ORANGE LEAGUE FOOTBALL : Brennan Gets Message; Western Defeats Savanna
Western Coach Jim Howell wanted to send a message to Brandon Brennan, and the junior quarterback heard it loud and clear Thursday night.
Howell, who was dissatisfied with Brennan’s performance the last two weeks, started sophomore Pedro Calderon at quarterback. But by late in the second quarter, Brennan was in the game and making the Pioneer offense click.
Brennan completed 10 of 15 passes for 192 yards and threw three touchdown passes to lead the Pioneers to a 21-7 victory over Savanna in an Orange League game at Western.
He had misfired on 30 of his previous 49 attempts and had six passes intercepted in losses to Katella and Valencia. That all changed Thursday.
“We weren’t happy with the turnovers and (the short-lived demotion) got Brennan’s attention,” Howell said. “He played extremely well tonight. I’m very happy with the way he played.”
Who wouldn’t be?
All Brennan did was ignite Western (5-2, 1-1 in league) from the moment he stepped on the field.
On his first series, Brennan marched the Pioneers on a seven-play, 70-yard drive that ended with a 20-yard touchdown pass to split end Joshua Christensen with 1 minute 18 seconds left before the half.
The pass was really intended for wide back Jason Covarrubias, but Brennan overthrew him and Christensen caught the pass unmolested in the end zone.
Covarrubias, however, wasn’t left empty-handed. The junior, who also punts, kicks and plays linebacker, scored twice on pass receptions of 46 and 20 yards and converted all three extra-points he attempted. He finished with five receptions for a game-high 126 yards.
Savanna (3-4, 0-2) generated little offense, gaining only 163 total yards. The Rebels managed to avert the shutout when split end Rani Kahouch made a great leaping catch of a Paul Waldrop pass in the end zone with three seconds to play in the second quarter. Savanna never threatened again.
Waldrop passed for 118 yards, but completed only 11 of 35 attempts and was intercepted by linebacker Justin Starkey with 6:25 remaining to play. The interception set up the last Western touchdown.