Early and often
Saugus showcases talent all around, as QB Eldridge impresses in first start
Several big plays led to an explosive performance by the Saugus High football team in a 35-7 season-opening win Friday over Santa Barbara at College of the Canyons.
All five touchdowns for the Centurions went for at least 16 yards, including three first-half scoring passes by junior Nathan Eldridge in his first varsity start.
Eldridge was 13 of 21 for 187 yards, spreading the ball around to six different receivers.
“He did everything we thought he was capable of doing,” said Saugus head coach Jason Bornn, whose team allowed its fewest points in a season
opener since a 17-7 win over Pasadena in 2009.
“He’s a student of the game. He’s a dynamic player and he took advantage of the opportunities he was given. (Santa Barbara) did a really good job of stacking the line against us, so he took advantage of the matchups we had and that helped open up other areas.”
After Tahjeem Johnson-Rahmaan ran for a 40-yard touchdown on Saugus’ fifth offensive play, Coleman Vanderhorst recorded his first of two
interceptions and forced the first of four Santa Barbara turnovers to help the Centurions regain possession.
Eldridge capped another five-play drive with a 64-yard touchdown pass to Daniel Gilmartin to help Saugus build a 14-0 lead after the first quarter.
“A lot of credit goes to my offensive line. They gave me great protection and my receivers really worked for me and made my job easy,” Eldridge said.
“I felt prepared and I felt confident coming in. There were a few plays I missed and a few throws I’d like to have back, but I’m just happy that we came out and got the win.”
Gary Bojorquez scored the first of his two touchdowns on a 16-yard pass from Eldridge with 7:43 remaining in the second quarter and Jared Pane took advantage of Adam Barragan’s fumble recovery on a Santa Barbara punt return to increase the advantage to 28-0 just before halftime on a 32yard scoring reception.
“With our play calling and our execution, touchdowns can come at any time from any depth on the field,” Pane said. “It didn’t matter what the score was, we didn’t want to get complacent. We wanted to keep driving it on them as much as we could.”
Bojorquez rushed for a 28yard touchdown on the final play of the third quarter on a drive set up by a Johnson interception.
Although Santa Barbara quarterback Jeremiah Nicholson, who rushed for 118 yards on 16 carries, scored on a 12-yard run with 5:17 left, the Centurions only allowed 243 yards of total offense and had a plus-three turnover margin.
“We depend on our defense to make a lot of plays and force the turnovers we need,” said Bojorquez, who rushed for 47 yards and caught three passes for 38 yards. “I’m happy to know that on both sides of the ball we can execute every play and make some exciting things happen.”