Despite getting off to a slow start after the bye week, Cardinal Newman rolled to a 54-7 victory over Montgomery to begin NBL Oak play at Jason Franci Field.
Zachary Homan had another big game running the ball with 22 carries for 249 yards and 5 TDs.
Mahdi Camara added 61 yards and 2 TDs as the Newman offensive line dominated up front.
The Cardinals racked up 335 yards on the ground in total, while throwing for just 97.
The Cardinals sputtered on offense early on and Montgomery threatened to take the early lead as a punt hit off a Newman blocker and bounced down near the 5 yard line where Montgomery recovered with a first and goal. The Cardinal defense came up a with a huge stop on 4th and goal at the one.
The Cardinals went on a 99 yard drive mostly on the ground with the offensive line creating huge holes. Homan scored to cap off the drive on a 12 yard run. The PAT was no good and Newman led 6-0 after one.
Newman got the ball back in Montgomery territory after a botched punt. The Cardinals went to the bag of tricks with
Zachary Homan executing a halfback option pass hitting
Jonah Bertoli inside the 5 to set up another TD run for Homan.
From there the Cardinals began to pull away leading 19-0 at the half and 47-7 after 3.
The CN defense was impressive notching 3 sacks and 2 ints.
Jasper Kemp had 10 tackles, one for a loss. Dominic Torres and
Jack Jacobs both had picks. Logan Rodriguez had a fumble recovery and a sack. Overall team defense was the key, with Newman swarming to the ball and shutting down both the run and the pass.
"We need to be more efficient in the passing game but our run game was good again with our offensive line leading the way." Said Coach Sanchez after the win. "I was impressed with our intent and determination on determination to keep them out of the end zone. The goal line stands were huge for our momentum."
I was impressed by the character and effort of the Montgomery players from start to finish, great job by their coaches." He added.
The JV squad also won big with a 63-22 win.
The 6-0 (1-0) Cardinals return home next week to take on Analy at Ed Lloyd Field, Friday night at 7 PM.
