Impact Players of the Game
Clockwise from Top Left
Senior Trevor Olson, Senior Kyle Merrill, Senior Anthony Jefferson, and Junior Kristaan Ivory
Photo by Daniel Bárcenas

OVERVIEW - CATHEDRAL VS. OAKS GAME SUMMARY 12/5/09

After reviewing the video on IBNSports.com, I developed a different perspective of the game.  The boys did an exceptional job of moving the ball as they drove the ball down the field, especially on our first possession.  The Phantoms fought hard, but it all comes down to how many points are put on the board at the end of the game, regardless, if all points were actually earned and, whether or not, the referees contributed negatively to significant aspects of the game.  From the video, it is obvious the refs called some unwarranted penalties on the Phantoms, gave an undeserved touch down to Oaks Christian, and missed many Oak’s penalties that may have altered the momentum and possible outcome of the game.

Overall, our Phantoms played very well.  We knew we had to keep Oak’s offense off the field and contain Jones, Oak’s powerhouse running back.  Prior to the end of the first half, we did just that, and we had doubled our time on offense over Oak’s time offensively on the field.  We also knew that we had to play flawlessly, and the play calling had to be superb.

It appeared from the play action, and the IBN announcers commented, too, that our boys were getting tired toward the end of the first half, which would make sense because many of our players play both ways – on offense and defense.  Oak’s had more players and were bigger than the Phantoms.  The Oak’s players were, most likely, more rested, and they may have worn us down. 

We had some great plays, but not enough to compete and win over Oaks.  Had we not made as many mistakes, some unfortunate circumstances had not occurred that denied us yards, it might have, at least, minimized the point spread at the end of the game.  Who knows if we could have actually won the game?  What is done is done.  The Phantoms had a great season, and our boys and coaches should be very proud!  Oaks had no more talent than the Phantoms, but Oaks was a very big and tough team, by size and numbers, and bigger/stronger will usually prevail – even over big hearts…

DETAILED - CATHEDRAL VS. OAKS GAME SUMMARY 12/5/09

We received first, and we efficiently moved the ball down the length of the field.  Ivory, the running back, did a great job; Trevor got the ball off quickly, which was necessary because of Oak’s big and athletic line.  During this stretch, Trevor did throw two passes to receiver, AJ, which went out of bounds, but AJ was double covered and the corners were closing in, and according to the IBN announcers, throwing it away was a wise decision on his part.  Regardless, we ended up where we needed to be – at the goal line.  However, that is where our first mistake occurred (or was it?), when an offensive penalty was called on 3rd down and goal, which forced us to take a field goal versus a touch down.  However, the penalty was for an ineligible receiver down field.  The only receiver I saw was AJ.  If the penalty was called on AJ, it would make no sense because he is an eligible receiver.  The penalty may have been for something else, but that is what the IBN announcers and crowd were saying.  It appeared to be just one of the many bad calls by the refs.  Playing a team like Oaks Christian, we really could have used 7 points versus 3, but that was all we could get after our great drive.

Our defense did a great job, and we forced Oaks to punt after their first possession.  We did not return Oak’s high and short punt, and the ball rolled to the 19-yard line.  Our punt returner may have been instructed not to catch it due to the circumstances on the field.  Perhaps, catching it could have set us up for a turnover, which would have been worse.  However, if we would have caught it successfully, we would have had much better field position, too.

We also knew that the play calling needed to be superb.  For some reason, we didn't punt on our 2nd possession on 4^th down.  The boys were told to “go for it” at our 36 yard line.  Trevor threw an incomplete pass.  If anything, I believe it would have been much less risky if we would have ran the ball for the one yard needed for a first down.  We gave Oak's great field position and set them up for their first touch down.  It didn’t appear we should have taken a chance of giving up the ball to a team like Oaks down in that part of the field. 

Oaks achieved their first touch down with a very questionable pass reception.  I believe, from several reviews, the high pass Montana made to the receiver in the end zone was not a fair catch.  Their receiver never had possession, but the refs didn’t see it that way and called it a touch down.  If they only had replays in high school football!

Score:  OHS 7, CHS 3

On our third possession, Trevor’s pass to receiver, Portia, for 14 yards and a 1^st down was called back for holding.  Again, we were going to “go for it” on 4^th down and about 5 yards to go. I believe our strategy was to pull Oak’s offside, but instead, the Phantoms received a penalty.  Therefore, after the 5-yard penalty loss, we were forced to punt.  It was a good punt, but unfortunately took a bad bounce backward in Oak’s favor about 10 or more yards.

In the beginning of the second quarter, Oaks was going to have to settle for a field goal, but luckily, they missed.  The ball was now in our possession.  Trevor threw a higher pass to receiver, Merrill, but Merrill was unable to close his grip on the ball.  The second pass also went to Merrill, and he was hit hard, but managed to hold on, and we accomplished a first down.  It appeared the Oaks tackler, Stout, led with his helmet, but no penalty was called.  It was a very hard hit, but Merrill is one tough kid and after an injury time out, he got up and walked off the field.  If the Oak’s player did lead with his helmet, it would have been a big penalty for Oaks.  It was hard to tell, objectively, from the video review, but the refs didn’t see it and didn’t call it a penalty.

On our 3^rd play, Trevor and Ivory got their feet tangled on the exchange as the Oak’s D-line closed the gap, and Trevor ended up keeping the ball.  The announcer mentioned that it was the right thing for him to do otherwise bigger problems could have resulted from trying to hand the ball off.  The IBN announcer thought that something may have been confused on our blocking scheme.

On the next play, the pass was dropped, making it 3^rd and 12 yards to go.  Fortunately, Ivory followed it up with a nice 12 yard run for a 1^st down.  Now on the Oak’s 48-yard line, Trevor’s pass to AJ was knocked down, but it appeared the Oak’s defender also had a grip on AJ’s jersey, that is, pass interference, but no flag was thrown at Oaks.  From the tape, it was hard to tell if it was good defense or possible pass interference. 

A sack followed up that play on Trevor.  From the video review, it appeared there was no time, as Trevor tried to escape, and the sacker had a direct shot at him.  Then, a nice pass to AJ was spotted flagrantly short – it was so obvious at the game and on the video.  Definitely, a first down, but the short measurement put us at 4^th down.  It started to feel as if the refs only had flags in their pockets for the Phantoms and had their blinders on when it came to Oaks.  We went for a QB sneak and luckily, the refs did give Trevor credit for forward progress, and we were back to first down.

Now in Oak’s mid-territory, Trevor was swiftly pressured by the Oak’s right tackle.  He broke loose and scrambled to escape.  Oak’s running back/linebacker, Jones, came fast and strong.  He hit Trevor and punched the ball out from Trevor’s arm for a fumble, which was recovered by Oaks.

Oaks started on about our 48.  First Jones ran for a 7-yard gain.  Then again, the ball goes to Jones, but Bermudas makes a great tackle and Oaks lost a yard.  The next play, Montana passed, but it’s stopped by Ivory’s quick defense.  Oaks was forced to punt.  The bad snap caused a fumble by the kicker and Portia made the tackle.  We recovered the ball that set us up around mid-field in Oak’s territory.

Trevor threw a nice pass to Hasson, but Hasson was hit immediately for only a 2-yard gain.  Now at the 45, while Trevor was in mid-throw, Oak’s #77, Petersen, charged and hit Trevor hard.  He was unable to get the ball off before #77 dove at him.  He was slow to get up.  This is where it began to appear we were getting tired, and Trevor may have been rattled after the previous fumble and subsequent sack.  Then, to make matters worse, on the next play, Trevor rolled right.  Oak’s #5 and #7 broke free, and Trevor was sacked again. 

Trevor kicked a deep punt down to their 5 or 10-yard line.  Oak’s punt returner almost lost the ball, but managed to break several tackles and ended up with a big run to our 40-yard line.  This is when our defense showed possible signs of fatigue.

On Oak’s first play of this series, Montana passed, but Mouton knocked it down and almost picked off his pass.  Their next play was a hand off to Jones.  We couldn’t stop him and he ran for a 61-yard touch down, which, probably, was the beginning to the end of the game.  The crowd anxiously waited for half time, so the boys and coaches could refocus, rest and re-evaluate the game plan.  Everyone’s hope was we’d figure out how to get points on the board and stop their offense in the second half to win the game.

The score is now Oaks up 14 to 3.

The Phantoms seemed to becoming worn down, frustrated, or both.  Oak’s size and number of players kept them “fresh.” We, on the other hand, are forced to play several kids both ways – offense and defense.  The ref’s calls, or lack thereof, may have contributed to the frustration, too. 

First, Trevor completed a short pass to Ivory, but Ivory was immediately stopped by several Oak’s defenders.  At 2^nd down and 6 yards to go, he passed to Merrill for a first down, but it was negated by a defensive facemask penalty, which worked out to our benefit.  Finally, the refs found a flag for Oaks and saw one of their mistakes.  The penalty put us at the Oak’s 40-yard line and set us up for an opportunity with 28 seconds left in the half.

On 1^st and 10, Trevor rolled left to pass, but Oak’s, #71 Marsh, had a clean shot and sacked him.  The next play, Trevor grounded the ball to stop the clock.  On 3^rd down and 10, Trevor over threw Portia.  On the last attempt before the half, there was quick pressure by Oaks, Trevor ran, but he got ahead of his feet and went down.  Only a touch down would have made a difference because the time had been exhausted.  A touch down would have been unlikely considering the Oaks defenders down field, and it would have been doubtful to get a 40 yard plus run to get into the end zone.

HALF TIME was 30 minutes long because of an injury to an Oak’s player that was taken out on a gurney by paramedics.  Score was Oaks 14 to 3.  Had the touch down Oaks was given by the refs not happened the score would have been 7 to 3.  A very tough and well-played 1^st half by the Phantoms!  The mistakes made, unjustified penalties against us, and/or lack of the ref’s calling penalties against Oaks, may have changed he momentum of the game, our players’ confidence and the outcome of the game – we’ll never know.

To start the 3^rd quarter, our kick off was high and Oaks started at the 23.  Montana handed off to Jones for a 23 yard run to the 46 before our safety, Clark, tackled him.  Next, Montana made a big, long pass to open #8 for 33 yards, which set them up on our 19-yard line.  A Phantom caught the receiver’s foot or it probably would have been a touch down.  However, it was just a matter of time because on this 1^st down, Montana handed off to Jones for another 13 yards to the 6-yard line.  1^st down again, Montana threw high into the end zone, and the Oaks receiver made a great catch that our defender was unable to stop.  Great coverage by our defense, but Oaks ended up with the ball and six more points.

Score was now Oaks 21-3.  It started to rain and it was very cold for Southern Cal!

Ivory returned the kick off to the 34.  On the first play, we handed it off to Ivory, but we lost a yard.  Announcers commented again, about how Oaks much bigger players have obviously worn us down.  The 2^nd play was a low pass to Portia.  On third down, Trevor threw deep, but the intended receiver slipped and fell down.  Trevor punted short and out of bounds at Oak’s 37.

The announcers commented on how they may have to pack up to get their equipment out of the rain.  Luckily, we only had two short spells of rain in the second half through the end of the game.  However, it rained enough for the players, field, and ball to become wet and slippery.

On Oaks 2^nd possession of the 3^rd quarter, Montana handed off to Jones for a 19-yard run to our 44 before he was tackled by Clark.  On their next 1^st down, our line almost had Montana, but he escaped and threw an incomplete pass.  Next, he back tossed to Jones and Clark made the tackle again.  On 3^rd down, Montana over-passed his receiver, and on 4^th down, Oaks punted long to Merrill.

Back to work on our 14 and our second possession of the 3^rd quarter.  We completed a lateral pass to AJ, but lost 2 yards.  AJ was immediately tackled by several Oak’s defenders.  On 2^nd down, Trevor’s pass was almost intercepted.  On 3^rd down, a hand off to Ivory went nowhere.  We punted from the end zone.  The ball bounced off the ground, then bounced upward, and Trevor was able to get the kick off, but it only made it to our 35.

This was Oak’s 3^rd possession.  Montana had a nice 28 yard pass to Holiday, which got Oaks to the 7-yard line and set them up another Oak’s 1^st down.  Montana handed off to Jones who got to the 3-yard line before he was tackled by Ford.  Next, Jones was stopped short of goal, again, and Oaks’s called a time out.  On 3^rd down, the ball was handed off to Jones who jumped over our line, cleared them all, for another Oak’s touch down.

Score is Oaks 28-3 and not looking good for the Phantoms.

The kick off was received by Ivory, and he brought it to the 26.  The first play was a nice pass and catch by Merrill, which was good for 22 yards.  1^st down again and another pass to Merrill gave us 12 yards and another 1^st down.  The next play was a shovel pass to Ivory, which was intercepted by Oaks.  There was no option on that play; the Oaks linemen had broken free of the intended blocks.  Oaks had the ball on our 49 for their 4^th possession of the 3^rd quarter.

On their 1^st down, Montana was sacked.  On 2^nd down, Montana completed a screen pass for 7 yards.  Unfortunately, one of our best offensive and defensive players, AJ, developed a cramp – injury time out – and he had to sit out for a couple of plays.  Oaks was now at the 42, and Montana threw a high pass to his receiver, Holiday, who made a great catch for 19 yards – another 1^st down.  At the 17, Montana threw an incomplete pass to the left.  Oaks tried the very same play again and received the same result.  At this time, there is 1 minute 42 seconds left in the 3^rd quarter, and it’s 3^rd and 10 for Oaks.  Montana handed the ball off to Jones for 12 yards.  Ivory made the tackle at the 5-yard line.

1^st and goal, Montana’s uncompleted pass is almost picked off by Merrill.  On 2^nd down, the hand off to Jones resulted in a 3-yard gain to the 2^nd yard line.  Ford made the tackle.  On 3^rd and goal, Jones attempted to jump over our line again, but he was stopped by Ivory.  Jones was called for a personal foul after slamming Ivory in the head and to the ground after the play.  The penalty takes Oaks back to the 16-yard line and Oaks called a time out.

Oaks had to settle for a field goal, and the score is now 31-3.

We started our possession on the 26.  On our 1^st pass to Ivory, he caught it, but he was hit immediately.  The ball is dropped and refs claimed he didn’t have possession.  On 2^nd down, Trevor threw a pass to AJ, and AJ made a good catch for a gain of 2 yards.  On 3^rd down, his pass was low, and it hit the ground before reaching the receiver.  We punted.  The snap was low, but Trevor got it off, and it ended up on their 24-yard line from a generous roll.  I wondered if the wet conditions were affecting Trevor’s grip on the ball and his cleats’ grip on the field, which may have been affecting his ability to set up, throw and efficiently release the ball, thus the low passes.

Oaks threw a short pass to #4 for a couple of yards.  Then, Montana back tossed the ball to Jones, and he was tackled by Ford.  On 3^rd down, our Kyle Key sacked Montana --this was the fourth Montana sack of the game.  Oaks punt was short.  

Set up on the 44-yard line, our offense comes back out and Trevor threw an interception to #4.  There appeared to be a “mix up” on the play.  Ivory made the tackle, but there was an obvious facemask penalty by the ball carrier before Ivory’s tackle, which was seen easily from the camera angle and CHS side, but the refs didn’t catch it. 

On Oak’s 1^st down, Jones ran the ball to our 33.  A second hand off to Jones gained Oaks 2 yards, but they were still short of a 1^st down.  On 3^rd down, their quarterback sneak was successful.  Now there was 6 minutes and 31 seconds left in the 4^th quarter.  Next, a 30-yard pass to Oak’s, Holiday, resulted in Oak’s final touch down of the game.

Score is Oaks 38-3.

After the kick off, we started at the 30-yard line.  Trevor’s pass, intended for Merrill, but no one was there (??)  The 2^nd play was a missed shovel pass to Ivory.  On 3^rd down, Trevor was sacked right after the snap.  Forced to punt, the snap was low and thus was the kick – a “worm burner” so-to-speak.  It was fortunate for us that it rolled for about 55 yards to the 35-yard line!

Oaks put in their second string.  Gretsky, the backup QB for Montana, first handed off to the new running back.  On the 2^nd play, Oaks got a 1^st down after a QB sneak.  Next, Oaks ran and Ivory made the tackle, followed by an Oak’s fumble, which Barbary recovered for the Phantoms.

At the 33, we immediately called a time out because we were one man short on the field.  Back up to bat, we passed to AJ for 22 yards.  We follow it up with a 6-yard gain on a pass to Portia.  On 2^nd down, a nice, long pass and catch to AJ near the right corner of the goal line, and AJ successfully reached out and broke the plain of the goal line.  Then, we got a successful two-point conversion with a good pass to Merrill.

Score is Oaks 38-11, which was the final score, too.  Game is over and no time left.

Merrill did have a great attempt on an on-side kick, but Oaks recovered.  He is really one tough and brave soul!  He really set himself up for a potential hard hit, which took a lot of guts!

Oaks unsuccessfully went four downs.  They punted, but our kick returner’s knee inadvertently touched the ground, so there was little gain.  It didn’t matter, with less than 3 minutes left in the game and no way to make up 28 points to, at least, tie up the game.  Our only hope was to decrease the point spread and accept defeat.

On our last possession of the game, Trevor’s 1^st pass was unsuccessful.  On 2^nd down, a pass to Merrill was dropped due to an Oak’s penalty.  Now at Oak’s 48-yard line, the next pass was dropped.  The third pass to Merrill was good, but he was unable to get out of bounds to stop the clock.  On the very last play of the game, there was pressure by Oaks D-line; Trevor threw a “Hail Mary,” and it was picked off by Oaks – no time left, game over.

Trevor had 24 completions on 49 attempts for 257 yards.  Nick Montana had 11 completions on 23 attempts for 195 yards.

We did lose, but we played one of the best teams in the country and gave them a run for the money in the first half, anyway.  The Phantoms had one GREAT season finishing 11-2 and made it to the CIF Semi-finals for the first time in 5 years.  WAY TO GO PHANTOMS AND COACHES – YOU SHOULD BE VERY PROUD AND YOUR FANS ARE VERY, VERY, VERY PROUD OF YOU ALL, TOO!

Summary by: Jessica Olson

By Jacob H. Pollon, Special to the Daily News

The Lions made sure of it with another dominating victory, beating Cathedral of Los Angeles 38-11 Saturday night.

Nick Montana completed 11 of 23 passes for 198 yards, throwing touchdowns of 24, 6 and 29 yards to sophomore Jordan Payton, junior Blair Holliday and junior Dillon van der Wal.

Gatorade state Player of the Year and UCLA commit Malcolm Jones rushed for 166 yards on 22 carries, including touchdowns of 61 and 2 yards to add to the offensive attack.

Jones' 61-yarder came late in the second quarter to give the visiting Lions (13-0) a 14-3 lead and finally distance themselves from Cathedral.

"This is my last year of high school, winning the championship is the only thing I want right now," he said.

Jones increased his season rushing total to 2,153, leaving him 44 yards away from breaking Marc Tyler's record set in 2005.

Cathedral became the first team to score the first points of the game against Oaks Christian this season taking a 3-0 lead on Jonathan Leyva's 34-yard field goal.

The Phantoms (11-2) used a 16-play drive and did a good job of keeping Oaks Christian's high-potent offense off the field until an ill-fated decision late in the first quarter.

Coach Kevin Pearson had a Bill Belichick moment and decided to go for it on fourth-and-1 from his own 36-yard line.

Oaks Christian stopped the Phantoms and scored two plays later on Montana's 24-yard pass to Payton.

All momentum shifted. Oaks Christian took the lead and Cathedral didn't score again until late in the fourth quarter against the second string.

"That was one of the best teams we faced all season," Jones said. "They had a a lot of Div. I guys and were well coached. "They caught us off guard early.

They did a good job using the clock. Once we figured out their speed we were good."

Trevor Olson completed 23 of 49 passes for 248 yards to lead Cathedral.

Oaks Christian won its 34th consecutive game will attempt to win its seventh consecutive section championship Friday when it meets the Cavaliers (13-0).