Burbank High Football Wins 40-28

Burbank High's Leo Rodas runs the ball during Thursday's game against San Gabriel. (Roger Wilson/The Leader)

FOOTBALL: Colman passes for five touchdowns to lead Burbank past San Gabriel, 40-28.

By Jim Riggio, Burbank Leader
Published: Friday, September 18, 2009

MEMORIAL FIELD — It was a numbers game when Burbank High took on San Gabriel in the Bulldogs’ final nonleague football contest. Some numbers were great, some were good, and others not so good. But in the end, the Bulldogs had more positive numbers in their favor, as they earned a 40-28 win Thursday at Memorial Field. “It all started with the line,” said Burbank junior quarterback Adam Colman, who threw five touchdown passes. “They set the tone. The receivers made plays to get open.

”The 6-foot-4 signal caller had numbers that might get some colleges interested in him, as he was 12 of 16 for 223 yards. In the second half, Colman was a perfect six for six with touchdown passes on four consecutive attempts. Colman sat out most of the fourth quarter after Burbank had built a 40-6 lead with just over nine minutes to play. “Once you have the game won, you need to let everyone get a chance,” Burbank first-year Coach Hector Valencia said. Burbank (2-1) dominated San Gabriel in the first half, but was hit by the penalty bug.

The Bulldogs held the Matadors (1-2) to just 62 yards of offense, but didn’t help themselves by committing eight penalties for 80 yards. “You can’t get caught up with it,” Valencia said of the rash of penalties. “I have to get our team ready for the next play. It is what it is. At the beginning there were very ticky calls.”Junior running back Ulisies Ochoa opened the scoring for Burbank by surging across on an eight-yard run with 9:43 left in the first quarter. Ochoa finished with 12 carries for 112 yards on the ground. He had four receptions for 37 yards, including a touchdown, and had two interceptions on defense — one of which was called back due to a penalty.

Ochoa was one of two Bulldogs to gain more than 100 yards on the ground, as Leo Rodas had 100 yards in 13 carries.Burbank made it 14-0 midway through the second quarter when Sam Bethany dove and made a 16-yard over-the-shoulder catch in the end zone.The Bulldogs went up, 21-0, with 8:09 left in the third quarter when Colman and Ochoa hooked up on a 10-yard touchdown. Following Ochoa’s interception of San Gabriel quarterback Issac Valdez moments later, Burbank capitalized on its first play of the drive. Colman found a wide open Bethany in full stride and the Bulldog receiver strolled in for a 60-yard touchdown to make it 28-0 with 7:08 left in the third quarter.

San Gabriel scored its first touchdown late in the third quarter after one of its receivers caught a hail-Mary pass while on the ground at the Burbank 4-yard line. One official initially called the pass incomplete, but another overruled him.The Matadors scored two players later on a four-yard run from Fabian Amaro.Burbank roared right back after a San Gabriel’s on-side kick attempt failed and gave the Bulldogs great field position at the Matadors’ 41-yard line.Two plays into the drive, Colman threw a long pass into the end zone and Anthony Cervantes outleaped two San Gabriel defenders to haul it in, making to 34-6 with 2:33 left in the third quarter.

Burbank added another touchdown in the fourth quarter when Colman hooked up with Eddie Maroldi on a 34-yard touchdown.San Gabriel scored three late touchdowns after Burbank pulled some of its starters.