The Cardinal Newman varsity FOOTBALL squad faced 3 opponents at Jason Franci Field today in the Montgomery scrimmage.  By all accounts things went well for the Cardinals.  Led by the offensive line CN was able to run the ball successfully with Zachary Homan getting the bulk of the carries.  He ran well behind Senior Matthew Hilden, who returns to the line after playing quarterback last season and Sophomore Devin Bertoli.  The big physical line made the offense very hard to stop.

Playing Montgomery first Jonah Bertoli caught 2 TDs en route to 5 scores on the day, as the offense found the end zone both in the air and on the ground.  Quarterbacks Jayson Colter and Wyatt Knechtle both played well alternating on each possession. 

The defense was equally good giving up just one TD late in the sequence vs the Vikings.  Zachariah Raia played well as a team leader in the middle, while lineman Jesse Myers was hard to block and put pressure on each opponents offense.

Next up was Santa Rosa and finally Tamalpais.  The defense kept Santa Rosa at bay, while the offense continued to move the ball and score.  Offensive coordinator James Pennington called more pass plays late in the scrimmage vs Tam in hopes to find a clear starter at quarterback but is pleased to have much needed depth at that position going into the season. 

"Colter continues to learn the offense and shows great ability to throw the ball, while Knechtle has a good understanding of the playbook and reads and has shown great improvement and toughness from last season," Said Head Coach Richard Sanchez after the Saturday scrimmage.

"Overall I feel good about where are at and how we fared against today's competition.  We have a ways to go in terms of getting ready for Casa Grande in next week's opener," He added.

Next week's game vs the Gauchos is a 7 PM kickoff at Ed Lloyd Field as the 2023 season gets underway!