When Poway High entered the Division 2 football playoffs this season, coach Brandon Harris made it a point not to look back.
“You start from scratch, except now they’re no longer puppies — they’ve grown into dogs,” said Harris after the Titans set a school record for most points scored in a game in a 63-27 victory over University City in the semifinals to move into the title game Saturday night at Southwestern College.
“We dominated all three phases of the game, but you really have to credit the defensive coaches. Defensive coordinator Ryan Hernandez, defensive line coaches Bryce Tregoning and Brett Williams and secondary coach Gordy Nicholson had a great game plan.
“What we didn’t want to do was get into a shooting match with University City, because that’s what they wanted. We wanted to make sure we snuffed out any life by dominating up front, and we did that.
“The key play, though, was the kickoff return.”
Poway’s lead had been trimmed to 28-14 when the Centurions kicked off to Colin McCann. Gobbling up the ball in the shadow of the end zone, McCann took off and 99 yards later the Titans were back in charge.
“What these guys learned playing in the Avocado League is you have to be physical,” said Harris, who had coached in the City Conference before taking over the Poway program this year.
“What people don’t realize is we were really competitive in every one of our league games and we learned how to be physical. We were that way on both sides of the ball (against University City) and we did some good things on special teams, too, so it was a complete win.”
And now that game is in the rear view mirror as the No. 4 seeded Titans, who improved to a misleading 5-7 record, move into the championship against Mater Dei Catholic.
The No. 2 seeded Crusaders have rebounded from an 0-3 start against Open Division runner-up Cathedral Catholic, and Division 1 finalists Granite Hills and San Marcos, to reel off nine straight victories, the latest a 17-14 win over perennial power Helix.
Leading the way will be running back Luke Jorgensen who led the Titans against University City by gaining 158 yards on 16 carries — an average of almost a first down a rush — while scoring on runs of 1, 3, 17 and 57 yards.
For good measure, he blocked a punt on defense, allowing Hunter Thompson to scoop up the ball and return it 23 yards for a touchdown.
The Titans’ defense will be tested by Mater Dei, which is averaging 33 points a game.
“There really isn’t a team we’ve played that I can compare them to,” said Harris, noting that the Crusaders have a good-sized line. “If you’re in the championship, there’s a reason why.”
Mater Dei’s senior quarterback Kartell Purvis has completed 66 percent of his es — 151-of-230 for 2,583 yards, 34 TDs and a mere five interceptions. Leading the way receiving are Isaiah Cook (44-936-10), Matt Carr (34-636-7) and sure-handed Larell Parker (42-611-6).
Yes, the Crusaders can also run the ball with Gael Aguilar (627 yards) and Jordan Dumaraan (555) leading the way.
After the brutal schedule to start the season, Mater Dei was able to get healthy and the playoff veteran Crusaders have rolled.
Not that Poway hasn’t put up some impressive numbers behind quarterback Ty Hurst (144-266-18) and Jorgensen, who sured 1,000 yards rushing last week and stands at 1,023 with five 100-plus yards games and 16 touchdowns.
McCann leads the receivers with 36 for 607 yards and 10 TDs, just ahead of Gabe Mench, who has 25 receptions for 407 yards.
Safety Oliver Vera (66 tackles) and linebackers Marko Kirovski (63) and Paul Wiedeman (58) are the anchors on defense. In all, the Titans have 18 quarterback sacks and 12 interceptions this season.
“Like I say, we’ll put the ball down and see what happens,” Harris said.
