Photos and Text by Kevin Dahlgren
The San Clemente Tritons continued their romp through the CIF-SS Southwest Division playoffs with a 56-6 trouncing of Foothill at Tustin High School on Nov. 21.
San Clemente senior quarterback and USC commit Sam Darnold dissected the Knights defense, throwing for 286 yards and five touchdowns while adding 93 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
The first two San Clemente scores came on identical passing plays with Darnold finding leading receiver Cole Fotheringham wide open down the middle for 20 and 21-yard touchdowns, respectively, giving the Tritons a 14-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Foothill responded on their next drive with a 50-yard completion from quarterback Preston Moebius to Gunnar Perales, who made a defender miss in the open field and scurried down the sideline into Tritons territory. The Tritons defense buckled down, holding the Knights to a field goal, making the score 14-3.
The Tritons offense answered on the ensuing drive when Darnold found senior receiver Jake Russell down the left sideline for an 81-yard touchdown pass to give San Clemente a 21-6 lead. The Knights moved the ball deep into Tritons territory on the next drive, but once again the San Clemente’s defense held on third down inside the 15-yard line, forcing another Knight’s field goal.
With three minutes left before halftime, a pair of long Darnold runs put the Tritons down at the Knights five-yard line. With less than a minute on the clock, San Clemente sophomore Brandon Reeves scored on a run to give San Clemente a 28-6 halftime lead.
Foothill had a drive in the works to open the second half until Tritons defensive back Liam Eldridge stepped in front of a weak pass to the sidelines for an interception. A few plays later, Darnold would find Reeves on a swing pass from five yards out for his fourth touchdown pass of the night.
On the ensuing Knights drive, San Clemente standout middle linebacker Riley Whimpey made an outstanding, leaping, one-handed interception to all but seal the game for the Tritons. Any hopes of a Knights comeback were squashed a few plays later when Darnold connected with Jack Sears for his fifth passing touchdown that extended the Tritons lead to 42-6.
Darnold would add a rushing touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter, giving the Tritons a 49-6 lead, signaling the end of the night for the San Clemente starters.
The Tritons will face Sea View League rival Capistrano Valley in the playoff semifinals on Nov. 28 at San Clemente High School. It will be the Tritons first semifinals appearance since 2011.
“This is huge for our whole community. What we’ve been through in the last few years, with losing Nick [Pasquale] and our losing seasons over the last few years, we’ve really come back strong. It’s been great to see and we are still on Operation Redemption,” Darnold said.
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