For info on the shooting that took place outside the game, please click here.
The first time Poly and Wilson’s football teams squared off, we were still forty years away from the first Super Bowl—and with Wilson feeling that a win was possible, the rivalry was definitely renewed before a raucous crowd of 5,000 at the Wilson homecoming. But despite the Bruins’ best intentions, it was the same old story in this rivalry, as Poly won 34-15 (and were up 34-0 after the third quarter) to move to 2-2 in league, while Wilson gets their first league defeat to fall to 3-1.
The Jackrabbits bounced back from a season-low performance against Millikan, and came out with some hunger and spark on both sides of the ball—at halftime it was 27-0, Poly had scored a TD on all four of their possessions, while limiting Wilson to 43 yards and forcing two turnovers. In all, it was the most complete half of football they’ve played this season. “We were desperate for a win, period,” said Poly coach Raul Lara after the game.
“You have no idea,” said a grinning Poly QB Chris Leachman when asked if the win was a relief. “We knew we had to win tonight.” Leachman looked poised, with two TDs and 119 yards in the first half, and finishing the night 10/16 for 205 yards and 3 TDs. It was Poly’s blocking that made the difference for them on time—with time to throw, Leachman didn’t miss many opportunities, and with lanes to run in, first-time starter Kameron White, a junior, took advantage of his chance.
“I knew I had to step up, and try to become a leader on the field,” he said—White started due to Cory Westbrook’s nagging knee injury sustained against Millikan. White was the master of the triple-move, going outside-inside-outside three times, and almost never bouncing to the outside when he had a lane up the middle. He had a TD and 124 yards on 16 carries in the first half.
Defensively, it was all about pressure—Poly’s Cory Waller and Matt Rowe effectively locked down Wilson’s rushing attack (21 yards and a forced fumble in the first half), and spent a lot of time in the Bruin backfield. “We knew we had to bring the intensity,” said Waller. “It started from Monday’s practice.”
Poly’s first scores came off of a one yard run by Lexus Johnson, set up by White; a 16-yard TD run by White; a nice TD toss from Leachman to Earnest Pettway; and a 10-yard TD grab by Alex Cannon, just back from injury.
In the second half Wilson was able to move the ball more effectively, and they got two fourth-quarter TDs from sophomore QB Brett Harper, who saw his receiver Josh Bell catch a 20-yard TD off a deflection. Ezell Ruffin also grabbed a high pass between three Poly defenders for a score with a little over a minute on the clock.
“I’m proud of how they played in the second half,” said Wilson coach Mario Morales. He also expressed pride at the way his school showed up for the game. “I felt really happy for our players. It was a playoff experience, and I’m glad they got to experience that.”
For Poly, there were some negatives—they definitely let up in the second half, with their only score coming on a 76-yard TD pass from Leachman to Kaelin Clay. They also had penalty woes yet again, adding to last week’s 210 yard effort with 18 flags for 140 yards against Wilson. The Jackrabbits will face Cabrillo next week, while Wilson will host Jordan.