Option Pass Gives Burbank 19-19 Tie : Halfback Cardenaz’s Play With 4:46 Left Deprives Glendale of All-Star Victory

There were a lot of unhappy sisters after Saturday night’s football game between the Burbank-area and Glendale-area all-star teams at Burroughs High.

After all, who wants to kiss a brother who has just sweated his way to a 19-19 tie? Burbank scored the tying touchdown with 4:46 left on a six-yard halfback option pass from Tarin Cardenaz to Tom Kilby on fourth down. Sam Cooper of Harvard missed the point-after try that could have produced a victory.

“We didn’t even practice that,” Burbank Coach Randy Stage of the game-tying play. “Cardenaz and (quarterback) Anthony Valento just executed the play.”

The halfback option was not the only trick play Stage had up his sleeve.

Burbank opened the game with an unexpectedly short, lofted kickoff, and Mike Ant recovered the ensuing Glendale fumble on the Burbank 40.

On Burbank’s first play from scrimmage, quarterback Marco Arcipreste spotted Burroughs teammate Steve Hubbell streaking toward the left hash mark on a curl and hit him for a 40-yard touchdown.

Glendale struck back with the bull rushes of fullback Rafik Thorossian--who had 58 yards on the ground in the first half and was named the game’s offensive most valuable player--and quarterback Sid Oxford’s passing.

Thorossian capped a 64-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown plunge that tied the score, 7-7.

The game then turned into a punting duel before Glendale’s Danny Hernandez hauled in a punt on his own 17 late in the second period and juked and weaved his way 77 yards before being tugged down from behind at the six.

Oxford ducked into the end zone from the a yard out two plays later for the touchdown, giving Glendale a 13-7 lead with 4:25 left in the first half.

Defensive MVP Dan Shaw of Burbank closed out the first-half scoring when he intercepted a pass by Steve Solano and sped 57 yards to a touchdown with two seconds left.

A pass on a two-point conversion attempt fell incomplete and the teams ended the first half deadlocked, 13-13.

Solano had a measure of revenge, though, as he hit tight end Greg Thompson with an eight-yard touchdown pass with 8:19 remaining in the third quarter to put Glendale ahead, 19-13.

It looked like Glendale’s lead might hold up before Burbank pulled off its last-gasp touchdown pass.

“They worked,” Stage said of the trick plays. “I expected our players to execute and that’s what we tried to do. I was proud of them. I’m impressed with the quality of players.”

The game was relatively well-played even though most of the players had not been on a football field for nearly six months. Both teams contributed to a rash of fumbles and both turned in strong defensive efforts in the second half.

Glendale’s defensive front recorded several key sacks in the late going and the strong defensive play was somewhat surprising considering linebacker and secondary blitzes were outlawed and the teams were restricted to one defensive alignment, the standard 5-2 set.