Notre Dame gets another game-winning field goal, tops St. Francis

La Cañada — After back-to-back blowout football losses to open the season, the St. Francis Golden Knights were less than a minute away from securing their first win of the year. On most nights, sophomore quarterback Shawn Sanders’ go-ahead touchdown pass with 55 seconds left in the fourth quarter would’ve been enough.

But on Friday night, the Golden Knights left too much time on the clock for the Notre Dame Sherman Oaks kicker William Weisberg and quarterback Steele Pizzella.

St. Francis HFC Dean Herrington on tonight’s loss, team’s improvement and status injury update on John Sanders pic.twitter.com/fJa6OZdmDb

— Jorge Ramos (@byjorgeramos) September 7, 2024

The senior signal caller marched Notre Dame (3-0) into field goal range, setting up Weisberg for a game-winning 39-yard field goal and helping clinch a 36-34 victory at James Bond field.

Weisberg, who finished 3-for-3 on field goals, converted his second game-winning attempt in back-to-back weeks

“I know I have the range. I kick field goals all day long, it’s what I do,” Weisberg said. “It’s not different from any other kick in practice. I don’t have anything really to be nervous about because I am a kicker.”

St. Francis struggled to keep up with its Week 0 and Week 1 opponents as the Golden Knights were outscored 73-13, scoring just one touchdown in each of its losses. St.Francis’ gut-wrenching loss Friday came after the Golden Knights (0-3) led twice in the second half — 21-17 with 6:03 left in the third quarter and 34-33 with 55 seconds left in the game.

The main culprit for St. Francis’ problems and eventual pain? Pizzella. The Notre Dame quarterback used his improvisation skills all night to extend plays, keep drives alive and ultimately win the game. Midway through the third quarter after St. Francis took its first lead of the season, 21-17, Notre Dame responded with a 13-yard touchdown to wideout Tre Fernadez to retake the lead.

On the next offensive series, Pizella connected with Fernandez again for a 59-yard touchdown pass after he evaded several defenders and reversed fields before throwing a dart down the left sideline. Pizzella finished with 210 passing yards, 129 rushing and four total touchdowns.

“(Pizzella) is a freak,” Weisberg said of his quarterback. “I say (Pizzella) is Johnny Manziel plus the film room. He’s always doing his due diligence and it’s showing on the field. He’s electric.”

For much of the first half, St. Francis’ early season struggles on the offensive side of the ball became immediately apparent. Aside from a 10-play, 80-yard touchdown drive on St. Francis’ first offensive possession of the game, the Golden Knights’ subsequent series ended in two three-and-outs and a Notre Dame interception.

St. Francis’ first four drives amounted to 63 yards of total offense and it looked as if Notre Dame — who built up a 17-7 lead thanks to two touchdowns by Pezzella — was in control.

The Golden Knights responded with another 10-play scoring drive. St. Francis traveled 80 yards in less than three minutes before Sanders found senior wide receiver Julian Navarro for an 8-yard score just before halftime.

After St. Francis and Notre Dame exchanged punches for most of the second half, Sanders, who threw for 195 yards and three touchdowns, gave the Golden Knights a one-point lead with less than a minute to go, capping off a 10-play drive with a touchdown pass to Deveon Blaylock.

But the lead didn’t last long as Weisberg’s 39-yard attempt gave Notre Dame a two-point victory

“We did a great job, but we got to finish games. There are no moral victories,” St. Francis head football coach Dean Herrington said. “You can’t let them drive the ball down with 55 seconds and no timeouts. It’s disappointing.”