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San Clemente football experienced a perfect kind of season opener on Friday, Aug. 18, as the Tritons answered some questions on both sides of the ball but left some room for improvement.
San Clemente’s inexperienced secondary answered the bell holding Chaparral to 65 yards passing with two interceptions by junior Riley Kelley and another by Max Gonzales, and senior quarterback Dylan Mills took command of the Tritons offense with two touchdown passes and a 45-yard highlight touchdown run, as San Clemente defeated the visiting Pumas, 20-10, at Thalassa Stadium.
The Tritons (1-0) go forward on a short week, as they’ll travel to Torrey Pines on Thursday, Aug. 24. The Falcons lost their season opener at Del Norte, 23-14.
“There’s things we did really well, and there’s things we can improve on,” San Clemente coach Jaime Ortiz said. “That’s how opening games go sometimes. We have to clean up some stuff and be a little more clean on both sides of the ball. There’s times we hurt ourselves a little bit.”
San Clemente found itself down early, 3-0, after the first quarter, and even as the Tritons went ahead, 14-3, they missed opportunities to extend their lead with two missed field goals and a missed extra point. San Clemente didn’t convert a third or fourth down in the second half and was unable to score off of any of the turnovers they created, as Chaparral turned to its run game to control possession in the second half.
However, the Tritons still showed their worth, as San Clemente held on to its lead with a strong defensive performance.
Chaparral starting quarterback Dash Beierly came into this season as a touted quantity, with 14 NCAA Division 1 offers, but the junior only completed 7 of 18 passes for 51 yards with two interceptions and a fumbled snap. Beierly mostly stuck to the ground in the second half with 86 yards rushing and a touchdown in the game, but San Clemente still contained the talented signal-caller.
“In the first half, we were trying to get too much up field, and (Beierly) was doing a good job of tucking the ball and running underneath us,” Ortiz said. “Second half, we settled down a little bit, and we took our chances at times. We did a better job of forcing him to sit in the pocket and make some plays.”
In addition to the three interceptions and Connor Bachhuber’s fumble recovery, Beierly was also sacked three times as the Pumas attempted their comeback, including two by junior linebacker Matai Tagoa’i. The four-star transfer from Faith Lutheran of Las Vegas only joined the Tritons two weeks ago, but his impact was evident, as he bolted into the backfield all night.
“In the first half, he was trying to do too much,” Ortiz said. “I told him, ‘Matai, you’re a very good player. Just settle down and do your job.’ In the second half, I thought he did that. Had a crucial sack and a hurry late in the game. He’s a pretty explosive player and he stepped up.”
On the offensive side of the ball, Mills stepped up with some explosive plays of his own with a couple deep throws to set up shorter touchdown passes in the second quarter to Xander Rex and Aiden Rubin. Mills also provided the biggest highlight and the play that ultimately sealed the win for San Clemente.
After the Tritons ran only three offensive plays in the third quarter and Chaparral cut the deficit to four points, Mills broke loose three minutes later. The senior signal-caller’s options were cut off, and he burst forward, down the far sideline and spun past a Pumas defender for a 45-yard scoring run.
“I wanted to hit Broderick on 10-yard out. (Chaparral) went man (defense), and I took off,” Mills said. “Offensive line did a good job of seeing me running and set up a block. I just had to make one guy miss, and I ended up scoring.”
Mills completed 14 of 18 passes for 198 yards and ran for 89 yards on 11 carries. Cole Herlean was Mills’ top target with four receptions for 99 yards. Rubin was the go-to on the ground with 44 yards on 16 carries.
Offensive efficiency will be key for Mills and the Tritons next week, as San Clemente goes down to Torrey Pines on Thursday. The Falcons still employ their patented wing-T offense, which can dictate possession and the clock. The Tritons solved it last season with a 14-0 lead after the first quarter and a 28-3 lead after three quarters.
