LAFAYETTE — Before the third quarter rain, before the fourth quarter running clock, and before Acalanes celebrated the program’s first NorCal title after routing Escalon 49-14, the winners set the tone while defending a long first-quarter drive.
The run-heavy Cougars methodically drove the ball downfield on a nine-play drive, keeping the ball away from Acalanes’s high-flying offense and chewing up clock using an old-school Wing-T.
But after six minutes, all of the visitor’s progress was undone as a flash of blue and white, also known as Acalanes senior Trevor Rogers, jumped in front of a pass at around the 20-yard line, ran downfield, cut back inside to shake any pursuers, and strolled into the end zone for a 7-0 lead.
That’s how this 3-AA title game went: Escalon, the reigning 4-AA state champion and bigger and stronger than Acalanes, controlled the ball and the clock.
But the Dons turned the game into a sprint during key moments and as it turned out, there was no beating the track stars from Lafayette.
“Their superpower was size, but our superpower is speed,” said Rogers, who was part of Acalanes’ relay team that placed second in the state in the 4×100 last spring. “Today, speed won.”
Quarterback Sully Bailey threw for 211 yards and one touchdown and ran for 33 yards and three touchdowns on four carries, operating the read-option to perfection and scoring his touchdowns by running up the middle after carrying out his fakes.
He combined with halfback Jack Miller, who ran for 88 yards and a touchdown, to perplex Escalon on the ground. When the Dons wanted to hit the edge and turn the corner, they were a step (or three) ahead of their opponent.
“Acalanes kind of has a history up until now of losing, that we couldn’t get it done in the playoffs,” Miller said. “We decided we’re not gonna be that team again.”
After winning the program’s first section title by defeating San Marin 24-7 last week, the Dons punched their ticket to Southern California, where they will face Birmingham-Lake Balboa.
Leading the program into uncharted territory is its wily coach Floyd Burnsed, who embraced Rogers and his team on the sideline before going out to midfield to accept the NorCal trophy.
“They just played their butts off,” Burnsed said.
Escalon ran 42 plays to Acalanes’ 12 in the first half, and held the ball for over 21 minutes. But those long drives were simply delaying the inevitable.
After Escalon saw a nine-play drive end on a turnover on downs, Acalanes ripped down field in four plays, the biggest a 40-yard bomb from Bailey to Rogers. Bailey finished the drive off by keeping the ball on an option play and plunging in from six yards out to double the lead at 14-0.
Starting with 7:34 on the first-half clock, Escalon finally went on a sustained drive that ended with points. Behind Joshua Graham’s 24 first-half carries and 110 yards, the wing-T visitors from the Stockton-area capped off the 14-play march with a two-yard Graham touchdown up the gut.
But with a minute left to play in the half, Acalanes showed why it won nine of its last 10, scoring on another blistering four-play drive that Bailey once again ended with a two-yard dash into the end zone to go into the halftime locker room up 21-7.
“He’s just as fast as our receivers when he hits his top speed,” Rogers said of his quarterback. “And he can throw the ball anywhere on the field. Anywhere. He can throw the ball 65 yards.”
Acalanes didn’t let up in the second half, setting the tone with a five-play opening drive, all runs, that Miller capped off with a short touchdown run. Escalon briefly cut the lead to 28-14 on Donovan Rozevink’s touchdown pass midway through the third.
“I threw two pick-sixes, and that’s just not (like me), and the defense couldn’t stop anybody,” Rozevink said. “They caught us on an off night, but they’re a hell of a team though.”
But Acalanes shut the door on a rally with a Bailey touchdown run on its next drive. Then sophomore defensive lineman Deonte Littlejohn, who had two sacks, returned an interception for a quick-strike touchdown in the final minute of the third quarter.
“We’re a track team that’s a football team, we really are,” said Paul Kuhner, who caught a late touchdown from Bailey to make the final score 49-14.
Acalanes was too fast for its opponent from the Sac-Joaquin section, and the Dons feel confident about their next opponent from the Los Angeles City Section.
“I like our chances against any other team out there,” Rogers said.
Source: www.mercurynews.com