It’s never a good sign when Brandon Elam doesn’t feel tired, but
his day is already done.
”
It feels like the fourth quarter,
”
the impatient senior defensive end said to Gilroy High football
coach Rich Hammond, as both stood on the sideline, waiting for the
last 21 seconds of the first half to tick off the clock.
Aside from a few more plays, Elam’s day was already over as the
Mustangs went into halftime up 36-0 against Alvarez in Salinas
Saturday. Two quarters and three touchdowns later, every player on
Gilroy’s roster had contributed to a 57-0 spanking of the
Eagles.
SALINAS – It’s never a good sign when Brandon Elam doesn’t feel tired, but his day is already done.
“It feels like the fourth quarter,” the impatient senior defensive end said to Gilroy High football coach Rich Hammond, as both stood on the sideline, waiting for the last 21 seconds of the first half to tick off the clock.
Aside from a few more plays, Elam’s day was already over as the Mustangs went into halftime up 36-0 against the host Alvarez Eagles in Salinas Saturday. Two quarters and three touchdowns later, every player on Gilroy’s roster had contributed to a 57-0 spanking of the Eagles.
The Mustangs’ defense recorded nine sacks, eight of which came in the first half, and forced four turnovers – two by interception and two by fumble recovery. Equally impressive, the GHS offense got back on track after two mediocre weeks, consistently going to the air to attack the Eagles’ secondary.
Gilroy quarterback Jamie Jensen completed 17-of-24 throws for 228 yards and five touchdowns, finding Dante Fullard and Sean Hale for two each. Jensen also threw a 2-yard touchdown to Steven Martinez.
Leading 8-0 after the first quarter, the Mustangs turned it on in the second period. Gilroy’s first-team offense played just one down in the second half – a 50-yard bomb from Jensen to Hale for a score – and the first-team defense played only a couple more series.
“I would have liked us to play better in the first quarter, but the second, third and fourth quarters were what we had hoped for,” Hammond said, adding that he was especially happy every player got time on the field.
“When you do the right thing, we get a chance to play a lot of our second- and third(-string players), which is good because they work hard and deserve it, number one. Number two, (they need experience) because you never know when someone is going to go down.”
For the Eagles, it was the second year in a row they have gone down to Gilroy, which won 47-0 last season.
For the Mustangs, there was a sense of relief in knowing they didn’t let the opponents dictate how hard they should play.
“It feels a lot better (winning like this) than to play down to their level,” said Hale, who also ran for an 8-yard touchdown. “Last year, that was kind of what we were known for.”
This year, undefeated Gilroy is being recognized as one of the top teams in the Central Coast Section, especially with two of its four victories being achieved by blowouts. Gilroy beat Archbishop Mitty 62-13 in Week 1.
“It’s very important (to win impressively),” GHS safety Tony Travis said. “It sets the standard. Other teams look at the results.”
With Jensen taking a sideline view for all but one down of the second half, Nick Marra took the over the offense. The junior quarterback led the Mustangs on three drives, two of which resulted in touchdowns.
Marra found tight end Michael Aldridge for a four-yard score on his first snap of the game, which followed a botched snap on an Eagles punt, giving Gilroy great field position. Marra later made a terrific play to pick up a snap that went over his head, avoid oncoming pass rushers and then hit Lelan Gettys in the back of the end zone for a 5-yard touchdown.
Gilroy’s defense was relentless throughout the contest, taking the ball away from Alvarez on three straight possessions during the second quarter. Lukas Fortino stripped Eagles quarterback Justin Rocamora for the first turnover, returning it for a score before being ruled down by the referees. Nico Sandoval picked off an overthrown pass for the second turnover, and Jordan Holler recovered a fumble on the 2-yard line for the third, setting up Martinez’ touchdown grab. All three occurred in the span of five minutes, nine seconds. David Perez also recorded an interception for the Mustangs, snatching an underthrown ball with 1:27 left in the third quarter.
Defensive end Chris McMurray and safety Richie Sotelo led the team with two sacks each. McMurray now leads the team with five overall.
Gilroy will welcome Salinas (3-2) to town on Friday for Homecoming, while Alvarez is now 1-4 and will play at San Benito the same night.
Editor’s Note: It has yet to be confirmed, but Saturday’s 57-point win by Gilroy might be the largest margin of victory in school history. Records indicate it is the highest going back to 2000, when the Mustangs beat Watsonville 58-6 in the season opener. If you know of any game that Gilroy won by more than 57 points, please contact sp****@************ch.com. We will have the answer in Friday’s edition.
Correction: In the article titled “Coaching ’em up” (Oct. 3, 2008), it was incorrectly reported that new GHS defensive coordinator Chris Vasseur worked at San Jose State last year. Vasseur was the defensive coordinator at Los Altos last season and worked as the Assistant Video Coordinator for SJSU two years ago. The Dispatch regrets this error. Please send all future corrections to sp****@************ch.com.
Weekly Awards
Offensive Players of the Week:
Jamie Jensen and Sean Hale
Jensen had his best game of the season, throwing five touchdowns and completing 71 percent of his passes with no interceptions. Hale also had his best game of the season, catching two touchdowns and rushing for another.
“The last three weeks haven’t really been like last season,” Hale said. “This week was a breakout game for me to get back on track.”
The same could be said for Jensen.
Defensive Player of the Week:
Everyone
The whole unit deserves this award, again. Nine sacks and four turnovers don’t come from just one person. Middle linebacker Lukas Fortino was one player who definitely stepped it up, playing his best so far this season. He stripped the quarterback bare for a fumble recovery with ease in the early second quarter.
Special Teams Player of the Week:
Anthony Velasquez
When a kicker boots not one, but two kickoffs through the uprights – goof from 70 yards – you have to give it to the guy. Anthony Velasquez outshone his bright yellow shoes Saturday, giving Alvarez no real chances to return kickoffs for big yards.
TRI-COUNTY ATHLETIC LEAGUE OFFENSIVE STATS
PASSING
Name, School Com Att Yd Int TD
Jensen, Gilroy 65 107 987 5 12
Fales, Palma 42 56 765 0 9
Vallejo, Hollister 42 104 671 4 5
Mi. Ramos, N. Salinas 15 32 307 7 7
Gregg, Salinas 20 53 272 7 4
Aportela, Alisal 25 50 266 3 2
Rocamora, Alvarez 30 52 2551 3 2
Marra, Gilroy 12 20 142 1 4
De La Rosa, Alvarez 11 35 119 1 0
RUSHING
Name, School Att Yd Avg
Olivarria, Palma 48 570 11.8
Jelks, Salinas 86 483 5.6
Ma. Ramos, N. Salinas 53 435 8.2
Grant, Alisal 57 397 6.9
Enriquez, Alisal 74 374 5.0
Bautista, N. Salinas 53 321 6.0
Rosa, Alvarez 19 215 11.3
Melesio, Alvarez 50 207 4.1
Brooks, N. Salinas 14 185 13.2
Guenther, Gilroy 22 170 7.7
Cathirell, Hollister 29 135 4.6
Jones, Alvarez 17 132 7.7
Gregg, Salinas 32 128 4.0
Rushing touchdown leaders: Olivarria (Palma) 8, Gregg (Salinas) 5, Grant (Alisal) 4, Bautista (N. Salinas) 4, Rosa (Alvarez) 4, Mr. Ramos (N. Salinas) 3, Enriquez (Alisal) 3, Jelks (Salinas) 3, Peter Guenther (Gilroy) 2.
RECEIVING
Name, School Rec Yds Avg
Fullard, Gilroy 20 365 18.2
McFadden, Hollister 20 351 17.5
Hale, Gilroy 17 278 16.3
Chernetsky, Palma 15 251 16.7
Gettys, Gilroy 13 197 15.1
Olivarria, Palma 11 231 21.0
Guenther, Gilroy 10 128 12.8
Perez, Alvarez 10 117 11.7
Crosby, Salinas 9 128 14.2
Grant, Alisal 9 84 9.3
Delgado, Gilroy 7 93 13.2
Cathirell, Hollister 7 73 10.4
Romero, Alvarez 7 72 10.2
Suarez-Lopez, Alisal 7 68 9.7
Ramirez, Alisal 7 67 9.5
Jelks, Salinas 7 51 7.2
Cornell, Hollister 5 146 29.2
Martinez, N. Salinas 4 143 35.7
Receiving touchdown leaders: Chernetsky (Palma) 6, Fullard (Gilroy) 6, Martinez (N. Salinas) 4, McFadden (Hollister) 3, Gettys (Gilroy) 3, Hale (Gilroy) 3.
