Football: Martinez overcomes first-game jitters in Centennial victory

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He admitted he was a little nervous playing in his first game at the helm of the defending Inland Division champions, but in the end, quarterback Taylor Martinez proved he’s worthy of leading one of the state’s premier teams.

Martinez, who played in his first game with Centennial since transferring from Cajon in the off-season, completed 12 of 20 passes for 206 yards and three TDs, the last of which came on a 75-yard bomb in the fourth quarter, to push Corona Centennial to a 26-16 victory over host Temecula Chaparral on Friday night.

The Nebraska-bound quarterback was shaky in the first quarter, completing just one of his first five passes, but came alive in the second half when he connected on five consecutive passes. His 75-yard TD pass to a wide-open Zach Fazli in the fourth quarter sealed the victory.

“I felt better as the game went on,” Martinez said. “I wasn’t nervous at all after halftime.”

Chaparral sophomore quarterback Antoine Arnold completed eight of 14 passes for 74 yards and a touchdown and teammate Jonathan Diaz rushed for 121 yards and a touchdown. His 21-yard touchdown on fourth down in the fourth quarter pulled the Pumas to within three points.

However, it was not enough as Chaparral dropped its second consecutive game to the Huskies, having lost to them, 68-14, in last year’s division semifinals.

Be sure to click on the live blog to see how it all went down.

Also, I heard the Huskies had already practiced their victory dance. Check out this fascinating piece of Southland football culture:

-- Austin Knoblauch