BCHS races past BHS for decisive 38-14 win
Sep. 30—If there was ever any doubt as to whether Bakersfield Christian could contend for football titles in the South Yosemite Valley League, it was assuaged in the league's first-ever contest Thursday.
The Eagles' defense shook off a pair of early Bakersfield High touchdowns, and their explosive offense — which hadn't always made its presence felt in the preseason — carried them to a decisive 38-14 victory.
"I told these guys, 'Only thing these guys respect is physicality, man, and if you don't bring it they're gonna bring it,'" BCHS coach Darren Carr said. "Very, very proud of the way our guys played, the way they came out, nothing but respect for BHS and I'm glad we got the win."
Bryson Waterman, BCHS' running back, receiver and occasional Wildcat quarterback, carved up the Drillers' defense on outside rushes, scoring touchdown runs of 16 and 26 yards and adding a deep kick-return touchdown in the second quarter.
The outside runs — a result, Carr said, of "getting guys out there, pinning the edge, turning our bodies and getting our back to the running back" — were there for the Eagles all day to the point that they rarely needed to pass, but Jordan Delgado posted 145 yards and a pair of touchdowns on just six completions.
The win boosted BCHS to 3-3 on the year and gave it a leg up on its closest competition for the SYVL title, providing a boost to the Eagles' confidence.
"It's sky-high right now," Waterman said. "BHS was one of the best teams in our league, and I felt we had a good game plan and we just executed it."
The Drillers' offense started strong when quarterback Tye Monteiro ran for a 60-yard touchdown on the game's opening play, and then added a second rushing score at the beginning of the second quarter, but was hampered by a pair of turnovers, a missed field goal and some effective ball control by BCHS.
BHS also had to play the better part of another game without the services of running back Tybo Rogers, who suffered what appeared to be a shoulder injury on the Drillers' second drive of the game and played just one play thereafter.
And despite Monteiro's early score, BCHS didn't fall far behind because of an early 42-yard pitch and catch from Delgado to Jacob Gutierrez that was followed by a fumble recovery on the ensuing pooch kick. That quickly led to Waterman's first touchdown.
"We're very versatile with how we use our playmakers, and we obviously executed it very well tonight," Waterman said.
After BHS led its most successful drive of the game, aided by completions from Monteiro to Ron Hughes and Harvey Rogers III, to tie the score back at 14, Waterman promptly returned the kickoff for a touchdown.
The Drillers assembled a pretty masterful 16-play, clock-killing drive as halftime approached, aided by two key third-down scrambles and a fourth-down completion to Harvey Rogers. The problem was that it ended in a short field goal attempt that was no good, leaving 44 seconds for the Eagles, and a 38-yard completion to a wide-open Chase Furtado set up Simon Nykamp to make a field goal try of his own entering the break — a quick six-point swing.
The margin widened further when Waterman ripped off 23- and 26-yard runs on another touchdown drive, and then Delgado spread the ball around to Gutierrez, Dylan Johnson and Furtado on one more that went 66 yards in a brisk eight plays.
Desperately seeking a way back into the game, the Drillers almost got a break when Waterman was flagged for a late hit on a fourth down incompletion from Monteiro to Harvey Rogers, but the play had already concluded, so the change of possession still stood.
Brison Abbott had a 51-yard run for the Drillers late in a quiet fourth quarter, but the score stuck at 38-14, dropping BHS to 2-4 on the year.
BCHS will travel to Ridgeview Friday as Carr looks for consistent improvement.
"It's not over," he said. "We still got a long season ahead ... As long as we're going up, I'm happy as a clam."
Meanwhile, Rashaan Shehee and the Drillers will look to rebound when they welcome another new league foe, Independence, to Griffith Field.
Reporter Henry Greenstein can be reached at 661-395-7374. Follow him on Twitter: @HenryGreenstein.