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Defense ruled the night in Dos Pueblos’ season-opening football game at Scott O’Leary Stadium.
The Chargers were flying all over the field and putting big hits on Righetti quarterback Uso Tua and running back Dylan Jones. But Taua got away with one big play and that made the difference in the Warriors’ 7-3 victory.
On a second-and-8 midway through the second quarter, Taua avoided the rush and lofted a 27-yard pass to 6-2 wide receiver Michael Reynosa, who reached over a shorter DP defensive back to make the touchdown reception.
“There’s not one ounce of blame for that. It’s just the way things go,” Dos Pueblos coach Jeff Uyesaka said of the play.
“(Taua) made a great throw to the end zone and Mike went up and got the ball for us,” Righetti coach Gary Wilson said. “He did a great job.”
That would be Righetti’s only trip to the end zone as Dos Pueblos played a sensational game on defense, containing the athletic Tua and stuffing the shifty Jones.
“That’s a real fine team over there,” Wilson said. “We’re just excited to come out with a W.”
Led by senior defensive end Collin Powell and senior linebackers Aaron Thomas and Brandon Johnson, the Chargers did a good job containing Righetti’s running attack and dishing out some punishing hits.
“It was an effort by everybody,” Uyesaka said. “(Our hitting) pretty much broke their will. Those guys running were a little shy from Righetti, and I would be to. The hitting, our tempo, the security of the tackles was just at a phenomenal pace. I’m really proud of that.”
Wilson was impressed.
“(DP) came out and played solid. They have some quality kids and they play good defense.”
Righetti's defense was too big and fast for Dos Pueblos, limiting the Chargers to a field goal.
Powell said playing on varsity together last year as juniors has made a difference this season.
“Our defense will be hard to beat this year,” he said. “We were out there for most of the game. Our offense is going to get it, but our defense is just rock solid. (The Righetti players) came up to us and said, ‘We’ve never been hit like that.’ “
Taua was the Warriors’ leading rusher with 46 yards on 15 carries, while Jones had 34 on 17 rushes.
The DP spread-option offense showed that it’s still a work in progress. Quarterback Michael Spiritosanto was able to rattle off 50 yards on 19 carries, but he struggled throwing the ball, completing 6 of 16 passes or 50 yards with two interceptions.
Uyesaka said his team ran only a quarter of the system in the game.
“We put a running quarterback in a lot of throwing situations. The offense isn’t meant for that,” he said.
Spiritosanto’s running and a 13-yard completion to Jim Lagatutta help set up Nicolai Bornand’s 31-field goal at the start of the fourth quarter. The Chargers started the drive after four consecutive penalties by Righetti, the last one a personal foul on a punt.
The Warriors were whistled for 11 penalties in the game.
While the Charger offense didn’t rack up much yardage, Uyesaka liked what he saw from the unit against a quality opponent.
“I’m encouraged,” he said. “We have good film against a good team. We saw what our limitations are and where are injuries hurt us. No excuses. We still have our No. 2s and everybody has to step up and play some football.
“It’s just shame we couldn’t give (Spiritosanto) relief with our running game, because we couldn’t move those big bodies out of the way. Hopefully, we’ll be able to improve on that.
“Overall, it was a great performance and a great effort.”
RIGHETTI 7, DOS PUEBLOS 3
Righetti 0 7 0 0 — 7
Dos Pueblos 0 0 0 3 — 3
Second Quarter
R — Reynoso 27 pass from Taua (Wilson kick), 7:16
Fourth Quarter
DP — FG 31, Bornand, 11:55
Team statistics R DP
First Downs… 7 7
Rushes-yards… 38-98 28-56
Passing yards…27 50
Total yards…135 106
Passes Att-Comp-Int 1-5-0 6-16-2
Penalties-yards 11-95 8-80
Fumbles 3-1 0-0
RUSHING: R—Taua 15-46, Jones 17-34, Garcia 3-4, Reade 3-14. DP—Spiritosanto 19-50, Bartley 7-8, Thorp 1-0, Thomas 1 (minus 1).
PASSING: R—Taua 1-5-0, 27 yards. DP: Spiritosanto 5-20-2 50.
RECEIVING: R: Reynoso 1-15. DP: Arias 2-22, Roberts 2-15, Lagatutta 2-13
