Prep football: North gets jumbo win

Barry Faulkner

COSTA MESA - Bowing, perhaps to the notion that the dominant

players in the Orange County All-Star Football Game in recent years have

come from the defensive side of the ball, North Coach Julian Smilowitz

opted to give 6-foot, 290-pound defensive tackle Mike Patterson a little

time in the backfield Friday night at Orange Coast College.

Make that the “Jumbo” backfield, as Patterson, a Los Alamitos High

product bound for USC, lined up alongside 6-4, 360-pound tackle John

Sekona as the front men in a power I formation late in the second quarter

at the South 7-yard line.

Rather than lead block, however, Patterson fielded the handoff and

slashed against the grain for a scoring rumble that erased the South’s

only lead.

The 7-yard score, the first of Patterson’s football career, helped set

the stage for the North’s 23-3 triumph, before 7,000.

But Patterson didn’t let his offensive opportunity take his mind of

his primary work, which included spending most of the evening in the

South backfield, destroying opposing ball carriers.

Patterson had two sacks for 13 yards in losses, and also blew up a

would-be handoff that turned into one of the South’s three turnovers.

Patterson swallowed up South quarterback Richard Schwartz (Edison)

just as he was reaching to hand the ball off with the North ahead, 7-3,

late in the third quarter.

Climbing up Schwartz’s back, Patterson appeared to swat the ball

loose, then cast Schwartz aside and pounced on the fumble to set the

North up at the South 17.

Five plays later, Nick Ross booted a 27-yard field goal to give the

North a 10-3 cushion.

Just two plays after the ensuing kickoff, the North defensive struck

again, as Ryan Kiaha (Pacifica) disrupted Schwartz during a pitchout,

forcing the ball to bounce wide of its target. Linebacker Oscar Hernandez

(Fullerton) collected the fumble for the North, which cashed it in two

plays later on a 25-yard catch-and-run by Tony Holder (Los Alamitos).

Though the conversion kick failed, the North led, 16-3, with 16

straight points scored courtesy of three South turnovers.

After another Patterson sack forced a South punt deep in its own

territory, the North went 36 yards on four plays, with Holder fielding a

7-yard slant from Mike Keeling (La Habra) with 7:53 left in the game.

Ross booted the PAT and the South failed to produce anything with its

final possession.

Patterson was named Offensive MVP, while El Modena safety Adam

Lancisero earned Defensive MVP laurels for the North.

Lancisero set up Patterson’s TD by returning an interception 53 yards

to the South 27. He also had a pair of sacks for 15 yards in losses and

blocked a third-quarter punt that helped the North, which now leads the

series, 22-17-3, maintain the field-position advantage.

The South offense clicked early, with four first downs in the first

quarter and a 42-yard field goal by Erik Hallenbeck (St. Margaret’s) with

8:50 left before halftime.

But the Rebels managed little production the rest of the way. The

South had 12 rushing yards on 26 carries and produced just 28 passing

yards, as Schwartz and Billy Hart (Mission Viejo) combined to complete

just 8 of 18.

Newport Harbor High product Chris Manderino rushed twice for 8 yards

and fellow Sailor Alan Saenz made several plays from his middle

linebacker spot, including a 12-yard sack of John Henry Jackson (Villa

Park).

Saenz, who also played fullback, had one reception for 2 yards.

South cornerback Charlie Alshuler (Corona del Mar) made a handful of

tackles and Scott Lopez (Newport Harbor) battled in the trenches for the

South, which had 82 yards of offense at halftime, then went backward.

“Our inability to do anything offensively really hurt us,” South Coach

Dave White (Edison) said. “I thought we dominated the first quarter and a

half, then they got the interception and took over the game. They

deserved it. They outplayed us in every phase of the game.”

Darryl Poston (Edison) and Tyler Thompson (Santa Margarita) rushed for

25 and 18 yards, respectively, to highlight the South offense.