The article below originally appeared on MercuryNews.com and is being reprinted with permission.
College of San Mateo’s performance against visiting Los Medanos on Saturday should give the NorCal Conference and the rest of the state something to think about.
The Bulldogs committed 15 penalties for 129 yards, had three touchdowns called back and fumbled seven times. And yet they still dominated Los Medanos 45-0 to improve to 5-0 heading into Saturday’s 7 p.m. conference opener at Santa Rosa.
Defending Northern California champion CSM outgained Los Medanos in yards 596-152 and kept its composure early in the third quarter when long touchdown runs from Tim Celestine and Tana Afeaki were both erased because of holding penalties.
“Our coach usually tells us fix your mistakes, let it go, get to the next play, so that’s what we go by,” running back Seta Pohahau said.
The coach to whom Pohahau referred is second-year Bret Pollack, whose no-huddle attack made life miserable for the Mustangs defense. This was especially true on the ground where Pollack, the Bulldogs’ head coach and offensive coordinator, had 13 different players carry the ball to generate 349 yards rushing.
One of those rushers was Pohahau, a former standout at Aragon High, who had his biggest carry 45 seconds before halftime when he ran an option 21 yards for a touchdown and 21-0 lead. Pohahau would later score on a 3-yard run and finished with 10 carries for 68 yards.
“Consistency is a big thing for this offense,” Pohahau said. “We make plays when we need to make plays, and when you get the ball, you better run hard.” Rashaan Vaughn ran hard on a third-quarter reverse that produced a 9-yard touchdown that put the game out of reach, 35-0. Vaughn was also the game’s leading receiver with eight catches for 108 yards.
CSM also had success through the air. Starting quarterback Julian Bernard completed 14 of 23 for 200 yards. Bernard’s only touchdown pass was a 19-yard strike to Nik France on a fourth-and-two situation early in the second quarter.
Impressive as CSM’s offense was, the main star on this day was an outstanding defense that recorded the first shutout of the Pollack era.
“I challenged our defense at halftime that I wanted to keep that zero up on the scoreboard,” Pollack said. “The two things they cheered about at the end was the shutout and the cupcakes (in the locker room).”
The numbers tell the story of CSM’s domination on defense. Los Medanos managed only 62 passing yards, 90 rushing yards and was 1 for 13 on third down.
Much like the running game, the Bulldogs defense had many players contribute rather than rely on one star. Linebacker Jim Moors (Woodside) had a team-high five tackles.
CSM 45, LOS MEDANOS 0
LMC 0 0 0 0–0
CSM 7 14 14 10–45
CSM — Liu 1 run (Anderson kick)
CSM — France 19 pass from Bernard (Anderson kick)
CSM — Pohahau 21 run (Anderson kick)
CSM — Pohahau 3 run (Anderson kick)
CSM — Vaughn 9 run (Anderson kick)
CSM — Anderson 25 FG
CSM — Jubilado 4 run (Anderson kick)
Rushing
Los Medanos — Legall 11-56, Woods 6-30, Beverly 3-7, Russomanno 1-4, Harris 1-0, Steindel 1-(minus 2), Corral 3-(minus 5). Totals: 26-90.
College of San Mateo — Smith 10-74, Pohahau 10-68, Newman 5-54, Afeaki 5-46, Nyantyaki 6-29, Celestine 3-22, McGowan 5-12, Bernard 5-12, Freeman 7-11, Vaughn 1-9, Liu 2-6, Jubilado 1-4, Puamau 1-3, team 1-(minus 1). Totals: 63.349.
Passing
Los Medanos — Corral 8-17-1-62, Steindel 0-6-2-0. Totals: 8-23-3-62.
College of San Mateo — Bernard 14-23-0-200, Freeman 4-7-0-47. Totals: 18-30-0-247.
Receiving
Los Medanos — Tuu’lau’ulu 4-30, Beverly 1-13, Smith 1-11, Sims 1-8, Woods 1-0.
College of San Mateo — Vaughn 8-108, Pohahau 3-23, Montes 2-44, McGowan 2-22, Watson 1-23, France 1-19, Smith 1-8.
Fumbles/lost
Los Medanos — 2/0
College of San Mateo — 7/2
Records — College of San Mateo 5-0; Los Medanos 2-3.
