Happy times for Central in a three-peat? No way. Grizzlies want the ultimate prize
Central High senior wide receiver Jeremiah Hunter paced back and forth when Buchanan had the football with 1:56 remaining Friday night.
A touchdown by the Bears would possibly send the game to overtime.
Leave it up to the Grizzlies defense to avoid any of that.
A botched snap, a sack by Jaylen Tate, an incomplete pass and a stuffed hook-and-ladder play on fourth-and-23 allowed Central to hold on for a 28-21 victory for its third straight Central Section Division I championship at Koligan Stadium.
“I just started praying and God came through and our defense came through,” Hunter said. “I’m just glad we came through.”
The Grizzlies led 21-0 in the first quarter but saw their lead shrink in large part because of another strong performance by Kendall Milton. The Georgia-bound running back had 12 carries for 176 yards and three touchdowns.
“We knew it was going to be a dogfight,” Central running back Jekob Jones said. “We had to stop Kendall, first of all. Great game by him tonight. He did a great job. We just had to play our game and play great Grizzlies football.”
Jones was a big part of that with three touchdowns of his own. And the defense had 10 sacks. Central senior defensive lineman Ricky Correia, a Cal commit, had two sacks early in the third quarter as the Bears went scoreless in the quarter.
“We’re in the moment right now,” Grizzlies coach Kyle Biggs said. “Every (title) is special. It’s another championship. It doesn’t matter how many we won in a row. We’re just happy we’re Valley champions.”
But the celebration was muted. After two straight regional losses to Folsom, Central is looking for more this year.
“Coach Biggs wanted us to stay focused,” Jones said. “He wants us to win state.. That’s the ultimate goal he said since January and that’s what we’re working towards. Next week we’re just going to keep going and work hard.”
CIF regional pairings will be announced Sunday. The Grizzlies know they won’t be facing Folsom again — only section champions advance and Folsom lost in the Sac-Joaquin semifinals.
This story was originally published November 29, 2019 at 11:25 PM.
