Inland Empire Football Classic Postscript

After the wild game on Saturday night at Corona High School, I needed time to recover from deadline stress and the excitement of the night.

Here are some thoughts:

  • First, I was impressed how much each coach wanted to win. It was not a win-at-all-costs mantra, nor did they take the fun out of it in order to win. But the playcalling and San Bernardino player substitutions proved how much San Bernardino wanted to win. It was also obvious in the San Bernardino goal-line stand that ended regulation and sent the game to OT.
  • Odd play that didn’t make it into my story. With the score tied 21-21 in the third quarter, Riverside lined up for a 50-yard field goal. The snap was bobbled bounced away, the holder grabbed it back and the kicker made the kick. Meanwhile, San Bernardino, thinking it was against the all-star rules to rush, stood back and watched for several seconds. It was a ridiculous moment to most observers, because had there been a rush, there’s no way the kick would have been made. After a lengthy discussion, it was determined that on field goals (but not on extra points) the defense was allowed to rush the kicker. So Riverside got to rekick. This time the snap and hold were good, but the kick was wide.
  • Even at the end of regulation, officials believed there was no overtime, even though there was overtime three years ago. But game organizers changed their mind after meeting at midfield, prompting the overtime.
  • Even in a 31-28 OT defeat, San Bernardino proved a lot. First, that the football is not so bad on this side of the county line. Also, the San Bernardino team, fans and coaches deserved respect for the way they acted. For the record, I had Riverside with 13 penalties for 111 yards, San Bernardino with four for 40 yards. I also saw some taunting from Riverside players after the game-inning kick, but as far as I could tell, San Bernardino acted with class. Stereotypes aren’t always true.
  • Some final offensive stats for San Bernardino: Tahir Rashed-Mills, 5-9 passing, 1 INT, 1 TD, 104 yards, 13 carries, 145 yards, 1 TD. Daniel Martinez, 3-5 passing, 12 yards, 5 rushes, 20 yards. Javone Morgan (A QB who didn’t play there in the game), 1 carry, minus-6 yards; 1 reception, 34 yards. Brandon Scott, 3 receptions, 67 yards, 1 TD. Isaiah Dunn, 2 receptions, 12 yards; Anthony Grayson, 1 reception, 3 yards.  Tacory Spencer, 8 carries, 19 yards, 1 TD; Ben Fitzpatrick 2 carries, 10 yards, 1 TD; Tawon Green 4 carries, 5 yards; Cruz Duke 1 carry, 2 yards.

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