By Pete Borello

Prep Football Digest

or the first time since 1996, the Mountain View High football team opened its season with a win, defeating Willow Glen 34-0 last Friday at PAL Stadium.

The Spartans overwhelmed host Willow Glen behind a ground attack that produced a pair of 100-yard rushers, special teams that blocked two punts and a dominating defense.

Trevor Hooper rushed 11 times for 115 yards and a touchdown, while fellow running back Jordan Nelson ran six times for 102 yards and a score.

“The offensive line did well overall, and when they weren’t doing well our backs used their speed and ability to create more yards,” Mountain View coach Dan Navarro said. “(Nelson) and Trevor both did a good job.”

Nelson, who missed all of last season with a knee injury, also scored on passes of 8 and 22 yards from quarterback Sean Manson. Manson completed eight of 10 attempts, throwing mostly to his backs because the team’s starting receivers and tight end missed the game with injuries.

The Spartans led 27-0 after the first quarter, with two of the touchdowns coming after blocked punts. Lewis Hall got a piece of both punts, getting help from Matt Dunham on the first one, which he returned to Willow Glen’s 14-yard line. Hall returned the second block for a 29-yard touchdown.

Mountain View, which scored on its first five possessions of the contest, added another touchdown in the second quarter on Hooper’s 35-yard dash.

The Spartans ran the ball for most of the second half and pulled their starters early in the fourth quarter. Still, Willow Glen failed to score against a stingy Mountain View defense.

“The defense played pretty well,” Navarro. “They didn’t allow too many yards and were very successful stopping the run.”

The Spartans also stifled Willow Glen’s passing attack, with Matt Turnbull and Jonathan Lam both intercepting passes.

St. Francis falls

St. Francis coach Mike Mitchell had a simple explanation for his team’s 20-7 non-league loss to host Oak Grove last Friday.

“We couldn’t stop them from running,” he said, “and we couldn’t move the ball.”

That about sums it up, as the Lancers gave up a whopping 250 yards on the ground and mustered only 150 yards of offense.

Oak Grove (2-0), the top-ranked team in the Central Coast Section, led 14-0 at halftime. St. Francis (1-1) sliced the lead in half in the third quarter on halfback William Taufoou’s 2-yard touchdown run, then Oak Grove sealed the game in the fourth with another score.

“At this point, they’re a better team and more athletic,” Mitchell said of Oak Grove. “Hopefully, in time, we’ll catch up with them.”

Taufoou led the Lancers with 63 yards on 13 rushes and receiver Joey Fernandez caught four passes for 44 yards.