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O happy day
The Oaks Christian football team was dominated by Cardinal Newman of Santa Rosa in nearly every statistical category during the CIF Division III state championship game on Saturday afternoon at the Home Depot Center in Carson, and yet, OCHS still found a way to win, 27-20, in overtime. Time of possession, total offense, turnovers, rushing attempts—you name it and OCHS probably came out on the short end of the stat sheet. With three firsthalf interceptions—equaling his season total—senior quarterback Jimmy Clausen was having his worst game since donning a Lion uniform. Methodical, prolonged drives by Cardinal Newman were sucking the life out of the Lions’ defense while relegating the OCHS offense to the unfamiliar role of sour spectator. The Lions entered the contest with a 45-game winning streak. They hadn’t been tested in ages and had been blowing out the competition on a weekly basis since 2003.
“I don’t think there was any worry,” said Clausen, who finished the game with a season-low 94 yards passing and one score. “But the competitiveness of me, I just wanted to get the ball back and put (the game) in my hands.” As the clock wound down and whispers of “overrated” reverberated through the press box and filtered into the stands below, the Lions, who came into the game ranked No. 6 in the nation by USA Today, found a way to do what they always do—they won the game.
“I didn’t think we played very well,” said Redell, 65, who recently agreed to a fiveyear contract extension to remain with the school. “But I’ll tell you what, Cardinal Newman made us that way,” Redell said. “They are a good football team. They deserve all the credit they’ve been getting. They played us tougher than anybody we’ve played against in the last four years, obviously.” With 9:10 remaining in the fourth quarter and Cardinal Newman leading 17-13, Clausen marched Oaks Christian down the field on a nineplay, 90yard drive that culminated in a 3-yard score by running back Marshall Jones. C a r d i n a l Newman got the ball back with 5:57 to go, and as they’d done all day, the Cardinals slowly drove the ball toward the Oaks Christian goal line.
Following a long kickoff return by Jones, OCHS had the ball near midfield. On the final play of regulation, Clausen completed a pass to Chris Potter in the end zone, but the wide receiver was ruled out of bounds. The title game that was supposed to be a foregone conclusion was now headed into overtime, and that was an unfamiliar state of affairs for many on the Lions’ sideline. “That’s the first time in my high school career that I’ve actually played in a full game plus overtime,” OCHS senior linebacker Casey Matthews said. “It’s awesome.” In the extra session, both teams got the ball at the 10-yard line and were given four opportunities to score. The overtime rule for California high school football allows each team to get the ball at the 25yard line, where they can earn first downs en route to the end zone. According Emmy Zack, the CIF’s director of communications, the CIF decided to implement national overtime rules for its title games. The national overtime standard is for each team to begin at the 10-yard line. Oaks Christian had the ball first in overtime. On the Lions’ first offensive play, Jones ran for three yards. On second down, Jones navigated his way through the middle of the Cardinal Newman defense for a 7yard touchdown that, following the extra point, put OCHS ahead 27-20. It was Jones’ third score of the day. He finished with 82 rushing yards and 32 receiving yards. Cardinal Newman took the field knowing they had to score a touchdown to extend the game. After advancing to the OCHS 5yard line, Cardinals quarterback Ryan Lingle threw an incompletion on third-and-goal. On fourth down, Oaks Christian’s Brad Freeman knocked down Lingle’s fade pass to secure the state championship for the Lions. “Oh my God,” Potter exclaimed during the onfield jubilation that immediately followed the final play. “I mean, our defense had an excellent game,” Potter said. “They played hard on every down. We couldn’t have done anything without everyone going 110 percent . . . “Down to the last second, it was definitely the greatest game we’ve ever played.” Freshman Malcolm Jones, who had a 64-yard interception return for a touchdown in the first quarter, was one of many heroes for an Oaks Christian defense that was on the field for more than 34 minutes. In comparison, the Lions’ offense had the ball for slightly more than 13 minutes of game time, not including overtime. Combined, the Jones brothers accounted for all four of the Lions’ touchdowns.
“I’ll remember this for the rest of my life,” Malcolm Jones said. “When I grow up, I’m going to tell my kids about this.” |
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