt.

Woodland fell to Placer 60-20, and Bradshaw Christian crushed Rio Vista 42-14.

The capper was Sheldon driving 99 yards in the closing minutes to beat Laguna Creek 22-21. Davon Chapple hit Josh Hadley for a 20-yard touchdown on a swing pass as the horn sounded. Huskies coach Josh Crabtree went for two, and Chapple hit Nate Iese for the conversion.

Two more unbeatens fall Lincoln of Stockton, riding high with victories over Pleasant Grove and Grant, lost for the first time, to crosstown rival St. Mary’s 35-27. St. Mary’s has lost to Granite Bay and De La Salle, the nationally ranked No. 3 power from Concord that lost at national No. 2 Aquinas of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., 30-6.

De La Salle’s 27-game winning streak had been the longest in the state. Its 3,100-mile journey ended amid four turnovers. NFL Hall of Famers Dan Marino and Michael Irvin roamed the Aquinas sideline.

De La Salle coach Bob Ladouceur told Mitch Stephens of MaxPreps, “It’s embarrassing to come out all this way to play like that.” THE BEE’S TOP 20

Team Rec. Prv.

1. Pleasant Grove 4-1 1

2. Del Oro 4-1 2

3. Elk Grove 5-0 7

4. Grant 2-2 4

5. Folsom 3-1 5

6. Granite Bay 3-1 6

7. Nevada Union 4-1 3

8. Oak Ridge 3-1 9

9. Franklin 3-1 10

10. Placer 3-1 11

11. Whitney 3-1 12

12. Monterey Trail 2-2 14

13. Sheldon 3-2 15

14. Bear River 5-0 16

15. Roseville 3-2 8

16. Woodcreek 3-1 17

17. Casa Roble 3-1 18

18. Colfax 4-0 19

19. Burbank 3-1 20

20. Cosumnes Oaks 3-2 13

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