Brinkley finds some silver linings in loss

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Jeff Brinkley still found some silver linings Friday in Newport Harbor’s 34-7 loss to Long Beach Poly, the No. 10 team in the Southland.

‘We got some good play out of our quarterback,’ Brinkley said. ‘Andy McDonald hung in there, took some shots and still made some throws and competed. I was happy with that.’

McDonald’s performance was one of the most impressive aspects of the Sailors’ night. He was sacked at least six times, but kept bouncing back. He completed something like eight of 11 passes in the second half with one interception.

Brinkley also liked the way the Sailors got more physical over the final 24 minutes. This is their second season in the Sunset League, and the Pac-5 Division, and so they will have to bring that level of intensity to every game.

‘We have to figure out how to compete with guys like [Poly] in this division,’ Brinkley said.

Lamont Martin, a junior lineman for Poly, noticed the difference: ‘They’re tough when the want to be.’

Morgan Fennell, Poly’s junior quarterback, was less diplomatic though, perhaps upset that Poly couldn’t carry the momentum of the game’s first 14 minutes through to the end. When asked how tough the Sailors were, he answered, ‘They were soft. They weren’t tough at all.’

Harbor couldn’t afford to give up the big plays, and for the most part the Sailors didn’t. Only once did Poly reel off a long-gainer, 47 yards by Melvin Richardson in the fourth quarter.

But there were big plays, and those were the storm clouds of the night for the Sailors. Special teams play was largely a disaster.

With Poly lined up at the 15 to kick a field goal on its first possession, Harbor jumped offside, which inspired Poly to go for the first down on fourth and three. The Jackrabbits scored on that play, a swing pass that covered 10 yards for a touchdown. On the ensuing possession with Harbor punting, a bad snap created its own brand of disaster as Hayden Green tried to kick with his left foot while trying to escape an enormous rush. His kick was partially blocked, and Iuto Tepa caught it in the air at the four-yard line and carried it in for the score.

That was Poly’s first 14 points.

‘Not that hey wouldn’t have driven the ball, but you’re a lot better off to make them drive the ball,’ Brinkley said. ‘I’d at least liked to have found out. Special teams can’t just give them easy points. We can’t give them the big play.

‘We’ve got areas we need to improve, but most surprising was that special teams didn’t do a great job.’

- Martin Henderson