Kennedy football shuts out El Camino Real in opener

GRANADA HILLS — It was clear from the beginning. The Kennedy High football team would not let anyone stand in the way of winning its home opener.

The Cougars came ready to play and put on a scoring clinic against El Camino Real for their emphatic home opener, 37-0.

“You can’t give three scores within the first seven minutes of the game and expect to still be in it,” said Royals head coach Jason Sabolic. “We were very uncharacteristic. The lights were too bright for our guys and we got absolutely pushed around. We didn’t expect it to be that bad but we just got to get back to what works and put points up on the board.”

On the opening kickoff, Amare Rhodes returned the ball to the El Camino Real 5-yard line. Immediately, the Cougars capitalized with a 5-yard score from running back Josue Sandoval.

The script was clear early on as the Cougars quickly ran a surprise onside to get the ball back. It looked as if the Cougars were going to score each time they touched the ball because on the very next play, Cougars quarterback Diego Montes threw a 42-yard touchdown to Giovani Nelson.

A quick 14-0 lead for the Cougars in less than five minutes of play, but they weren’t done. The Royals first chance on offense ended quickly with a forced fumble and of course the Kennedy capitalized again.

Just seven minutes into the first quarter, Kennedy was up 21-0 thanks to an interception by cornerback David Tejeda and a rushing score by Nelson giving him his second touchdown.

Sandoval scored on a 21-yard run to push the lead to 28-0. Sandoval would end his night with 74 rushing yards on seven carries and two touchdowns.

“I wasn’t expecting too much, but I knew if I worked hard and executed plays I could do anything,” said Sandoval. “I wouldn’t be able to do anything without my O-line. That’s how I get all my yards and touchdowns. I just got to keep working hard and make sure my team and O-line work just as hard going forward.”

Turnovers were the story of the game for the El Camino Real.

The Royals turned over the ball their fourth time of the game, a pick-six by safety Jayvon Carter.

“I just felt like we came out aggressive,” said Kennedy coach Troy Cassidy. “We’ve been waiting all summer and since last year to play another football game. You get to a point of summer where practices are dragging, but I think that benefitted us because they were ready to go off the bat and they were able to strike fast.”