PREP FOOTBALL: Miller uses second-half rally to pull away from Lakeside
FONTANA ---- The Dakota Wilson-to-Sean Cabrera Show officially opened for business for Lakeside High's football team Thursday night.
Unfortunately for the Lancers, so did the Michael Watkins Show for Fontana A.B. Miller.
The junior quarterback overcame a tremendous offensive start by Lakeside to engineer five second-half touchdown drives as Miller rallied from a 14-point deficit to defeat the visiting Lancers 39-20 in both teams' season opener.
On a night that showed what one might expect from an earlier-than-usual season opener ---- sloppiness, penalties and injuries ---- at least the two offenses didn't disappoint.
Lakeside and Miller combined for 472 passing yards and 53 second-half points --- believe it or not, this game was 6-0 in favor of Lakeside at halftime. But there were also 20 penalties, six turnovers and six instances in the second half in which play had to stop due to injury.
For his part, Lakeside's Wilson completed 20-of-32 passes for 267 yards and three touchdowns ---- all to senior receiver Cabrera, who caught nine balls for 117 yards.
"I feel good about (the offense)," second-year Lakeside coach Kitrick Taylor said. "We talked at halftime that we were play-for-play right with them. Then we get to the second half and we self-destruct. You had a turnover here and a fumble there, but overall they kept fighting and I liked the effort."
In its eighth season of varsity football, Lakeside is still looking for its first playoff berth and in a building phase under Taylor, a former NFL wide receiver. If Thursday was any indication, the Lancers are beginning to form something they've rarely had ---- a quality game. Facing a team in a higher division ---- Miller is in the Citrus Belt League, which competes in the Inland Division in the postseason ---- Lakeside upped is game.
Cabrera twice beat Watkins, who doubles as a cornerback, on fake slant-and-go routes for touchdowns. The second of which, combined with Wilson's two-point conversion, gave Lakeside a 14-0 lead with 8:03 remaining in the third quarter.
The score also came off Miller's fourth turnover, and perhaps the Lancers just hadn't capitalized enough on their opponent's miscues. Once the Rebels started to hold on to the ball, they started making progress. On the first play from scrimmage following Cabrera's second touchdown, Watkins hit Devon Brown on a short pass that turned into 72-yard touchdown. Three minutes later, Watkins scored the first of two touchdown scampers to cut the deficit to 14-13.
Watkins threw for 195 yards and ran for 147 on 16 carries.
"We told them at halftime to keep plugging away one play at a time and this thing will crack" Miller coach Marcus Soward said.
It did in the fourth, when the Rebels scored the final 20 points of the game after Lakeside briefly took a 20-19 lead on another Wilson-to-Cabrera touchdown strike with 9:10 remaining. Calvin Ransom gave Miller the go-ahead score with seven minutes remaining, and Miller's Tre'von Jones intercepted Wilson on the ensuing possession and returned it for a touchdown to ice the victory.
"We got relaxed and stopped doing our assignments," Taylor said. "That killed us."