I got a little distracted and didn’t finish my original thought from the last post. Oh well, it happens. Anyway, I must say I was impressed with Big Bear today…

I got a little distracted and didn’t finish my original thought from the last post. Oh well, it happens. Anyway, I must say I was impressed with Big Bear today. Aquinas came into today’s game with a lot of motivation from last year’s painful loss in the semifinals, but the Bears were able to keep their heads offensively, even though the Aquinas defense pretty much blew up everything that they attempted to do in the first half. 44 total yards and zero points in the first two quarters didn’t seem to faze the Bears, who eventually were able to get the fullback dive to work, triggering the option pitch and qb keeper plays that make Big Bear so deadly.

Even more than that, I was impressed by the Bear defense, especially the D-line. Aquinas is about as hardnosed as they come, but it was the Bears that were bringing the noise up front, especially in the second half. Junior Brandon LaBate – who hadn’t played organized football at all until Big Bear’s season opener with Vasquez last week – was a monster up the middle, just blowing up the Aquinas offensive line. Not bad for a skater who almost had to be begged by Dave Griffiths to join up. Senior defensive end Mike Aspiotes, who was stellar in the Bears’ CIF title win last year, overcame a back injury to get penetration on the edge, drawing various holding penalties.

Last year’s Big Bear team seemed to win with big-play sizzle. If today is any indication, they are going to win by knocking fools around.

Share this