YORBA LINDA – Of the 21 players listed on Fairmont Prep’s roster, just over half suited up for their first varsity football game on Saturday evening.
For Huskies coach Fred Romo, playing experience is not a luxury he or his fellow coaches can count on year in and year out.
Fortunately for Fairmont, the players who did have some familiarity playing under the lights showed up in a major way on opening night.
Wideouts Lionel Wiggins and Daniel Chatman combined for five total touchdowns and 221 yards of offense as the Huskies rolled past Maya Angelou High of Los Angeles, 43-0, at Yorba Linda High.
“They’re athletes,” Romo said of Wiggins and Chatman. “They’re able to run, catch and do some things with the ball in their hands. We just need more experience all-around. Today was the first game for a lot of guys, so you saw some big eyes out there on the field. But it’s Week 0.”
With a first-year starting quarterback in sophomore Darwin Gines, Romo’s game plan from the get-go was to put the ball in the hands of his playmakers as much as possible.
The Huskies’ quick-hitting passing attack proved effective early as Chatman scooted past defenders and took a wide receiver screen 20 yards for a score on Fairmont’s third offensive play of the game, grabbing the initial 6-0 lead early in the first quarter.
Wiggins then capped a six-play, 45-yard drive with a 9-yard touchdown reception, extending the lead to 12-0.
The senior wideout added his second touchdown of the half the next time he touched the ball, breaking a number of tackles en route to an 80-yard punt return that effectively broke the game open at the end of the first quarter.
“We came out and played hard and kept them off balance,” Wiggins said. “It feels good to win the first game, and now we can focus on Sage Hill.”
Chatman and Wiggins each added receiving touchdowns in the second quarter, putting Fairmont up 31-0 at the half.
The Huskies outgained the Wolfpack, 355-45. Gines accounted for 203 yards through the air, and threw for five touchdowns in his first varsity start.
Contact the writer: kconnolly@ocregister.com
