Judd Makes a Winning Debut

Tustin reserve quarterback Brian Judd went from a junior varsity scrimmage last week to the varsity spotlight Friday against Foothill.

Judd, a 5-foot-8, 180-pound junior, delivered the big plays in the final quarter, including a wild, 49-yard touchdown scramble to help ninth-ranked Tustin escape with a 6-0 victory over Foothill in a nonleague game at Tustin High in front of 3,500.

On the scoring play, Judd avoided the rush, slipping out of the grasp of one defender and skipping out of the pocket to his right. Then he turned up field, broke one tackle near the Foothill 35 and ran to the end zone, breaking two more tackles before scoring with 10 minutes 6 seconds remaining.

Tustin’s defense, led by linebacker Matt McCoy, who had 1 1/2 sacks, sealed the victory when Denny Casupanan intercepted a Derek Fitch pass at the Tustin 43 with 44 seconds remaining.

“Our defense kept us in it,” Tustin Coach Myron Miller said. “Judd makes two big plays and gave us a chance to win.”

Judd kept his strategy simple on his scoring run.

“I was just thinking, ‘Stay up,’ ” Judd said. “ ‘Keep running and don’t fall.’ ”

Judd filled in for David Miller, the Tillers’ starter last season, who suffered torn cartilage in his knee during last week’s scrimmage.

“It was a tough situation for Brian having never played in a varsity game,” Myron Miller said.

Judd’s touchdown run capped a 92-yard drive, which also included his key 36-yard completion to Chris Barrett to convert a third and nine from the Tustin 8.

That completion was sweet for Judd because he missed Barrett late in the second quarter, when the receiver broke open in the end zone but Judd misfired badly and threw an incompletion.

And Judd, who rushed for a team-high 62 yards seven carries, made up for that in one drive.

“You go from a sack to a touchdown in one play, that was the difference in the game,” Foothill Coach Doug Case said. “We had our opportunity to punch it in and we didn’t get it done.”

Foothill’s best chance came late in the third quarter, when it drove to the Tustin three. But after three running plays netted only two yards, Fitch’s fourth-down pass intended for Josh Oskins fell incomplete with 4:53 remaining.

Foothill stayed in the game with its defense, which recovered two fumbles, including one on the Foothill one on the Tillers’ first drive.