Sailors breeze past Kennedy, 49-0

Barry Faulkner

NEWPORT BEACH - This one was for Big Daddy.

The Newport Harbor High football team was already ahead, 21-0, in its

49-0 CIF Southern Section Division VI semifinal victory over visiting

Kennedy High Friday when the action, and euphoria was tragically

interrupted.

Newport senior offensive tackle Robert Cole, one of the team’s captains

whom teammates have nicknamed Big Daddy, lay motionless on the field with

a broken right leg. Various teammates comforted him and the Sailors’

medical staff tended to the 6-foot-5, 325-pound standout for several

minutes, before Cole was lifted onto a maintenance vehicle and driven off

the field, then transported to the hospital.

“From the time of the injury (8:03 left in the first half) till halftime,

it was pretty tough to try to play,” fellow senior tackle Blair Jones

said. “It took a lot out of the offensive line, but we had to win this

one for Robert.”

The No. 2-seeded Sailors (12-0-1) needed no additional motivation to

dispose of the Fighting Irish (9-4). But Cole would undoubtedly have been

proud of the offensive and defensive onslaught which included 477 yards

total offense and the defense’s fourth shutout in six games, its second

in three playoff contests.

The victory propelled the Sea View League champions to Friday’s

championship game against league rival Irvine (10-2-1), which knocked off

Loara, 15-9, in the other semifinal Friday.

The title game, a rematch of an Oct. 15 meeting won by Newport, 12-10,

will likely be played at Orange Coast College. The same two teams met for

the Division IV crown in 1992, with Irvine winning, 30-8, at OCC.

“He broke his leg and he’s done,” Newport Harbor Coach Jeff Brinkley said

of Cole, a sure All-Sea View League first-team pick this fall. “He’s been

a leader for us and he’s one of the captains. This is very unfortunate.

He had tears in his eyes when he was leaving the field, because he wanted

to play.”

His teammates displayed that same desire from the outset Friday.

Kelsey Peterson returned the kickoff 75 yards to the Kennedy 14-yard line

and senior tailback Andre Stewart was in the end zone four plays later.

Stewart rolled up 228 yards and three touchdowns on 28 first-half

carries, before calling it a night and saving his energy for Irvine.

His performance upped his season rushing yardage total to 2,245,

destroying the single-season school record of 2,088 set by Ray Ohrel in

1996.

Two-way start Chris Manderino ran for a 1-yard touchdown to cap Harbor’s

second possession and later returned an interception 78 yards to paydirt

to terminate Kennedy’s first possession after intermission.

Newport scored six of its first seven possessions and never punted. The

second-team offense was stopped on downs at the Kennedy 10- and 1-yard

lines to keep the Tars from breaking the school record for margin of

victory in the playoffs.

The 49-point verdict only tied a 55-6 triumph in 1982 against a Norwalk

team, ironically, coached by Brinkley.

With sophomore Bryan Breland filling in for Cole, joining Jones, guards

Steve Wukawitz and Nick Haddy, center Luis Cruz, tight end Nick Langsdorf

and fullback Travis Trimble, several Sailor runners padded the rushing

total.

Senior Ryan Brill went for 138 yards on 10 carries, including a 60-yard

touchdown run which made it 42-0 with 4:36 left in the third quarter.

Junior Ryan Ortega scored the final touchdown, accentuating the dominant

display against a defense which had not yielded more than 28 points to

any foe this fall. Kennedy had given up just nine points per game during

its six-game winning streak.

But it’s Harbor’s winning streak, now at 11 games, which remained intact.

The Tars are now 28-0-1 their last 29 games against teams not in the Sea

View League.

Harbor’s defense, leading Orange County in scoring defense, continued its

quality play.

Ends Brad Rothwell (two) and Garrett Troncale accounted for three

quarterback sacks, while Billy Clayton and Dayne Pfaff added

interceptions to Manderino’s aforementioned theft. Harbor also recovered

two fumbles as Kennedy managed just 39 yards on the ground.

Kennedy junior quarterback Geoff Etherson, completed 13 of 33 for 156 yards. He had eight on-target deliveries dropped by his receivers, but

Harbor’s secondary, which included Justin Jacobs, and Peterson, as well

as linebackers Mike Tunney, Andy Rankin and Alan Saenz, sure didn’t help.

“We were stopping the run, so we could detach some linebackers and give

then a five-six ratio,” Brinkley said. “Our defense, and our defensive

staff, including coordinator Evan Chalmers, did a great job.”

It’s the fourth trip to the finals in eight seasons for Harbor, which

will hope to win the second championship in the 69-season history of the

program.

“We have some great kids and a great senior class, so I’m very happy they

will get a chance to play for a championship,” Brinkley said.