Eagles 38 - Valencia 0
MISSION VIEJO, CA., November 29, 1996 – The Eagles went into the second round game without its number one player, Billy Newman, but that mattered little as the defense and other players on offense took up the slack. Newman, who was nursing a sore hamstring, was able to play, but the risk of losing him for the entire playoffs held him out. The Eagle offense picked up in the second quarter as Carson Palmer threw scoring passes to Billy O’Connor and Brett Crowder. The defense held the Tigers in check all night, limiting them to less than 200 yards total offense. Chris Long returned a blocked field goal attempt 73 yards in the third quarter for a 24-0 lead.
| Santa Margarita | 3 | 14 | 7 | 14 | 38 |
| Valencia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
SM – FG Sparks 37
SM – O'Connor 34 pass from Palmer (Sparks kick)
SM – Crowder 3 pass from Palmer (Sparks kick)
SM – Long 73 return of blocked field goal (Sparks kick)
SM – Zinn 1 run (Sparks kick)
SM – Moore 23 pass from Thompson (Sparks kick)
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
Rushing: Val - Gomez 9-26, Munoz 8-20; SM - Minna 15-60, Palmer 6-28
Passing: Val - Young 11-20-1-87; SM - Palmer 14-21-0-181
Receiving: Val - Randolph 3-40, Lang 3-33; SM - O'Connor 3-87, Minardi 5-77
By Adrian Peters
Sports Information Director
Eagles shut out Valencia
MISSION VIEJO – Playing without leading rusher Billy Newman, Santa Margarita got a strong performance from quarterback Carson Palmer to beat Valencia, 38-0, Friday in the quarterfinals of the CIF Southern Section Division V playoffs.
Palmer completed 14 of 21 passes - including 12 in a row at one point--for 181 yards and two touchdowns on the night. But it wasn't a Palmer pass that got the offense of the Eagles (11-1) going.
Faced with a third-and-10 at Valencia's 40, Palmer handed off to receiver Billy O'Connor on a reverse. Valencia defensive back Alex Martinez stepped up to stop O'Connor. But O'Connor stopped, and threw to Martinez's man, John Minardi for a 28-yard gain.
Three plays later, Palmer threw to O'Connor in the end zone for a 34-yard touchdown. Nick Sparks' kick gave Santa Margarita a 10-0 lead.
"We ran that play two weeks ago, and we weren't sure if we could pop it or not,” said Santa Margarita coach Jim Hartigan. “That seemed to turn the tides for us. It got the team excited to do stuff on offense."
Newman dressed for the game, but did not play for the Eagles. He slightly pulled his hamstring at practice Monday, and could have played, but was held out for precautionary purposes.
"We decided to keep him for the long haul," Hartigan said. "He could have played if we needed him, but we chose not to.”
Valencia (8-4) had trouble getting started on offense. Their deepest penetration into Santa Margarita territory was the Eagles' 18-yard line. And on fourth down of that drive, they attempted a 34-yard field goal. But it was blocked by Greg Orlando and returned 73 yards by Chris Long for a touchdown.
By Bill Norris
Saturday, November 30, 1996
The Orange County Register - Sports 16
