League fireworks are about to start in South County, as the new divisional setup has three local powerhouse programs battling head-to-head in the new Blossom Valley Athletic League, Mt. Hamilton South Division. The six-team loop includes Live Oak, Christopher, Sobrato, Lincoln, Silver Creek and Willow Glen.
Live Oak headed into the league-wide bye week by demolishing Branham 54-15 on Sept. 25. Star tailback Gage Jones rushed for 135 yards and four touchdowns and junior quarterback Justin Svoboda completed 7-of-14 passes for 134 yards and a touchdown, while also picking up 83 yards on five rushes.
Josiah Delgado sparkled with his runs too, racking up 125 yards and two scores on just seven carries.
“We came out a little slow,” Jones said. “Then we picked it up. We locked in. I like our offensive line. We’ve got a couple sophomores but they’re all really good.”
The key to all the offense is that offensive line. Major contributors included Jacob Orta, Santino DeSantiago, Royce Mendonca, Mikey Cantu, Jacob Meininger. Several others provided depth.
“I thought we did really great,” Svoboda said. “The offensive line did great. They are ‘dawgs’ out there. Pushing the other line forward. We’re scoring a lot of points. The OL set everything up and Gage had a great game.”
After allowing a Bruins score on the game’s opening possession, the Live Oak defense shut the door on Branham. The next six drives resulted in a measly 33 yards for five punts and a turnover.
On defense, the line was physical and gobbled up Branham runners all night. Stalwarts included Clayton Kelso, Mendonca and Manny Mercardo. Oliver Blenn and Chace Rogers were everywhere, as were Bergstrom, Aiden Guzman and Aaron Palma. Praise God Ofubuike and Jaasiel Gutierrez were also big contributors.
The halftime score was 41-7 and the only fireworks remaining were a literal display of explosives at halftime as part of Homecoming.
After falling behind 7-0, Live Oak dominated. Delgado bolted over left guard on the Acorns’ second play from scrimmage for a 40-yard touchdown. Delgado, with 10 tackles, and Guzman, also with 10 tackles, combined to force a Bruins’ fumble and recovery.
Svoboda passed to Nathan Bergstrom for six yards and to Ofubuike for 16 yards in a five-play scoring drive to gain a 14-7 lead. Jones had three carries for 15 yards on that possession, capped by an eight-yard run to paydirt.
The defense forced a three-and-out and Live Oak quickly scored again, as Delgado blasted through the Bruins’ defense for a 42-yard scoring run. After a Branham punt, Svoboda found Ofubuike open deep on a post pattern for a 65-yard score and a 27-7 lead.
Jones scored twice more in the second quarter. As the third period began, and the smoke cleared from the fireworks, the powerful 5-7 Jones provided more explosive highlights without gunpowder, as he scored again. With the backups receiving plenty of playing time, Ashton Nguyen collected a fourth-quarter touchdown on a 5-yard run.
Live Oak is now 3-2, with a 41-28 loss to North Salinas and a 34-31 double overtime defeat to Santa Teresa providing tough tests and learning opportunities. The other results were a 35-21 win over Mountain View and a 55-0 crushing of Pioneer.
“We’ve had a decent non-league schedule,” coach Mike Gemo said. “We played a strong Santa Teresa team last week. We have to continue to improve. League is tough. Willow Glen is undefeated. On offense for us, it’s hard to get everyone the ball. The offensive line is really blocking well.”
The opener was on the road. North Salinas, a strong program with three consecutive playoff appearances, trailed the Acorns 22-21 but broke away in the second half. Svoboda completed 12-of-23 passes for 103 yards, with Ofubuike hauling in seven for 48 yards. Jones ran for 145 yards and two scores.
The Acorns rebounded to drill Pioneer. Jones rushed for 116 and three tallies. Delgado ran one in and Svoboda passed for a touchdown to Bergstrom. Svoboda rushed for a score, as did backup tailback Ajay Avalos. Delgado, Blenn and Mendonca led the defense with six tackles apiece.
Live Oak took a big step forward the following week with the home victory against the Spartans. MVHS led 21-0 but the second half was a new day, with the Acorns scoring 35 and yielding nothing. Svoboda completed 10-of-14 for 116 yards and a score.
Jones rushed 31 times for 148 yards and a touchdown. Delgado picked off a pass and Bergstrom recorded a fumble recovery.
Against Santa Teresa, Live Oak fell behind 21-7 by halftime but rallied back in the third quarter to even the tally at 21. In the first overtime, both teams scored touchdowns. In the second, the Acorns settled for a field goal and the Saints won the game with a touchdown.
Svoboda completed 12-of-20 for 107 yards and a touchdown to Ofubuike. Jones rushed 30 times for 103 yards and a score and Svoboda carried 22 times for 113 yards and two touchdowns. Delgado led the defense with 15 tackles and Guzman and Gutierrez both had 10.
The Branham blowout closed the non-league portion of the schedule. Willow Glen is 5-0 but only beat the same Branham team in three overtimes. Lincoln is 4-1 but comparative scores are interesting. The Lions only beat Pioneer 15-14, topped Branham by just 31-21 and lost to Santa Teresa 41-21. Silver Creek, at 2-3, lost to Pioneer 14-0.
Perhaps the toughest competition for the league title will come from the other South County teams. Christopher is 3-2, with the losses by a total of just five points, and their last two wins were 35-0 at Leigh and 44-0 over Piedmont Hills.
City rival Sobrato has a results sheet very similar to Live Oak’s. The Bulldogs beat Branham 50-13 and Pioneer 34-0, while losing 42-27 to North Salinas.
Next up is BVAL, Mt. Hamilton South action. Live Oak opens at Lincoln on Oct. 8 at 7:15pm.
“Our goal is to finish undefeated in league,” Jones said. “Our coaches are helping us a lot and we want to keep working and getting better each week.”
