With one more win, the Live Oak football team could clinch a berth in the Central Coast Section postseason one year after finishing 1-9.
The Acorns will get that chance at 7 p.m. Friday when they travel to Leigh in the final game of the Blossom Valley Athletic League’s Santa Teresa Division season.
The Acorns ( 3-3 BVAL, 6-3 overall) enter the game after breaking a three-game losing streak by defeating Branham 38-27 last Friday. This week, the Acorns face the struggling 3-6 Longhorns on the road.
Coming off a game where he rushed for more than 400 yards, Trevor Bearden will attempt to break the 2,000 yard barrier in only his junior year. In nine games Bearden has rushed for 1,892 yards on 215 carries. He has ran for at least 100 yards in seven games this year, including three over 200 yards.
With a sophomore quarterback, the Acorns will again rely heavily on Bearden and the run game.
On defense, the Acorns will need to slow down a balanced attack led by senior Gabe Davis. The Longhorn quarterback has thrown for 949 yards but is just as dynamic on the ground with 407 yards rushing. Senior Lavon Donald leads Leigh with 914 yards on 119 carries.
The Acorns sit in fourth place in the Santa Teresa standings, one game behind Silver Creek. If the Raiders lose to second-place Gunderson and the Acorns win, Live Oak will be tied for third with Silver Creek.
Sobrato
After a tough loss to league power Oak Grove last week, the Bulldogs return to the field at 6 p.m. Saturday against Piedmont Hills to close the regular season in front of their home crowd.
With a win, the Bulldogs can do no worse than third place in their first season inside the BVAL’s Mount Hamilton Division.
To do that, though, Sobrato will face a Piedmont Hill team that was upset by Pioneer in its home finale a week ago.
The passing-centric Pirates will use junior Anthony McBride to spread out the Bulldogs defense. McBride has thrown for 1,905 yards and 23 touchdowns during the year. He has completed 155 of his 267 passes.
Seniors James Munoz (62 catches for 833 yards) and AZ Dyer (41 catches for 573 yards) have been the Pirates most targeted receivers.
The Bulldogs will need a strong game from its secondary, led by Miguel Redmond and Isaiah Hardy, to control the Bulldog passing attack.
Redmond, who leads the team with 969 yards on the ground, can break 1,000 for the first time as a Bulldog.
