Flintridge Prep football can’t keep up with Brentwood

LOS ANGELES — Winning its first game of the season and facing little resistance in doing so had the Flintridge Prep football team feeling good.

However, the victory over a Blair High that just recently snapped a 30-game losing streak, did little to aid the Rebels as they faced their first test of the season Friday evening against visiting Brentwood in a nonleague meeting at Occidental College’s Jack Kemp Stadium.

In fact, Rebels Coach Antonio Harrison said the season-opening victory hampered the team’s mindset and effort during practice as it prepared for a formidable Eagles squad.

All in all, Flintridge Prep was outplayed on both sides of the ball as its offense couldn’t find the same rhythm it had the week prior, while its defense struggled to stop a potent and balanced Brentwood attack en route to a 42-14 eye-opening loss for Harrison and his squad.

“I thought we played better in the second half than in the first, we fought, but this is a good lesson,” said Harrison, whose Rebels dropped to 1-1 on the season after opening with a 45-0 trouncing of Blair. “We had a false sense of confidence, part of that is my fault. We didn’t work as hard as we needed to this week, but we’re going to turn it up a notch.”

Flintridge Prep surrendered 516 yards of total offense to an Eagles offense led by quarterback Eli Stern’s 205 passing yards, including a pair of touchdowns to wide receiver Ountae Campbell, which served as the game’s first two scores.

Stern and the Eagles (2-0) took the game’s opening drive 80 yards on 11 plays to strike first on a 31-yard touchdown pass to the 6-foot-4 Campbell, who was able to out jump Flintridge Prep’s defensive backs.

“We were concerned, they looked strong [against Blair],” Brentwood Coach Jake Ford said. “They have a nice running game and they press on ‘D’ so we knew we could go up top over them, which we did early and I think that loosened them up.”

Flintridge Prep was forced to punt on four of its five possessions in the first half, accumulating 106 yards of total offense to Brentwood’s 328. The Rebels marched into Eagles territory on consecutive possessions in the second quarter, highlighted by a Derek Okuno 45-yard run to the Brentwood 32 during the latter. However, a holding penalty took the ball back near midfield and the Rebels settled for a 21-point deficit going into the break.

It wasn’t until the 3:24 mark of the third quarter when the Rebels got on the scoreboard. Okuno, who finished with 119 yards on 10 carries, dashed into the end zone from 10 yards out. The six-play drive started on Brentwood’s 44 and marked the first and only time the Rebels started on the Eagles’ side of the field.

Brentwood didn’t waste much time responding, scoring a touchdown on the ensuing drive and again on its next two drives to the tune of 21 unanswered points that left little question in the outcome.

Rebels quarterback Andrew Tsangeos’ 53-yard sprint in the fourth quarter capped a spirited 61-yard drive and the game’s scoring.

Tsangeos passed for 67 yards on nine completions. The running game proved effective for a second consecutive week, with Tsangeos’ 50 yards complementing Okuno. Robbie Leslie caught five of Tsangeos’ nine completions and finished with 31 receiving yards.

“Our composure on the sidelines is what worries me,” Harrison said. “We went from such a high to such a low and we really need to stay even keel. If we lose, I at least want us to lose with grace, dignity and respect, and I have to set a better example.”