Pittsburg beats Grizzlies; Lancers hold off Manteca
Pirates QB Boyd shines; St. Francis rides RB Page
Justin Boyd is not a “true” quarterback, according to his Pittsburg High football coach Victor Galli and that’s not a slight on the junior signal caller.
Thrust into the position after Trey Turner was injured in a scrimmage what seems like ages ago, Boyd has delivered a lot of truth for his team, and the versatile signal-caller led his team Saturday to a 37-14 victory over the host Granite Bay Grizzlies for the California Interscholastic Federation Northern California Regional Division 1-A championship title.
The Pirates play Narbonne Saturday at Sacramento State for the CIF 1-A state title.
Boyd finished 14-for-19 passing for 262 yards and three touchdowns, one of them a 73-yarder to his older cousin, A’jae Boyd, that quashed any Grizzlies hopes of a comeback after trailing 17-0 at the half. A’jae Boyd had six catches for 155 yards and two scores. His first was a 38-yard strike that paced the Pirates to a quick 10-0 lead and put the Grizzlies back on their heels.
“We’re very compatible out there and we just flow together,” A’jae Boyd said. “We’re like two peas in a pod. It’s always been that way. An amazing connection.”
The Pirates have struggled on offense the past three weeks, averaging just 12 points a game. But Pittsburg played fast and strong and with a lot of confidence.
“When we get rolling in the passing game it’s pretty unstoppable, and when you let (Justin) get outside he gets with it,” said A’jae Boyd.
Galli also credited his defense with holding the Grizzlies to just 144 yards of offense, including 48 yards in the first half. Jacob Bandes and De’jon Benton neutralized the Grizzlies’ Cal-bound offensive tackle Will Craig and the rest of the Grizzlies offensive line.
Granite Bay’s initial first down didn’t come until midway through the second quarter. Granite Bay had only lost twice entering the regional title game. One of those defeats was a 35-14 loss to the Folsom Bulldogs in the Sierra Foothill League. Folsom will play Helix of San Diego next Friday for the state Div. I-AA title.
St. Francis wins
For a second time in three years, St. Francis will play for CIF state football title.
The Lancers claimed the NorCal Division 2-A championship Saturday night with a 28-23 victory at Manteca — and it’s no surprise that running back Darrell Page ignited the offense.
The 5-foot-10, 185-pound junior rushed for 228 yards and a pair of touchdowns as he continues to rewrite the record books at St. Francis (10-4).
Page broke the singleseason mark for rushing yards, a record that stood since 1996 when running back Charles Tharp amassed 2,007 yards.
“It’s pretty crazy,” St. Francis coach Greg Calcagno said. “Charles was a pretty good running back and Darrell is, I keep saying the word, ‘special,’ but he really is. Everybody knows that we give him the ball a lot, but he justifies why we give it to him so much.
“It’s a pretty nice honor for him, and the other thing I say a lot is his uncle Markee Lockett was a heck of a running back also in his own right, and Darrell growing up, all along he always wanted to be a Lancer running back — and he’s making the most of it, that’s for sure.”
And he’s not done. In next week’s state final at Sacramento State against SoCal champ Grace Brethren (13-2), he will have an opportunity to add to his total of 2,204 rushing yards.