Five Moments to Remember and Five More for Good Measure : Be It a Catch, a Drive or a Comeback, These Football Playoff Memories Won’t Fade Away

Over the years of high school football in Orange County, there have been moments, snapshots really, that refuse to fade.

There have been winners and losers. At times, the difference between the two was a second on the clock, or a play on the field or a dramatic effort.

Here are our top five playoff memories:

THE ROBBERY

It was described as the steal of the century. It was the most improbable ending to a football game that one will ever see. And it has become one of the most talked-about plays in Southern Section playoff history.

In the 1987 Southern Conference semifinals at Santa Ana Stadium, El Toro wide receiver Adam Brass took what seemed to be a sure interception out of the hands of startled Santa Ana free safety Bobby Joyce with no time remaining to score on a 51-yard pass play. The touchdown gave the Chargers a 13-12 victory.

Brass streaked down the right sideline with teammates Sean Drinkwater and Chris McCarthy on the last play of the game. Quarterback Bret Johnson threw the winning pass on a rain-soaked field with no time remaining, adding another chapter to his well-publicized high school career.

Joyce, a 6-foot-7 free safety, appeared to have intercepted the pass, but he tipped it and Brass took the ball out of his hands. Brass turned and stepped five yards into the end zone for the score. Ken Romaniszyn kicked the extra point and El Toro had an improbable victory.

Former El Toro Coach Bob Johnson says the game “is still the conversation piece whenever I attend any of the school’s athletic functions.” Johnson’s son, Bret, who will graduate from Michigan State in two weeks, refers to his 51-yard desperation pass as “something straight out of ‘Monday Night football.’ ”

Said Bret Johnson: “We hadn’t practiced a ‘Hail Mary’ all season. My dad always thought there were better plays at the end of the game than just throwing the ball up for grabs. But I talked him into the play.

“I thought I had overthrown Adam. If Bobby hadn’t tipped the ball, nobody would have caught it. After I threw the pass, it seemed as if time stood still for several moments. There was a long pause and no one on the field knew what happened.”

Bob Johnson still believes that four elements--field conditions, time factor, the pass and the players involved--separate the game-ending play from any other in Southern Section history.

“The field conditions were the worst I’ve ever seen,” he said. “The drains had been plugged in the stands, so the water was gushing onto the field. You couldn’t throw. The ball had to weigh 100 pounds by the end of the game.

“To this day, I still have no idea how Bret threw the ball that far under those conditions. The concentration that Adam Brass showed under those conditions was unbelievable. The odds of pulling off that play would be more than a 1,000-to-1 in Las Vegas.”

Brass, now playing at Arizona State, was the stunned recipient of the pass.

“I was hoping for a tip or something,” he said. “I think he (Joyce) tried to catch it. I saw him go up and as he was coming down, I tried to grab the ball. The next thing I knew, I had the ball and was running for a touchdown.”

Looking back, Bret Johnson said, “It’s a moment I’ll always remember. If there’s one thing everyone learned that night, it’s that a game is never over until there’s no time remaining.”

Said his father: “I’ve seen a lot of finishes in college and professional football, but nothing compares with that game. It was crazy . . . next to impossible.”