Newbury Park Rallies to Win Championship : High school football: Smith leads Panthers back from halftime deficit to defeat Hawthorne, 22-14.

They were bigger, stronger, faster--heck, they were simply more talented.

But despite all the advantages the Hawthorne High Cougars had on Newbury Park in the Southern Section Division III championship game Saturday night, Newbury Park had one weapon the Cougars did not: Keith Smith.

The senior All-American quarterback had 157 yards in 15 carries in the Panthers’ 22-14 victory, rallying Newbury Park from a 14-0 halftime deficit to its first football section title.

The victory, in front of 7,000 at Moorpark College, gave the Panthers a 14-0 record.

“I’ve dreamed about this since the ninth grade,” said Smith, who raced 98 yards for the clinching score with 8 minutes 35 seconds to play. “Me and (senior receiver Jason Tucker) always used to say, ‘Man, wouldn’t it be great if we were champs our senior year.’ ”

Said Hawthorne Coach Dan Robbins: “We had 11 guys going after him on the run all night but we couldn’t stop him. I’ve seen Pat Haden and Curtis Conway, and that kid is the best quarterback I’ve ever seen.”

The Panthers held a 15-14 lead when they took over at their two-yard line after Leodes Van Buren stopped Kalisi Moala on fourth and one. On second down, Smith dropped back and raced out of the pocket to his right.

He cut back across the length of the field and picked up blockers. He cut back one more time after breaking a tackle and raced to the end zone. Rich Adams’ point-after kick gave Newbury Park a 22-14 lead.

Smith--the state’s leading passer this season and all-time--completed 16 of 34 for 259 yards for two touchdowns with one interception. Unofficially, Smith finished the season with 4,247 passing yards, breaking former Hart quarterback Ryan Connors’ section record of 4,137 set in 1991.

Smith’s 40 touchdown passes give him 87 for his career, tying him for second on the all-time list in that category.

Tucker, who had a standout performance in last week’s 43-26 semifinal victory over Bell Gardens, caught nine passes for 165 yards and one touchdown.

“Me and Keith dreamed about winning a championship,” Tucker said. “This is always what we wanted.”

The championship is Ventura County’s ninth and the first since Thousand Oaks won in 1987.

Newbury Park stormed out of the locker room after intermission and scored 15 third-quarter points to overcome Hawthorne’s 14-0 lead.

The Panthers’ first score came with 7:16 to play in the third quarter when Smith combined with Van Buren, the state’s all-time leading receiver, on a 20-yard touchdown pass play. Smith passed to Tucker for a two-point conversion to cut the lead to 14-8.

Newbury Park took the lead with 3:44 to play in the third quarter when Smith connected with Tucker on a 26-yard touchdown pass. The score capped a four-play, 51-yard drive after linebacker Justin Simo’s recovery of Kenji Tatum’s fumble. Adams’ point-after kick gave Newbury Park a one-point advantage.

The Panthers found themselves in an uncomfortable and unfamiliar position at halftime: behind.

Newbury Park trailed at the break for the first time this season. The Panthers’ defense was solid for most of the game’s 24 minutes, but it was burned on two long scoring plays.

Smith struggled throughout the game’s first 24 minutes against Hawthorne’s secondary. He completed only 12 of 26 passes for 184 yards with one interception. The Cougars also sacked Smith five times.

Newbury Park had a chance to score in the first quarter, but failed when Adams fumbled at the Cougars’ one. The miscue ended an 11-play, 76-yard drive.

After a scoreless first quarter, the Cougars took a 7-0 lead less than two minutes into the second period.

On third and one from the Hawthorne 43, Tatum burst through the line on a quarterback sneak and outran Newbury Park’s defense for a 57-yard score. Alex Estrada’s kick put the Panthers behind, 7-0, only the fourth time this season Newbury Park faced a deficit.

Newbury Park drove to Hawthorne’s 13-yard line on the ensuing possession, but came away empty again when Omarr Morgan intercepted a pass by Smith at the 12, Hawthorne’s 24th interception this season.

Newbury Park also failed to score after driving to the Hawthorne 20 with 3:20 left in the second quarter. Smith threw a pass to Tucker that fell incomplete on fourth and 10.

Hawthorne’s second big play of the half came with only 17 seconds remaining when Tatum, whose first seven passes fell incomplete, connected with Kelvin Hunter for a 40-yard touchdown pass. Hunter, one of the Cougars’ fastest players, ran a streak past a Panther defender for an easy score. Estrada’s second point-after kick closed the half’s scoring.

Hawthorne, the defending division champion, finished 12-2. Moala rushed for 83 yards in 14 carries. The Panthers held Tatum to six of 17 for 103 yards with two interceptions.