PREP EXTRA: SOUTHERN SECTION PLAYOFFS : DIVISION I : Defense Comes Through as Los Alamitos Advances

They were all pointing fingers at Los Alamitos defense back Damon Houston. He was the guy.

A somewhat unsure Houston shrugged and took the credit.

It was Houston, teammates said, who stripped the ball from Long Beach Poly’s Arild Faramio to preserve a 7-0 victory in front of 10,000 at Orange Coast College. Brandon Hart recovered the fumble on Los Alamitos’ 18-yard line with two minutes left to extend the Griffins’ unbeaten streak to a Southern Section record 47 games.

“I guess it was me,” Houston said. “I don’t really know, but I hit him.”

So with all that stop-us-if-you-can offense, the fleet of receivers and the quarterback who doesn’t crack under pressure, it was a simple defensive play that put the Griffins in the Southern Section Division I semifinals. And the culprit couldn’t even remember the moment.

“All I saw was (Faramio’s) face,” Houston said. “It just lit up, like, “What’s up?’ ”

Houston had an answer to that, as did the Griffins.

They, not Long Beach Poly, were going to play Mater Dei in the semifinals Saturday in a matchup of Orange County’s top-ranked teams.

The top-ranked Griffins (12-0) were also left alone in the Southern Section record book by extending their unbeaten streak. The Jackrabbits were not going to be the ones to boast and brag about snapping that string.

And, for once, it all came down to defense.

“We knew they were big and mean,” Hart said. “We knew we just had to be tougher.”

They were toughest when they were backpedaling in the fourth quarter.

The Griffins were inches from clinching the game in the fourth quarter. Quarterback Kevin Feterik reached for the goal line on a second and goal play, only to have the ball knocked out of his hands. Daniel Ho-Ching recovered the ball and the Jackrabbits were alive.

They moved from their 20 to the Griffin 27 with 2 minutes 9 seconds left. Quarterback Robert Toler hit Faramio on the sideline. He was fighting for extra yards, then was scrambling for the ball.

“It was Damon,” defensive back Ife Ohalefe said. “I saw it. He laid one on that guy.”

Said defensive tackle Dax Houston: “We were nervous that whole drive. Then Brandon got the ball and we exploded.”

It was the biggest play for a defense that has not had to win a game this season. The Griffin offense came in averaging 36.3 points, but turned desperately to its defense for support. They committed four turnovers, three inside the five-yard line.

The Griffin offense ran-and-shot itself in the foot. Feterik was 19 of 29 for 285 yards, including a seven-yard touchdown pass to Stan Guyness in the first quarter.

But Feterik made mistakes. Besides fumbling on the one, he had two passes intercepted. Running back Ryan Gragnano fumbled on the goal line. Ben Hughes also missed a 35-yard field goal attempt.

The Griffins were ripe to be taken. But the defense wouldn’t allow it.

The Jackrabbits’ offensive line averaged 254 pounds, but their backs found little room to run. Faramio was their most consistent offensive threat, gaining 67 yards. Toler completed nine of 18 passes, but for only 108 yards.

“They were huge, so we had to be quicker,” said Los Alamitos’ Dax Houston, who is 5 feet 9 and 173 pounds.

Houston was quicker, as he beat players 100 pounds heavier. He had one sack and three tackles for a loss.

The Jackrabbits (10-2) gained 212 yards and the closest they came to scoring was when Jerry Reynoso’s 44-yard field goal attempt bounced off the crossbar.

“Our defense is young and undersized,” Coach John Barnes said. “All it did was shut that team out.”