WATSONVILLE — The Mustangs aren’t bucking around.
Gilroy is on a roll, racking up 179 points in its last three contests — including a 54-14 win over Pajaro Valley on Oct. 18 in Watsonville.
The win has the Mustangs sitting pretty at 2-0 in the Monterey Bay Pacific League, thanks to a red hot offense and stellar defensive line.
It was another big game for senior standout Brandon Boyd, who picked up 212 yards on 28 carries to reach the endzone five times. Sophomore quarterback David Munoz was also stellar, going 10 for 22 for 170 yards and three touchdowns.
But not everybody is happy with Gilroy.
Last week’s contest with the Grizzlies ended in a confrontation after Gilroy continued to throw the ball late. Mustangs coach Brian Boyd said with Pajaro Valley continuing to blitz three linebackers, it was the only choice he had — it was that or let his running backs get crushed.
“They were mad that we didn’t rotate enough of our starters, but they weren’t taking any of their starters out either,” Boyd said. “The boys didn’t even get to shake hands. It was bad thing that they didn’t get to shake hands but something would’ve happened — Pajaro was pretty upset. They started the whole thing, it shows on film and our vice principal was there and saw it.
“Joe (Gregorio) is a good coach; he’s trying to do exactly what I’m trying to do at Gilroy High School. It was unfortunate that some of the stuff happened from his coaches and stuff after the game was happening because he’s got that same vision. He wants the program to improve, he wants things to get better and he wants to be the guy to change it and move on, so it was unfortunate.”
The opinions of others aren’t weighing on the Mustangs, instead they’ve put it behind them to set their sights on the deceptively dangerous North Monterey County. Though they have yet to win a game, the Condors have been in every game this season. They dropped another close game by a score of 20-6 and Brian Boyd said they could just be the toughest opponent to date.
“I told the boys yesterday when watching film ‘The most dangerous team you guys ever want to play is a team that hasn’t won a game because they have nothing to lose. They will come after you, they’re going to play football’,” Brian Boyd said. “By no means just because they haven’t won a game are they a pushover team. We’re preparing for them like normal.”
Once again, the Mustangs’ D has been challenged with a shutout — an achievable goal in their eyes. The addition of Elijah Floyd at defensive end combined with the already intimidating Darius Alexander-Jones has helped create more pressure on the inside.
Offensively, Gilroy has began moving Emilio Chambers around to different positions to create some variety. This change has been crucial given the fact that the team is without the services of Bubba Lara again this week as he’s sidelined with an injured knee.
But Gilroy’s real unsung heros lie in the offensive line, having not given up a single sack through six games this year.
The Mustangs will look to stay perfect in league when they take on NMC at 2 p.m. Saturday in Castroville.
“The boys are doing the right thing — they’ve bought in, they’re being coached up,” Brian Boyd said. “Our coaches are doing a fantastic job and the boys are doing their assignments. Do they make some mistakes? Yeah. Is it a learning process? Yeah. We’re trying to get better every week and if they keep doing that and doing what they’re doing then we’re going to be fine.”
I told the boys yesterday when watching film ‘The most dangerous team you guys ever want to play is a team that hasn’t won a game because they have nothing to lose. They will come after you, they’re going to play football’.”
