HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL : 8-MAN CHAMPIONSHIP : Parker Keeps Title; Reviews Are Mixed

A taste of what high school football is supposed to be:

Favored La Jolla Country Day trails three-time defending section eight-man champion Francis Parker, 23-22, late in the fourth quarter. LJCD has a first and 10 at the Parker 11-yard line with a minute remaining. But sophomore running back Rashaan Salaam fumbles at the five, Parker recovers and wins its fourth title.

Now, a taste of what high school football shouldn’t be:

LJCD has two players ejected in the final seconds and gets flagged for three consecutive personal fouls for 45 yards--without a second ticking off the clock.

Parker amasses 10 penalties for 115 yards--in the second half. And several of those were for unsportsmanlike conduct and personal fouls.

The game mercifully ends, and a few players grudgingly shake hands.

What had started out as an exciting rematch between LJCD (8-2) and Parker (8-3) for the section championship mostly turned into flagrant fouls and name-calling.

By the fourth quarter the only spirit remaining was mean. The only heart was animosity.

LJCD defeated Parker, 48-30, when the teams met during the regular season. Salaam had played only five games because he had to wait until he turned 15. It was worth the wait.

Salaam came into the game rushing 81 times for 1,038 yards and 21 touchdowns.

He quickly showed his stats were deserved. The first time he touched the ball, Salaam was gone. A 42-yard run. LJCD, which opened the game with a safety when Parker snapped the ball into the end zone, led, 9-0, after Eric Abrams kick.

But Parker rallied and scored 23 consecutive points to lead, 23-9, at halftime.

Parker’s offense was sluggish most of the game, but took advantage of a couple big plays to take the lead.

Quarterback James Adelizzi threw to Sean Davis for a 74-yard touchdown play. Adelizzi then hit Davis for the two-point conversion to make the score 9-8.

Parker then scored 15 points in the final two minutes. The first came on a 70-yard touchdown pass from Adelizzi to Glen Knight and a pass for the two-point conversion.

Then with a minute remaining, a bad snap led to a minus 13-yard punt, and Parker took over on the LJCD three. Brian Khoury scored on the next play, and Eric Cobb’s kick gave Parker all the points it would need.

Salaam got LJCD back into the game with a 45-yard touchdown run with 4:46 remaining. But Abrams, who set a section record for extra points this season with 50, missed wide left. At least that’s the way the referee saw it.

“It looked good to me,” said LJCD Coach Rick Woods. “I don’t know how they could call it no good.