SAN FRANCISCO - To say Mission quarterback Jerrel Stancil took all the trimmings for himself before the bird was even served would be a bit of an understatement.
In what was a CIF San Francisco Section Turkey Day performance that will long be remembered, and Stancil will cherish for as long as he lives, the Bears senior signal-caller accounted for all six of his team’s touchdowns, as Mission rolled to a 36-12 victory over Lincoln in the 91st edition of the San Francisco-style Thanksgiving Day Classic.
Stancil, a 6-foot-1 senior, passed for 318 yards and four touchdowns and rushed for two more scores to lead Mission (9-3) to its seventh Turkey Day championship and ninth straight win after starting 0-3 to open the season.
The Bears offense and Stancil in particular started fast after he completed his first eight passes for 160 yards and two touchdowns.
On the game’s first play from scrimmage, Stancil found Bran’Den Rodriguez and the senior wide receiver took a short screen pass, and after making three cuts, found daylight and scampered 62 yards for a 6-0 Mission lead. Besides the touchdown reception, Rodriguez led the defense with a sack and three other tackles for loss.
Mission held Lincoln three-and-out on the next series, and then after receiving a punt went 60 yards in 11 plays, culminating in a 26-yard touchdown pass from Stancil to Niamey Harris.
Lincoln closed to 12-6 in the second quarter and 18-12 with 9:13 left in the third, but Stancil found Harris on a 25-yard TD pass to make it 24-12 entering the final period, and then his two short fourth-quarter TD runs sealed the deal and closed out the scoring.
“We definitely played with some confidence and felt we could move the ball. We just had to stay together,” said Stancil, who hopes to continue playing at Lewis and Clark next fall.
The Bears were Turkey Day champions in 2011 but prior to that you had to go back to 1954 for a Mission title, and 1936 for one before that. Now, they have two titles in the five-year tenure of head coach and Mission counselor Joe Albano.
“We try to create a safe place and a stable environment for the kids. Our coaches show up every day and we’re always there for the kids, and making sure they make grades," said Albano, explaining the recent success at Mission. "Plus, we have a core group of kids that really care."
Lincoln (7-5) was led by Jacquez Williams-Chish. The junior running back rushed for 167 yards and one touchdown on 29 carries, but 126 of the yards came in the second half when the game was pretty much decided.
“We’ll be back again and I’ll be back,” said veteran Lincoln head coach Phil Ferrigno, squashing rumors he might retire. The affable Ferrigno has led Lincoln to five of its nine Turkey Day championships, including 2012 and four straight from 2005-2008.
For the first time since old historic Kezar Stadium was torn down and a new one constructed in the mid-1980s, the game was not at Kezar due to the construction of a new track. Instead the game was played in front of a packed house at Lowell.
