Burbank football battered, but still standing in playoffs
One afternoon in September, a few weeks into the current football season, coach Richard Broussard leaned back in his chair in his small Burbank High office, gazed up at the ceiling and contemplated his team’s fate.
“What a way to start a first season, right?,” he said with a forced grin.
A difficult campaign that began with a rash of injuries didn’t get any better as the season progressed for the first-year coach. Every game this season, the Bulldogs have missed players because of injuries. Their Washington State-bound running back, their starting quarterback, their running back and leading rusher, one of their top defensive players, all have either been knocked out for the year or have spent time on the sidelines.
At times, the training room at Burbank High has resembled a MASH unit, with team doctor Richard Wong doing his best to keep the Bulldogs patched up.
“In one game this year, I think the Bell Gardens game, we had four or five guys get injured in that game alone,” senior offensive guard/defensive lineman Max Montoya said. “It was just crazy. You kind of wondered how many more guys were going to go down?”
Through all the injury adversity, however, the Bulldogs have been able to walk a thin line and keep their season alive and successful. Burbank beat rival Burroughs to qualify for the CIF Southern Section Southeast Division playoffs, then upset Del Rio League champion El Rancho, 38-34, last Friday in a CIF Southern Section Southeast Division first-round game on the road.
The Bulldogs (8-3), who placed third in the Pacific League, will try to continue that success Friday when they take on host Salesian at 7:30 p.m. in a quarterfinal game.
The Mustangs (5-6), who earned an at-large berth into the playoffs after finishing fourth in the Angelus League, are fresh off an upset of their own, upending No. 2 seed and Suburban League champion La Mirada, 24-18.
“I woke up [on Monday] and said to myself ‘we’re still playing football,’” Broussard said. “I’m just beaming.
“The fact that we’re still playing is a testament to all the guys and what they have put in this season. I am just enamored with this group, not only because of all their hard work, but what they’ve had to deal with this season. This is just a resilient, gritty group and they come to play every game, no matter who we have or who we don’t have.”
The biggest loss on the season for the Bulldogs was senior All-CIF running back James Williams, who has committed to WSU. He suffered a season-ending knee injury on the first play of the second game of the season. But the team has also endured stints without senior All-Area quarterback Ryan Meredith, who has spent time on the bench with ankle and shoulder injuries.
Unfortunately for Burbank, it might have to go into battle with Salesian without the services of Meredith, who reinjured his throwing shoulder in last week’s victory against El Rancho.
“Right now, Ryan is day to day,” Broussard said. “It might have to be a game-time decision.”
Meredith has passed for 1,221 yards with 10 touchdowns and six interceptions in eight games. Meredith’s prime targets have been seniors Dorian Houshoulder (33 catches for 502 yards and eight touchdowns) and Nick Cantong (33 catches for 460 yards and seven touchdowns).
Sophomore Guy Gibbs has filled in adequately for Meredith.
Senior running back Tony Toledo, who has also been hobbled this season, is the team’s leading rusher, carrying 131 times for 650 yards and eight touchdowns. Junior Brandon Alba has 65 touches for 573 yards and seven touchdowns.
“We know Burbank is going to be very tough,” Salesian Coach Angelo Jackson said. “They play hard football and they play hard every down. So we are expecting a battle. They run the ball, that’s their tradition. They had that great running back but he is out for the season and they have a good quarterback.
“But the key for us is that we’ve got to stop their running game; that’s No. 1.”
Like Burbank, Salesian has suffered its share of injuries to key starters this season. With the injuries, the Mustangs went 2-3 in the Angeles League. The teams have a common opponent in Muir, the Pacific League champion. Whereas Salesian defeated Muir, 27-3, in its season opener Aug. 29, the Bulldogs fell to Muir in a league contest Oct. 10, 31-0.
“We never want to make excuses during our season and we won’t,” Jackson said. “But we’ve just had a lot of injuries.
“But have told our kids by winning last week, we have a second chance, and let’s make something happen with that second chance.”
The Mustangs just got impact running back Keisean Nixon, a senior, back after breaking his collarbone Sept. 19 in a game against Loyola. Senior quarterback Damion Wight is also back and healthy after being sidelined. Wright has led the offense, throwing for 925 yards with 11 touchdowns and six interceptions. He has also run for 336 yards with three touchdowns.
Salesian’s leading rusher is senior Kyahva Tezino, who has 89 carries for 804 yards and three touchdowns. Sophomore Deommodore Lenoir has five touchdowns and 502 yards.
“They are good. I don’t understand how they lost six games,” Broussard said of Salesian, which suffered nonleague losses against Claremont, Loyola and Bakersfield, along with league setbacks to Cathedral, Harvard-Westlake and St. Francis. “They are a talented, fast, good-looking group. It’s kind of like playing against Muir.
“We have some things to fix and work on and we’ll spend this week doing that.”
If the Bulldogs are victorious Friday, they would earn a second-straight trip to the division semifinals and host either Cathedral (10-1; Angeles League No. 2) or Downey (8-3; San Gabriel Valley League champion) on Nov. 28.
“With all that we’ve gone through this season, no one is really giving us much of a chance and we know we’re underdogs,” Burbank defensive end/fullback Kyle Alvarez said. “But we like our chances and we’re going to come out ready and we will play.”
Burbank is among three area teams still alive in the postseason, all playing in the Southeast Division. In other quarterfinal games Friday, Crescenta Valley will play at Paramount and St. Francis will travel to La Serna.
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Follow Jeff Tully on Twitter: @jefftsports.