Balboa gets big support in its state title pursuit
Balboa football coach Fred Velasquez was constantly being distracted Saturday while attending CCSF’s 20-17 win over College of San Mateo.
He wasn’t complaining. “People were saying ‘great job coach,’ and ‘way to go,’ and ‘go get ’em next week,’ ” Velasquez said. “These were people I didn’t even know.”
Velasquez forgot he was wearing Balboa gear or the fact there is a lot of pride not only in the school, but the surrounding areas.
All the well-wishers were congratulating him and his Buccaneers for their 21-0 victory on Thanksgiving over Lincoln to capture the school’s first San Francisco Section title in 37 years. The Bucs host Taft-Woodland Hills 1 p.m. Saturday for the CIF 7-A Bowl Championship.
Balboa is trying to become the fourth straight Academic Athletic Association team to win a state title after Galileo (2017) and Lincoln (2018 and 2019). There were no state championships held last year due to the pandemic.
The Bucs are also going after the school’s first state football crown.
“There’s been a lot of buzz, a lot of pride,” said Velasquez, a 1989 Balboa graduate. “Not just at the school but around our community and Excelsior and Ingleside districts. It’s been fantastic.”
Balboa (8-4) overcame an 0-3 start behind a rugged defense and big offensive plays from All-AAA standouts Davondre Black, Ben Norori, Anthony Artola, Maurice Ali and Orlindale Carraway to win eight of its last nine, four coming by shutout.
Physical line play was also key, led by junior Santiago Alvarez — selected the AAA’s top offensive lineman and Justin Seumanu, the league’s top defensive lineman.
The team’s last defeat was 7-0 to Lincoln, which it avenged in the SFS title game.
“We never lost faith,” Norori said. “We knew we had the squad to do it. Now we just have to finish it off.”
They’ll have to do it against a team that has also caught fire after a rough patch. Taft (7-7) lost five straight to drop to 3-7, but is currently on a four-game win streak, pulling out tight wins over NarbonneHarbor City (20-14) and Panorama (Panorama City) to win a Los Angeles Section crown.
They are led by quarterback Wellington Bristow and running back Amir Dutt.
“(Bristow) is a big kid who can really throw it and (Dutt) is super shifty,” Velasquez said. “They never snap it out of the shotgun. We’ll have our hands full, but the boys will be ready to represent our school, community and city.”