Secondary shines as CSM vanquishes biggest foe

“I was left corner, he was right corner,” Rose said of he and Watson. “It’s the same thing.”

From DB Select to DBU — meaning “Defensive Back University,” a colloquial term for CSM’s defensive back factory in recent years — Rose, Watson and the rest of the Bulldogs’ secondary anchored the team’s biggest win of the year to date, as CSM rallied for 30-24 win over Diablo Valley College-Pleasant Hill in Saturday’s Bay 6 Conference opener at College Heights Stadium.

Both teams entered conference play with undefeated records, with DVC ranking the best passing offense in Northern California. CSM (1-0 BAy 6, 6-0 overall) countered with the stingiest upper-division defense in the state, allowing just 227.3 yards per game. And while DVC dominated the stat sheet — outgaining CSM 369-140 in total yards, and possessing the ball for 49:16, compared to 25:58 for the Bulldogs — it was two pivotal interceptions that flipped the script in favor of CSM.

“We lean on those guys,” CSM head coach Tim Tulloch said. “DVC has a great passing attack ... and we just want to make sure those guys are prepared and that we’re locked in. And when we play the way I know we can play, it’s a great challenge to see.”

Rose came up with a game-changer pick late in the first half. With the Bulldogs clinging to a 7-3 lead, DVC drove into the red zone for third-and-10 from CSM’s 14-yard line.

“Clutch,” Tulloch said. “You take it from potentially a touchdown on one side, to the momentum and a chance for the offense to score going down on the other side. It just swung the momentum from one side to the next.”

Freshman quarterback Kalani McLeod (23-of-47 passing, 292 yards, two TDs) looked to the corner of the end zone, but Rose read it out of his hand an intercepted it with a burst of speed up the home sideline.

“I went to where the ball was going to be,” Rose said. “So, when I picked it, I just knew I had to hurry up and get down there and give our offense a chance to put some points on the board.”

Rose nearly went the distance, but was pushed out of bounds at the Vikings’ 14-yard line with 56 seconds remaining in the half.

“I thought I was going to get it, but, you know, I ran out of gas a little bit,” Rose said.

CSM didn’t get into the end zone before the break, but sophomore kicker Dieter Kelly hit his first of three field goals on the day, this one a chip shot from 30 yards away, to send the Bulldogs into the locker room leading 10-3.

DVC (0-1, 5-1) opened the second half with a game-tying score as McLeod hit sophomore Khai Taylor with a 20-yard TD pass. But the Bulldogs scored on their next three possessions, all by virtue of short fields — an 8-yard scoring run by sophomore Malakhi DeMoss; a 2-yard scoring pass from Luke Alexander to freshman Kai Hamilton; and a booming 48-yard field goal by Kelly to lift CSM to a 27-10 lead with 9:56 to play.

The Vikings made it interesting with a scoop-and-score fumble recovery by sophomore defensive back Journey McKoy with 6:43 to go. But after CSM and DVC traded three-and-outs, Kelly upped the lead to 30-17 just after the two-minute timeout with a 40-yard field goal.

“It was good, because it made them have to go for a touchdown,” Tulloch said.

DVC scored with 36 seconds to play on a short pass from McLeod to Taylor, but CSM covered the ensuing onside kick to end it.

“This was a big one because it was the first [conference win],” Tulloch said. “And obviously they’re a heck of a team. So, great challenge for us.”

It was quite a challenge, seeing as the Bulldogs were breaking in a new quarterback. Freshman Johnny Koett (Vista Del Lago-Folsom) was suited up but didn’t see the field as the freshman Alexander (Grant-Sacramento) earned his first collegiate start.

“We compete every week, every position, and he had earned the start this week,” Tulloch said. “So, it was his opportunity to lead us today.”

Alexander finished a modest 6-of-8 passing for 73 yards and two touchdowns, but was hindered by an outbreak of bad snaps. CSM fumbled three snaps that sailed high on the 6-2 Alexander, with only one resulting in a turnover.

“It’s something we’ve got to get better at,” Tulloch said. “It was definitely and issue and something that we’ll look at, and correct, and figure out why we’re having those issues, and what we’ve got to do correct it going forward.”

But CSM’s takeaways defined the day.

DVC jumped out to a 3-0 lead early in the second quarter on a 21-yard field goal from freshman Adrian Guzman. The Bulldogs responded by driving 62 yards on 10 plays, including two third-down conversions — a 20-yard pass from Alexander to freshman Jalen Arnold (Moreau Catholic-Hayward) on third-and-11 to cross midfield, and a 1-yard scoring pass from Alexander to freshman BJ Thurman on third-and-goal — to take a 7-3 lead.

The Vikings went back on the attack two plays later on McLeod’s 19-yard pass to freshman Matt Goodin to cross midfield. But on the next play, with Taylor open up the right sideline for a potential scoring route, Whitten made up ground and came up with an acrobatic leaping interception with the tips of his skill gloves.

CSM was forced to punt, and a shank set up DVC at the Bulldogs’ 30. But Rose’s interception solved that conundrum with perhaps the most important play of CSM’s season to date.

“We knew what kind of team we were going to face,” Rose said. “They were 5-0, we were 5-0. So, the focus this week was having more focus, more intensity, and reimagined our purpose. So, going into the week, we just kind of knew what was at stake, especially with the first conference game, a lot riding on this game, a lot of playoff implications and all that. So, we knew it was a big week for us in the secondary and if we just do what we’re coached to do, we’ll make plays.”

As the final seconds ticked off the clock, a skirmish broke out between the two teams on the south side of the field. Several players were separated by teammates and coaches, and the Bulldogs were relegated to the locker room by Tulloch and his staff for a private postgame team meeting, instead of the traditional on-field meeting accessible to family and friends.

“There was just emotions running too high after the game,” Tulloch said. “Obviously, it was a highly contested game, a close game. And when you have teams where there’s a lot of players who know each other, the best thing to do was just, after the game, eliminate any kind of extra if it’s not part of the game, and we took them to the locker room and met with them in there.”

Next up, CSM travels to Foothill College for a Saturday night showdown. Kickoff in Los Altos Hills is scheduled for 6 p.m.