Hughson loses to Palma in NorCal Division 4-A Bowl, missing out on 2nd straight state final

In a contest where both Hughson and Palma high schools played a relatively clean game in the CIF Division 4-A NorCal Bowl Game, one play stood out more than the rest.

Standing in the shotgun, Palma quarterback Thomas Nunes bobbled a snap on fourth down and four with less than a minute to go in the first half, but caught a break when the ball bounced right back into his hands. In one motion, he picked up the football and took off running, making Hughson defenders miss before being brought down 11 yards later and calling a timeout.

Did that play determine the game? No. It did, however, keep an important Palma drive alive when it looked like the Huskies had their opponents right where they wanted them. At that point, Hughson held a 14-7 lead, and if it could get to the half with an advantage, it would have put the Huskies in perfect position heading into the break.

Instead, Palma scored on that drive to tie the game at 14 at the end of the first half. It also scored 10 points before Hughson could gain a first down in the third quarter, seizing control of momentum and creating a margin that ultimately would help Palma secure a 31-21 win and a trip to its first state championship game.

“If we got a stop there, we still had time before the half,” said Huskies head coach Shaun King. “We could have drove down and scored. That was a big play.”

Just one year removed from playing Serra of San Mateo in the Central Coast Section Division I playoffs, Palma was forced to forfeit its first three wins of 2023 after playing an ineligible player. It started the season on paper 0-5 but rebounded to make the CCS playoffs, where it dropped to Division III and won a section title. After winning in D-III, it was placed in Division 4-A for the NorCal tournament.

The Chieftains, led by Nunes at quarterback, physical freshman running back Eli Dukes and Notre Dame-bound receiver Logan Saldate, did not commit a turnover and scored points on five of their first six drives in the game. The only drive that did not yield points was their final possession, when they ran the clock down to the final buzzer.

“They wouldn’t make a mistake,” King said.

Hughson junior quarterback Robert McDaniel threw for 123 yards on 14 completions and had a pair of first-half touchdown passes. The Huskies opened the game with a drive that ended in a 10-yard pass to Larkin Meyer to give them a 7-0 lead. McDaniel connected with Malakai Sumter in the second for another 10-yard touchdown to give the Huskies a 14-7 lead.

After falling behind 10 points in the second half, the Huskies got back within three points after the offensive line broke open a hole for Alexander Villarreal, who took a handoff 39 yards for a touchdown to make it a 24-21 game.

The Huskies just needed a defensive stand, but Palma put together a nearly 10-minute drive capped by Dukes’ second rushing touchdown of the game and the Chieftains took a 31-21 advantage.

King had confidence that if Hughson got a stop and put the ball in McDaniel’s hands, the outcome could have been different.

“I knew if we stopped them just one time down here, we were gonna get the ball back and be the last ones with the ball,” he said. “We were gonna and we were gonna win. They were just better than us tonight.”

Paying it forward

After the final buzzer, Hughson sophomores, juniors and coaches made a tunnel to send the team’s 20-plus seniors through to acknowledge them one final time.

The senior class helped rebuild the Hughson football program through COVID in 2020 and a 7-4 season as sophomores in 2021. As juniors in 2022, members of the class were some of the most productive players offensively and defensively on a section and state championship team. This season, they continued their production and found their voices as leaders, powering the team to a second straight section title.

This season and playoff run were about honoring them.

“We wanted to pay it forward to the seniors, man,” McDaniel said. “The seniors started everything. They’ve brought Hughson football back. It started last year, winning state. The seniors really just made everything.”

King says they “deserve everything” for the groundwork they laid for the future of Hughson football. Their ability to lead the team to multiple titles with hard work set the tone for the program’s future teams at all levels.

“They have changed Houston football,” King said.

Repeating is hard

In 2022, Hughson went 13-2 and captured the Division 5-AA state title. It ended the season on a six-game win streak and set its sights on accomplishing the same goal this season.

After 14 games in 2023, Hughson can confidently say this: The only thing harder than winning one state title is doing it again the next season.

“Last year, we just had an outstanding team, but don’t get me wrong, this team could even be even better than last year,” Meyer said. “But just knowing how hard it is to make it up here, I’m so happy that my team was able to push with me to get to this point, I’m just mad that we lost.”

Last season’s other reigning state champion from the Trans Valley League, Escalon, also lost in its NorCal Bowl Game Friday night against Acalanes.

King echoed the sentiments of his two-way playmaker. “It’s hard to get the sections and the NorCal game was just a bonus. These are all good programs that make it this far. I’m just so proud we started something here and we plan on continuing it.

“We were playing football in December and that now is our goal for years to come.”