This is about as bright as the Saturday night lights get
Bright enough to that you know you need not be anywhere but here, now, at Orange Coast College.
Not bright enough to blind you to this fact: It’s all on the line. The season. The grind. The ups and downs. The blood and the mud and the sweat. Legacies. History.
This is about as bright as the Saturday night lights get
Bright enough to that you know you need not be anywhere but here, now, at Orange Coast College.
Not bright enough to blind you to this fact: It’s all on the line. The season. The grind. The ups and downs. The blood and the mud and the sweat. Legacies. History.
At 7 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 6 at OCC in Costa Mesa, two Garden Grove League teams – Garden Grove High and Rancho Alamitos High – will battle for the brass they call the CIF championship, and for a year of bragging rights around town.
It’s the fourth consecutive year the Argos (12-1) have competed in the finals (they won in 2011).
It’s the first time in history the Vaqueros (11-2) have advanced to the big stage.
It’s politically incorrect to say so, but the Argos play smash-mouth football. Physical. Old school. You get the feeling these guys would play in leather helmets without face bars.
In the teams’ first meeting, the Argos imposed that physicality on the Vacs, and won, 35-14.
The Argos' defense has shutout four foes and read closely: opposing teams average 8.8 points a game. That's not a typo.
The Vacs aren’t as Hulk Hogan-esque or physical as the Argos, but when they their “A” game, it’s a scrambling night for the scoreboard to keep up. They average 42.4 points a game. They've scored over 50 three times.
The ringleader is senior quarterback Slingin’ Nick Brown, who set an Orange County record this season — and it's not even over — with 49 touchdown passes and averaged more than 300 yards passing a game. And… he’s got wheels. The kid can run. He’s only 6-1 and 175 pounds, but he’s a nightmare for defenses.
Argos defenders Aguilar Ricardo (linebacker), Rodarte Gerardo (linebacker) and Tony Gligore (defensive lineman, among others, are going to try to keep him in a highly pressurized pocket, and punish him.
That’s what this match-up comes down to: the Argos defense homing in on Slingin’ Nick like 11 stalkers. They’ll also keep Vacs’ running back Justin Kanyavong, who’s had several 100-yard games and averages 6.3 yards a carry, in their crosshairs.
Can the Vacs’ offensive line protect the guys who move the chains? Hold their own in the trenches in a David and Goliath scenario? Stick it to ‘em?
This is not to say the Argos’ offense isn’t impressive. They average 33 points a game. Running back Alex Ceja has rushed for 960 yards, averaging an incredible 9.2 yards a carry, and scored 18 touchdowns.
And four straight appearances in the CIF finals? If they win, the word “dynasty” will surely come to mind.
But they don’t want to get into a shootout with Slingin’ Nick and company, who can rack up 20 or 30 points while you go to get a soda.
There’s another incentive for the Argos: first-year head coach Ricardo Cepela wants to walk off the field a champion, 1-0 in title games.
That’s something to make you sleep well at night… until next fall.
