SALINAS
— Live Oak’s Dustin Muhn couldn’t have picked a better night to
have one of his top varsity games. The senior rushed for 232 yards
and scored three touchdowns on just 11 carries in the Tri-County
Athletic League opener that Live Oak won 41-7. He had touchdowns of
59 yards, 65 yards and 68 yard
s.
SALINAS — Live Oak’s Dustin Muhn couldn’t have picked a better night to have one of his top varsity games.
The senior rushed for 232 yards and scored three touchdowns on just 11 carries in the Tri-County Athletic League opener that Live Oak won 41-7. He had touchdowns of 59 yards, 65 yards and 68 yards.
For his second and third touchdowns, Muhn was able to create something from nothing after somehow managing to stay on his feet and bounce around to an opening after being all but stopped. The muddy conditions made tackling him all the more difficult.
“That’s Dustin,” said coach Rick Booth. “He knows how to play the game. He sees the holes and reacts.”
Muhn, who stands at 5-foot-8 and weighs just 160 pounds, may be small in size, but he can quickly turn a game around in a hurry. He scored four touchdowns in the game at Truckee that Live Oak lost 35-32. When asked after the North Salinas game, Muhn said he didn’t know which of the two games was his best performance.
He came into the game second in rushing behind Gilroy High’s Justin Sweeney.
Muhn may have taken a narrow lead as the league’s top rusher. San Benito’s defense held Sweeney to just 78 yards in the 50-20 come-from-behind Prune Bowl victory Friday.
After Muhn’s big night, the unofficial total has Muhn ahead by four yards: 984-980.
With Sweeney and Muhn vying for league rushing titles, an interesting season awaits in the final four games.
Live Oak can claim the bragging rights of being in first place after the first week of play. However the Acorns have to share that title with San Benito and Palma, who also won big in their league openers.
A near interception
In addition to the four turnovers Live Oak recovered, the Acorns almost had a chance for another one. In the second quarter, senior defensive lineman Chris Rockwell almost picked off a pass near the line of scrimmage from North Salinas quarterback Tramaine Lamb. Surprised to find a pass in his arms, Rockwell wasn’t able to hold on.
Turning point of the game
After Live Oak opened the game with a 6-0 advantage after just three plays from scrimmage, North Salinas had a chance to score to tie the game or possibly take the lead. Being able to answer would have been a big boost to the Vikings and could have swung the momentum. With nothing to lose on the 16-yard line, North Salinas tried for the fourth-down conversion. Lamb’s pass was right on the money, but was deflected away by Live Oak defensive back Victor Kalata at the last second just in front of the goal line.
Turning point of the season
Coming into the game, Live Oak was averaging between four and five turnovers per game. The Acorns’ lone turnover Friday came late in the game when Live Oak already had the contest well in hand.
The Acorns also did a good job of recovering their fumbles. Kevin Abbott, who scored two touchdowns, fumbled a ball in the fourth quarter, but Jimmy Mallette was able to pounce on it, helping the Acorns to gain yards on the play and hold on to the ball.
Freshman
The Live Oak freshmen football team lost 49-0 to undefeated North Salinas.
Junior Varsity
The Live Oak JV football team defeated North Salinas 19-14 and is now 5-1 on the season. The Acorns could be 6-0 but gave up a touchdown in the final three minutes against Truckee to lose 28-21.
Against North Salinas, Steven Rodriquez had a couple big rushes including a 50-yard touchdown run to get the Acorns on the board. Matt Cummins had a 30-yard reception for a touchdown.
With North Salinas driving at the end of the game, Kyle Hennings had a big interception to seal the win.
The Live Oak defense gave up seven points in the game. North Salinas, which hadn’t lost coming into the game, scored its other touchdown after a turnover.
“The defense played excellent,” said coach John Michael Porras. “They were just swarming to the ball. We pretty much dominated the whole game. But we probably should have scored a couple more points.”
