The Lakewood Lancers continued their winning ways on Friday night, riding a sterling performance from their star quarterback in a 61-0 victory over Compton in both teams’ Moore League opener. Senior Jesse Scroggins threw for four touchdowns in a 12-17, 188-yard effort and wideout Kevin Anderson returned a punt 65 yards to paydirt before connecting with Scroggins on a 60-yard bomb to send Lakewood into the half with a 34-0 lead.

The highly-touted quarterback placed several perfect passes into the hands of his receivers, looking very poised and even effortless at times as he spread his twelve completions to eight Lancer receivers. 

“[Scroggins] really understands what we want to do offensively,” said Lakewood head coach Thadd MacNeal after the game. “He’s really comfortable in the offense and obviously is very blessed physically.”

MacNeal admitted he was surprised with the final score and said that the game was closer than it seemed. He will lead the Lancers into a highly-anticipated battle with Long Beach Poly next week – a game which many believe could end the Jackrabbits’ 80-game winning streak in the Moore League. Much of that anticipation has to do with the maturation of Scroggins, as well as the emergence of Lakewood’s balanced rushing attack (six backs rushed for 211 total yards against Compton). MacNeal said he was pleased with his team’s effort, but that there is still much work to do.

“We’re not close to where I want us to be,” he said. “We’re scratching the surface, and I think by the end of the year we’ll be much better.”

The Lancers scored four touchdowns in the second quarter alone, and Compton was unable to establish their usually potent running attack. Senior tailback James McConico led the Tarbabes with 49 yards on 9 carries, but nursed a heavily-wrapped right forearm after suffering a gash last week against Dorsey High (sources say the cut required several dozen stitches). He was a gametime decision and also sat out the first quarter for disciplinary reasons, according to coach Calvin Bryant. To make matters worse, speedy sophomore running back Roger Jones injured his ankle on the game’s first play and did not return, one week after rushing for more than 200 yards against Dorsey.

Compton falls to 2-2 on the season (0-1 in league) and Bryant will be looking for drastic improvement from his team in the coming weeks. The Tarbabes had trouble getting the right players on the field, executing blocking strategies and handling snaps. Compton committed four turnovers while Lakewood committed zero, improving their turnover margin to 20-3 this season.

“I don’t think tonight was the best Compton team you’ll see,” Bryant said. “This game showed our youth, but it also showed our lack of precision. We didn’t do the little things that can make or break a team.”