La Jolla’s E.J. Watson Rushes for 369 Yards

La Jolla running back E.J. Watson ran through a soupy fog and San Pasqual’s defense for seven touchdowns and 369 yards to lead the Vikings to a 50-49 victory over San Pasqual in the San Diego Section 2-A football semifinals at Torrey Pines.

The Vikings’ victory sends them into the San Diego Section finals for the first time since 1980. They will play the winner of tonight’s El Camino-El Capitan game.

Watson, who had 462 all-purpose yards, ran back a kickoff 92 yards for a touchdown and rushed for scores of 39, 2, 72, 15, 75 and 48 yards. He also ran for a conversion, intercepted a pass and recovered a fumble.

Watson was given the ball on all but seven of La Jolla’s offensive plays.

“It was like a dream,” Watson said. “It kept going in and out of a dream. I owe it all to my line. I could have driven a truck through those holes.”

But even with Watson’s incredible one-man show, San Pasqual still had a chance to win, but Jamon Buggs was stopped on the one-yard line with 26 seconds left on a two-point conversion try.

“We don’t play for ties,” San Pasqual Coach Mike Dolan said. “I thought he was in (the end zone).”

San Pasqual running back Daryle Hawkins somehow caught a 20-yard pass through the dense fog and dove over to give San Pasqual a chance at victory.

San Pasqual tried an onside kick, but La Jolla recovered and ran the clock out.

The Eagles offensive production was nothing to be ashamed of. They had 458 yards rushing and 101 passing. Buggs ran for 156 yards, fullback Mike Waltes had 119 and quarterback Billy Geddes added 112 yards.

According to the 1991 San Diego Section record book, Watson set the following records (eight-man records excluded):

- Most yards rushing in a game, 369 (Scott Garcia, 366, Rancho Buena Vista, 1988).

- Most points scored in a game, 44 (Jim Baldwin, 38, Chula Vista, 1965).

Dolan said his defense was almost helpless in trying to stop Watson.

“You just try to wrap up, but we’re not the first team that hasn’t tackled him,” Dolan said. “I’ve been reading about him all year.”

Watson’s kickoff return was his first touchdown and it gave an indication of what kind of night it was going to be.

“I felt explosive,” Watson said. “I felt it tonight.”

But while Watson was running wild, San Pasqual was scoring on methodical, time consuming drives. The Eagles scored on their first four possessions and took a 28-13 lead with 5:02 left in the first half.

But Watson scored on a two-yard run with 2:38 remaining until half and a 72-yard run with 12 seconds left in the half to tie the score at 28.

The fog thickened near the end of the first half and by the second half time was being kept on the field.

La Jolla went up 43-35 on a Watson 75-yard run at the end of third quarter. But San Pasqual tied it on 24-yard touchdown pass from Geddes to Dustin Acker and Buggs’ conversion run.

Watson gave La Jolla a 50-43 lead on a 48-yard scamper with 1:37 left in the game.