Jags' perfect season ends in CIF title game

This was supposed to be Valley Center’s year.
After a disappointing end to the 2009 season, the undefeated Jaguars rolled through the 2010 football season unscathed. The Jags went a perfect 12–0 in the regular season, with big wins over Los Alamitos and La Quinta early in the year and a dominating run through the final five games before the playoffs.
But the Jaguars ran into a perfect storm in the championship game—injuries, illness and an outstanding opponent—that sank the season’s lofty aspirations.
On Monday morning at Qualcomm Stadium, the Jaguars suffered a 40–14 loss to Madison in the CIF Division IV final, in a rematch of the 2008 final in which Valley Center pulled out a 31–20 victory.
In 2008, Madison running back Robbie Rouse was the focal point of the offense. But in 2010, the Warhawks attacked through the air, and quarterback Chase Knox bombed the Jags with 373 yards and three touchdowns in the passing game.
To make matters even more difficult, the Jaguars had seven starters dealing with the flu, including senior running back Travis Bernard, who still managed 129 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries, as well as three receptions for 25 yards and a full game playing in the defensive secondary. His season rushing total stands at 2,798 yards, the third-best rushing season in CIF San Diego Section history.
Add to the setbacks a key injury to senior David Last, the Jaguars’ do-everything kicker, defensive back and wide receiver, who sprained his left ankle in Thursday’s game against Santa Fe Christian, and the Jags were definitely not at full strength.
Not that you’d hear those excuses from anyone on the Valley Center sideline.
“Yeah, we’re beat up, but everybody’s beat up this time of year,” head coach Rob Gilster said. “We just had nothing in the tank today. We’ve played great football all year, and when we get down like that, we usually respond. But [Madison] made plays, especially converting those third-and-longs.”
“It was a physical game, and we just didn’t show up,” senior defensive end Kenny Thomas said. “We had no excuse. They’re just a great team.”
Even Bernard wouldn’t let his exhaustion serve as a crutch for the loss.
“It was tough [playing through the sickness], but that’s not an excuse,” he said. “We didn’t play to the best of our ability, and they’re a great team. I wish we had another shot at them.”
The Jaguar sideline tried to stay positive throughout the game, but as Madison made big play after big play, the outpouring emotions began to betray the bitter disappointment the players felt. After the game, players spoke in hushed tones, using words and phrases like “tough,” “heartbreaking,” and “it’s over.” Senior wide receiver/linebacker Shonta Chaloux, who finished with six catches for 54 yards, couldn’t hold back the tears after the Jaguars’ final touchdown with 1:28 left in the game.
“I’m so proud of each and every one of these guys,” said an emotional Beau Reilly, the senior quarterback who threw for 158 yards, a touchdown and an interception in the game. “This is the worst way to end the season with a family like this. Madison came out firing, especially with those third- and fourth-down conversions. Our offense just couldn’t get in rhythm. We fought hard, but they owned us.”
Madison put the pedal to the metal right out of the gate, going 72 yards in five plays to score on a 48-yard touchdown on an option pitch to cap the game’s first drive.
Valley Center gained ground on its first possession, moving 73 yards on 14 plays. But the Jaguars came up short on a fourth-down conversion attempt from the nine-yard line, eschewing a 26-yard field goal attempt by backup kicker Michael McInerny and going with a quarterback draw that picked up only two yards.
Still, with the Warhawks pinned deep in their own territory, the Jaguar defense proved throughout the season that teams in that situation rarely made Valley Center pay. And the Jags did come up with a big play, as cornerback Nico Carrasco picked off a deep pass on third and 16 to give the ball back to the Jaguar offense at the Valley Center 30.
The Jags picked up a quick first down on an 11-yard run by Bernard, but the offense sputtered in the next three plays, and the punting unit came onto the field.
After a shanked punt that netted only eight yards, the Warhawks looked to be in business for another quick score. And Madison nearly did score, despite penalties that led to a third-and-26 and a first-and-19, both of which the Warhawks converted. Only after more penalties and a sack by Jacob Beason forced a third-and-goal from the 27 did Madison try a 44-yard field goal, which sailed wide left.
Riding the wave of momentum from the big stop, the Jaguar offense marched 80 yards down the field in ten plays to tie the score at seven. Reilly converted two first downs through the air; one to John Watkins for 18 yards and another to Taylor Oshinski for 13 yards, then ran for a first down and got flipped upside down, landing square on his back and remaining on the turf. After receiving aid from the training staff, Reilly walked off the field on his own and returned to the game after one play on the sideline.
Bernard scored the Valley Center touchdown on a one-yard plunge with 31 seconds remaining before halftime, giving the Jags a big momentum boost heading into the locker room.
But the Warhawks turned the game on a dime just before the first half ended, scoring a 71-yard touchdown on a screen pass with just six seconds remaining in the second quarter. The Jags looked to have the play contained, but Madison wide receiver Jeremy Hutchison broke to the sideline, cut back to the middle of the field, then weaved his way past the last defenders to break free for the score.
The sudden turn of fortune had the Jaguars reeling in the locker room, but down by only a touchdown, the message from the coaches was simple: pick up the intensity.
But even the Jags, with their reputation as a dominant team in the second half, couldn’t stem the tide of the Madison onslaught. Valley Center went three-and-out on the opening drive of the second half, setting up the Warhawks in excellent field position after another short punt.
Madison drove 47 yards in seven plays to score another touchdown on an 18-yard pass, giving the Warhawks a 21–7 lead with just over nine minutes left in the third quarter.
The Jaguars were still very much in the game, however, but needed to respond to the building momentum on the Madison sideline.
Instead, the Warhawk defense came up with a series of big plays, sacking Reilly on first down, forcing Reilly to fumble—recovered by Bernard—on second down, then intercepting Reilly’s third down pass at the Valley Center 40.
Madison picked up 39 yards on first down with a pass down the right sideline, then the Warhawks utilized their “wildcat” offense to snap the ball directly to the running back, who plunged in for a one-yard score. Stehly Reden blocked the extra point for the Jags, but the Warhawks held a 20-point lead with 6:42 left in the third quarter.
Valley Center went into a hurry-up offense on the ensuing drive, but after two quick first downs, the Warhawks got another sack and forced a punt.
The Jags pinned Madison back at its own 22, but gave up a first down on another wildcat run on the drive’s first play. But the Jaguars held on the next three plays and got the ball back on a punt that Bernard returned to his own 35.
Bernard left the game for parts of the ensuing drive, reportedly sustaining a head injury, and was spelled by Garrett Fiehler at running back. The Jags picked up five first downs on the drive, but still came up empty on a fourth-down run from the two yard line that lost a yard.
The Jaguars still had a chance for a comeback with Madison pinned deep in its own territory early in the fourth quarter. But the Warhawks embarked on a drive that crushed Valley Center’s hopes, covering 97 yards in 11 plays and running off most of the clock in the final period. When Madison finally did score, on a 47-pass to a wide open receiver running down the seam, only 2:48 remained in the game. The Jags blocked another extra point, this time by Brandon Van Lancker, giving Madison a 33–7 lead.
The Jaguars finally got another score on the board on their next possession, as they drove 61 yards in five plays to score on a 12-yard hook pass to Oshinski, who fought his way into the endzone for the score.
The Jags trailed by 19 with 1:28 left in the game, so they went for the onside kick to keep hope alive.
Those scant hopes were obliterated as the Jaguars watched Madison return the kick down the sideline for the game’s final touchdown.
“They kept making big plays,” Last said of the Warhawks, who converted third downs of eight, 11, 16, 20, 22 and 27 yards in the game. “Those third-and-longs killed us. We just couldn’t get any momentum.”
To get to the final, the Jaguars survived an early deficit to come back and beat Santa Fe Christian, 30–10 on Thursday night in Valley Center.
The Eagles scored ten quick points near the end of the first half using a little deception. After kicking a 31-yard field goal, Santa Fe Christian surprised the Jags with an onside kick, then drove 45 yards in six plays to score a touchdown with just over two minutes left before halftime.
But the Jags answered with a seven-play, 64-yard touchdown drive, capped by a one-yard quarterback sneak by Reilly with 33 seconds left in the second quarter.
The Jaguars came out of the locker room pumped up and proceeded to dominate the second half. The teams traded punts on the first two possessions, then Valley Center scored on its next four possessions to put the game away.
Bernard scored three touchdowns in the half, on runs of 14, four and two, to carry the load for the Jags in the comeback.
But the big play that swung momentum Valley Center’s way came on a 20-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown by Reden midway through the third quarter.
“I told Kenny [Thomas] if we keep running that blitz and keep hitting [the quarterback], the ball is going to come loose,” Reden said of the play. “When I turned the corner, the ball bounced right to me, and I just didn’t want to let anybody catch me.”
Bernard, who was battling a 101-degree fever along with the Eagle defense, racked up 248 yards and three touchdowns on 28 carries. Reilly completed six passes for 102 yards with an interception, and added ten carries for 40 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Jean-Marc Brierre hauled in three catches for 55 yards, while Watkins had one catch for 24 yards, Oshinski had one catch for 13 yards and Chaloux had one reception for ten yards.