Knox, Birmingham roll in title game

Milton Knox was running through and running away from would-be tacklers on a chilly Friday night at the Coliseum in which the Lake Balboa Birmingham running back and his teammates made a convincing case that the Patriots have one of the best City Section football teams in decades.

Knox rushed for 179 yards in 20 carries and scored three touchdowns for top-seeded Birmingham, which routed second-seeded Carson, 41-6, in the Championship Division game.

Not since Wilmington Banning put together a streak of six consecutive City championships from 1976 to ’81 has a program risen to the level of the Patriots (13-1), who outscored their four playoff opponents, 193-19, in winning their fourth City title in the last six seasons.

With victories over Southern Section powers Long Beach Poly and Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, plus a 13-game winning streak, Birmingham is hoping to convince the 10 section commissioners from the California Interscholastic Federation, the state’s governing body for high school sports, that it deserves to be selected on Sunday for next week’s state Division I bowl game.

Leading the way was the 5-foot-8 Knox, who won three City titles in four seasons, scored 103 touchdowns and rushed for nearly 6,700 yards in turning in perhaps the most productive four-year varsity career in City Section history.

“He is an incredible talent,” Birmingham Coach Ed Croson said. “When there’s no hole, he makes plays.”

Knox scored touchdowns on runs of three, nine and 89 yards during a 28-point second quarter in which Birmingham gained 243 yards while Carson had minus-one.

The game didn’t get any better for the Colts (11-3) in the third quarter. Birmingham’s Matthew Robertson returned the opening kickoff 75 yards for a touchdown and De’Von Flournoy caught a 42-yard touchdown pass from Exavier Johnson for a 41-0 lead.

Carson’s major accomplishment was holding Birmingham scoreless in the first quarter. But Birmingham’s defense, led by the Jackson twins, Malik and Marquis, a pair of dominating senior defensive ends, made life miserable for Carson ballcarriers.

Twice Carson runners were stopped on fourth down deep in Birmingham territory on tackles by Marquis Jackson. Birmingham’s starting defensive unit ended the season having given up only two touchdowns in its final 10 games. As for Knox, he has committed to UCLA, but the uncertainty over who is going to be the next Bruins coach has led Florida, Notre Dame and others to rejoin the recruiting game.

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eric.sondheimer@latimes.com