CIF-SS FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS
SOUTHWEST DIVISION
San Clemente (12-1) vs. Trabuco Hills (9-4)
Where, when: San Clemente High, Friday, 7:30 p.m.
TV: Fox Sports West
Outlook: The Mustangs were inches away from tying the Tritons late in their Sea View League game on Oct. 30, but San Clemente held on to win, 42-35. San Clemente’s Andrew Frohner made a tackle on standout Trabuco wide receiver Jacob Breeland on fourth down and just short of the end zone to secure the Tritons’ victory. San Clemente’s USC-bound quarterback, Sam Darnold, threw for 168 yards and two touchdowns on 14-of-18 passing and ran for another score, and junior running back Vlad Dzhabiyev rushed for a game-high 174 yards. Trabuco Hills quarterback Jimmy Jacobs threw for 401 yards and four touchdowns on 26-of-41 passing and Breeland had 14 receptions for 209 yards. Both teams have gone unbeatensince. San Clemente made quick work of Aliso Niguel in its final league game, then went on to take down Fullerton and Foothill handily in the first two rounds of the playoffs. The semifinal wasn’t so easy, as the Tritons needed overtime to take down Capistrano Valley, 28-27. Trabuco Hills has been most impressive in its playoff run, knocking off Troy and top-seeded Corona del Mar in the first two rounds, and dismantling Buena Park, 38-7, in the semifinals. Trabuco might be the hottest team in any CIF-SS division.
COACH’S SCOUTING REPORT
Capistrano Valley coach Ernie Bucher’s team played against San Clemente twice this season, including an overtime loss to the Tritons last week, and also played Trabuco Hills in the Sea View League. Here is his scouting report on the two teams.
Bucher on San Clemente: “Sam Darnold is a special, special football player. He’s somebody who can extend a play, then throw the ball 60 yards down the field. You have to tell your defensive backs to stick with their man as long as possible and you have to tackle well, because he’s so athletic and strong. … It starts with Sam, but Vlad Dzhabiyev is a really good running back. He’s physical and Brandon Reaves is a good complement with elite speed. The left side of San Clemente’s line – Tucker Scott and Donte Harrington – both are very good and they like to run the ball behind those guys. They can run the ball down your throat. … (On defense), there’s one name – Riley Whimpey. That guy is everywhere. Every time you look up, he’s making a tackle, and that’s frustrating. He’s fast, physical, and I haven’t talked to him, but I’m sure he has a sharp mind to have a nose for the football like that.”
Bucher on Trabuco Hills: “Buena Park was loaded with athletes, and the fact that they could hold them to seven points is very impressive. We put up (more than 33 points per game) this season and they held us to six points, by far our fewest this year. … They have an outstanding pass rush with Kevin McKinney on blitz packages and Blake Cuzzupoli is physically dominant. Colin Schooler was the one who really killed us. He ended up having a pick six against us and forced two other turnovers. … We played to take Jacob Breeland away (on offense), but their two touchdowns against us came on passes to Noah Thompson. He’s a weapon, too, and he’s sneaky good. With those two guys on the outside, it makes it hard to pack the box and they like to run the ball. Breeland is a matchup problem for everyone. It’s hard to make them one-dimensional, because of the matchups they have on the outside. They can throw a fade and those two guys can go up and get it.”
OCVARSITY PREDICTION
Trabuco Hills was only a touchdown behind in the last meeting, but has been the most impressive team in the Southwest Division playoffs so far. The Mustangs get redemption on San Clemente’s home field, 35-34.
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PROBABLE STARTERS
San Clemente
Offense
Sam Darnold, QB
Vlad Dzhabiyev, RB
Brandon Reaves, RB
Dean Licht, WR
Jack Sears, WR
Cole Fotheringham, TE
Tucker Scott, OL
Donte Harrington, OL
Colin Lippincott, OL
Austin Volling, OL
Shaughn Ritchie, OL
Samuel Loy, P
Defense
Gerardo Gomez, DL
Christopher Rodriguez, DL
Nathanael Atkins, DL
Liam Buhl, DL
Max Lepley, LB
Riley Whimpey, LB
Liam Mills, LB
Liam Eldridge, CB
Jacob Russell, CB
Tanner Wright, S
Andrew Frohner, S
Chase Berman, K
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Trabuco Hills
Offense
Jimmy Jacobs, QB
Chad Crosbie, RB
James Pierce, FB
Jake Breeland, WR
Noah Thompson, WR
Campbell Conway, TE
Sean Brewer, OL
Jaret Paget, OL
Tony Burge, OL
David Stobbe, OL
Ulyesses Gaytan, OL
Blake Cuzzupoli, P
Defense
Zac Minich, DL
Austin Fine, DL
Joey Natoniewski, DL
Colin Schooler, LB
Kevin McKinney, LB
Scott Kruger, LB
Blake Cuzzupoli, LB
Bret Bohan, CB
Jayden Price, CB
Brenden Schooler, S
Noah Strenn, S
Blake Cuzzupoli, K
Contact the writer: jbalan@ocregister.com
