Eagles 38 - San Juan Hills 14
MISSION VIEJO, CA., August 20, 2021 – After five years of waiting, Santa Margarita Catholic returned to its traditional home field, Saddleback College (SC) Stadium, to open the Fall 2021 football season. The facility, which underwent a major renovation, took much longer than expected to complete. During that time, the Eagles were forced to play elsewhere for several seasons, primarily at Trabuco Hills High School in Mission Viejo. The stadium has been the de facto home for SMCHS from the launch of the program in 1988. But it was worth the wait as it is truly a world-class sports venue for athletes and spectators.
A crowd estimated at 5,500 strong turned out to see the Eagles host neighboring San Juan Hills (San Juan Capistrano). Coach Rouzier’s men came out fiery and tenacious, on offense and defense, as they put 35 points on the scoreboard, including 28 in the second quarter to take a commanding lead by halftime over the Stallions. This proved to be more than enough in the 38-14 victory.
Offensively, the Eagles were led by junior quarterback Jaxon Potter who tallied 294-yards -- the second-most ever for an Eagle quarterback in his debut. Perhaps the biggest surprise came from the running back position. Junior Jake Foye proved to be a workhorse as he gained 181 yards on 21 attempts (8.6 average). In all, SMCHS gained 497-yards of total offense. The Eagles defense was also in the spotlight as they were able to keep the Stallion’s three highly-touted receivers in check, allowing them a total of just seven receptions for 74 yards. San Juan’s quarterback faced pressure all night from the SMCHS rush and threw three interceptions.
| Santa Margarita | 7 | 28 | 0 | 3 | 38 |
| San Juan Hills | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
SM – Lopez 22 pass from Potter (Teasley kick)
SJH – Pegan 17 pass from Joseph (Hazen kick)
SM – Grant 7 run (Teasley kick)
SM – Foye 13 run (Teasley kick)
SM – Jones 16 pass from Potter (Teasley kick)
SM – Jones 28 pass from Potter (Teasley kick)
SJH – Pegan 1 pass from Joseph (Hazen kick)
SM – Teasley 36 FG
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
Rushing: SJH - Gaines 19-54; SM - Foye 21-181
Passing: SM - Potter 19-38-0-294
Receiving: SJH - Pegan 5-50, Bockler 3-22; SM - Lopez 9-96, Gallegos 6-106
Summary by Chuck Nan
Statistics by Shane Mielke
Santa Margarita football sprints past San Juan Hills to open Saddleback College stadium
Junior quarterback Jaxon Potter, in his first start with the Eagles, tosses three first-half TDs to spark the victory
MISSION VIEJO – Santa Margarita and San Juan Hills opened Saddleback College’s glistening, new football stadium, along with their fall seasons on Friday.
The Eagles made it a memorable start.
Their new starting quarterback, Jaxon Potter, tossed three first-half touchdowns and safety Blake Wilson had two interceptions as No. 5 Santa Margarita sprinted past visiting No. 7 San Juan Hills 38-14 in front of an estimated crowd of 5,500.
Wide receiver Niko Lopez, a junior like Potter and Wilson, added nine receptions for 95 yards for the Eagles in their first clash with their South County neighbor.
“We’re feeling good,” Potter said of the victory, also his first at the varsity level. “We’re going to enjoy it today. Enjoy it a little more (Saturday) but we got get back to work and get ready for Norco next week (on Thursday).”
Santa Margarita sophomore Bain Eiseman blocked a punt with 13 seconds left in the first half to help the Eagles open a 35-7 lead at intermission.
The Eagles recovered the block at San Juan Hills’ 28-yard line, and on the next play, Potter tossed his second touchdown to speedy wide receiver Jalen Jones with seven seconds left.
Potter, a transfer from JSerra, also connected with Jones for a 16-yard scoring strike with 46 seconds left in the half to cap a swift 70-yard scoring drive. Wide receiver Nick Gallegos, a transfer from Orange Lutheran, sparked the drive by turning a short out route into a 42-yard gain on the first play.
Potter completed 20 of 38 passes for 285 yards. Gallegos had five catches for 83 yards while Jones finished with four for 88 yards.
Santa Margarita’s defense made plenty of plays, forcing four turnovers and slowing the Stallions’ passing attack. The Eagles held wideouts Elijah Barclay and Cole Monach to one reception apiece.
“A lot of film and scheming,” Wilson said. “A huge thanks to our coaches for that. Without them, we won’t be able to do it. We’re doing a whole new defense so it’s been a little tough at the beginning but we’ve pushed through.”
Star defensive tackle Hero Kanu recovered a fumble at Stallions’ 39-yard line with 3:23 left in the half. Running back Jake Foye then took the spotlight, breaking a 13-yard touchdown run as the Eagles began their second-quarter surge.
Foye, also a hard-running junior, finished with 162 yards on 21 carries.
Santa Margarita outscored San Juan Hills 28-0 in the second period. Gage Grant scored on a 7-yard run early in the second to break a 7-7 tie.
San Juan Hills junior quarterback Colton Joseph, making his first start, helped the Stallions tie the score at 7 in the first with a 17-yard TD to UCLA-committed wideout Braden Pegan.
Potter found his groove early by connecting with Lopez. He tossed a 22-yard touchdown to Lopez to cap the Eagles’ first possession.
Pegan also caught a 1-yard touchdown in the second half from Joseph.
Santa Margarita’s defense, led by Grant and Wilson, a dual-threat who also rushed for 77 yards.
“I threw out a big test Week 1 and maybe some of this is my fault but you got to find out where you’re at,” San Juan Hills coach Robert Frith said. “I felt our guys were ready for the game but they were just better than us tonight.”
Freshman linebacker Weston Port was a positive for the San Juan Hills with two sacks. The Stallions also double-teamed Kano to hold their own against the highly-recruited senior.
Next week, Santa Margarita plays at Norco while San Juan Hills plays host to Cypress.
By Dan Albano
Friday, August 20, 2021
The Orange County Register
