Bollard Plays Safety, but Never Plays It Safe

The puffed, bloody lip of Joe Bollard told the story after Irvine shut down Tustin’s powerhouse offense in a Southern Section semifinal.

Bollard can take it, as well as dish it out.

The fat lip was a small price to pay for where Bollard stands today, on the precipice of winning the Division VI championship that eluded him and his Vaquero teammates last season.

“It’s a great feeling to be undefeated, but you have a lot to lose,” Bollard said of Irvine’s 13-0 journey that concludes Friday at Orange Coast College. “We just have to focus on the task at hand and play like it’s our last game. Well, it is our last game.”

And if it goes the way the previous 13 have gone, Newport Harbor won’t score many points. Irvine’s defense has given up only 90 points, a 6.9 average. Bollard has been an important part of Irvine’s return trip to the finals, where it meets its Sea View League rival and the defending champion in a rematch of last season’s 19-18 finale.

Terry Henigan, Irvine’s coach, said Bollard “is a hitting fool.”

Jeff Brinkley, Newport Harbor’s coach, called Bollard “the complete package.”

Bollard, a 6-foot, 165-pound senior free safety, began last season at cornerback but because of the glut at that position, was moved to defensive end just to keep him on the field.

“It takes a little bit of physicality to play that position, and he doesn’t have a problem being physical,” said J.C. Clarke, Irvine’s defensive coordinator. “He’ll whack you. He was doing it from defensive end, and now he gets a running start.

“This is my 26th year coaching. I spent 14 in Long Beach at Wilson and Millikan. And he’s quite a bit better than the next best free safety I’ve ever coached.”

Bollard was in on 26 of Tustin’s 52 running plays last week in Irvine’s 23-6 semifinal victory, and he typifies the Vaqueros’ defense, small and quick, locked and loaded.

“Bollard plays football like a 270-pounder, but at [high] speed,” said Woodbridge Coach Rick Gibson, whose team won the section title in 1998. “He is one reason Irvine’s defense is as special as it is. You get what you think is a breakaway, and it’s a three-yard gain, and he’s on the tackle.”

Bollard and linebacker Andy Howe have a team-high 51 lead tackles, but other things make Bollard stand out. He has caused two fumbles and recovered six, returning one for a touchdown. He has three interceptions, two for touchdowns. He has blocked two punts and blocked two extra points.

“He’s there at the point of attack all the time,” said Aliso Niguel Coach Joe Wood whose team won a section title in 1996.

The only football player in the family, Bollard credits his success with buying into the Irvine program, “hard work in the off-season and great coaching.” His role will be critical as Irvine tries to win its first title since 1993. Newport Harbor, which was beaten by Irvine in the Sea View League opener, 19-14, has one of Orange County’s best running backs, Chris Manderino. And Bollard is the last line of defense should Manderino bust through the defensive front as he is prone to do. Bollard’s touchdown-saving tackle of Manderino, at the end of a 26-yard run in the last two minutes, saved Irvine’s unbeaten season.

“I’m going to have my work cut out for me,” said Bollard, who has gotten some active recruiting interest from Villanova. “The whole defense does. I have a lot of respect for [Manderino]. It’s going to be a great battle.”

Bollard’s football smarts and his aggressiveness have helped him stand out on the field, even if he doesn’t stand out in a crowd.

“To look at him as a free safety, you think, ‘Typical high school safety,’ ” Gibson said. “But you’re as wrong as you can be. . . .

“He’s going to be very difficult to replace.”

And very difficult to avoid.