SANTA CLARA, CA - Milpitas had beaten its first six opponents by an average of 36 points heading into Friday night’s matchup on the road against Wilcox. The visiting Trojans wove a similar tale and routed the Chargers 28-0.
Not only did they spoil Wilcox’s homecoming game, but the Prep2Prep CCS top-ranked Trojans (7-0, 3-0 SCVAL) took the first big step to capturing the SCVAL-De Anza Division. Friday night, they stuck with their tried and true methodology, playing a perfect defensive game and pounding the rock with a punishing run game.
Cros Chavez led the way with two rushing touchdowns in the first quarter, including a 53-yard burst to score on the Trojans’ first play from scrimmage. Following a fumble recovery by Milpitas, Chavez did it again on the ensuing drive, this time a run of 44-yards for a 14-0 Milpitas lead just halfway through the first quarter.
After the game, Chavez gave credit to his “superb” offensive line, and so did Milpitas coach Kelly King.
“Cros did a nice job,” said King. “He hit the holes; the offensive line did a great job. We could have done better in some areas, but I think overall our scheme was pretty good today.”
Wilcox played much better than the score indicated, but the Chargers shot themselves in the foot with three fumbles and a failed surprise punt. On a third-down play early in the fourth quarter, they opted to punt and trick the Trojans, but they wound up tricking themselves.
“We tried to do a quick kick and get field position back,” said Wilcox head coach Dan Brown. “We covered, but everybody didn’t get the message. Everybody didn’t cover the punt. Our two wideouts were covering, but the other guys were lagging back there.”
The result? A 76-yard return for a touchdown by the Trojans’ Christian Rita that gave Milpitas a 21-0 lead, more or less sealing the game.
It wasn’t as if Wilcox had no opportunities to score; the Chargers just committed errors when they could least afford to. On the opening drive of the second quarter, down just 14-0 at that point, the Chargers took it down inside the 10-yard line, but were thwarted by a crucial fumble on first-and-goal.
Said Brown on the miscue: “That was a big momentum shift, and that series was probably the difference in the ball game.”
Wilcox also failed to convert on two fourth-down plays, and did not recover a botched snap by Milpitas inside the Trojans’ 10-yard line, all missed chances to get back into the game.
Instead, they could only watch as Milpitas dominated time of possession and wore out the Wilcox defense, which showed as the Trojans scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns to pull away.
The Chargers face Monta Vista next week at home, and Milpitas will play Los Gatos on the road.
