The Dons (3-0 overall) defeated Palo Alto (0-4) 48-14, following their 35-0 win against South San Francisco.
With a staggering three touchdowns from junior running back Camron Grant and two from junior running back Paul Lautaimi, the Dons were a well-oiled offensive machine.
Aragon started off strong with a touchdown pass from senior quarterback Gabe Campos to senior wide receiver Davion Cox in the first three minutes of the game. Just two minutes later, senior defensive tackle Moses Olive sacked Palo Alto’s junior quarterback Jackson Chryst, brother of Stanford quarterback Keller Chryst, to put the Dons back on offense. After Lautaimi gained 15 yards, Grant scored to put the Dons up 14-0.
Afterward, Palo Alto staged a mini comeback and limited Aragon both offensively and defensively. Late in the first quarter, Palo Alto junior wide receiver Damion Richard-Valencia caught a 73-yard pass for a touchdown. Palo Alto then forced a fumble from their kickoff and recovered the ball at their own 37-yard line. Despite a touchdown from Lautaimi, Palo Alto was quick to respond. On the next drive, Richard-Valencia ran through three-defenders for a touchdown, bringing the game to 21-14 at the break.
“We couldn’t get their offense off the field. They did some good things. You have to give them credit,” said head coach Steve Sell. “We couldn’t stop them and they took advantage of some things we did so we had some mishaps on offense. We didn’t play up to our standard in that quarter.”
But the second half was the turning point for the Dons, as they scored 27 unanswered points to finish off the Vikings.
“They were trying to run outside to pick on us, but we figured out our gameplan at halftime to stop them,” said sophomore running back Francisco Sanchez.
The third quarter yielded two strong touchdowns from Grant and one from Lautaimi.
“Running backs always have to give it to their line. Our line is phenomenal,” said Grant. “We had two people hurt, our key guys [junior guard] Marvin [West] and [senior guard] Ian [Tapueluelu]. But our backups stepped up big time.”
Touchdown runs resulted from openings created by the offensive line, providing an easy path for the running back to score.
“They just opened up the holes and I read them and just ran the ball,” said Lautaimi.“If it wasn’t for the offensive line, we wouldn’t be anywhere.”
Following the win, the Dons are looking to build upon their strengths, which led them to a 7-4 record in 2016.
“From what coaches tell me, this is one of the most talented teams that Aragon has had,” said Sanchez. “I think we could definitely go undefeated this season.”
The slogan, “run the ball, stop the run,” has become increasingly accurate over the last few seasons.
“In 2015, we couldn’t do either of those things,” said Sell.
However, with the help of assistant coach Michael Wu, the players have improved by spending more time in the weight room.
“That’s really what was lacking in our program,” said Sell. “We weren’t quite as physical.”
With the ability to move the ball in multiple ways, the Dons are continuing to focus on their execution by learning up in offensive and defensive play schemes.
“It’s more assignment ball than getting pumped up,” said Grant.
Aragon also has a strong defensive setup.
“We can line up to stop the run,” said assistant coach Steve Henderson. “We think we’re a good tackling team so we always emphasize skills and fundamentals and doing things the right way.”
Additionally, Henderson believes that the Dons have a well-balanced team.
“We can get opponents to defend the whole field while on offense,” he said. “[Our defense] can catch up to people and wrap up and tackle.”
This year’s team contains a mix of new and experienced players. Sanchez, one of the new players, has been praised by his coaches as a future star.
“[He] can score from anywhere,” said Henderson. “We feel that teams are gonna have to line up to stop the run and we’re gonna have to use that to our advantage and hit open routes off of play-action.”
Because of the results of the previous season, both the coaches and players are more confident about the season.
“There’s not a team on our schedule that we can’t beat,” said Sell. “But likewise, there’s not a team on our schedule that can’t beat us. Every team is a challenge, so we’re gonna have to play well to win all of them.”
The Dons look to continue their winning streak on Sept. 22 against The King’s Academy.
