Thrice as nice for Serra

After a 7-all deadlock at halftime, No. 1-seed Serra (13-0) rallied for a 41-14 victory over No. 5 Archbishop Mitty at San Jose City College to claim the CCS Division I championship. It is the third straight Division I title for the Padres, and the eighth all-time title in eight CCS championship-game appearances.

“It’s a tremendous feeling,” Serra junior Danny Niu said. “First quarter we were kind of down, a lot of mistakes. But we came back, brought it together and we got it done.”

After a contentious 31 minutes of football, Niu changed the tide, breaking a 7-7 tie by busting a 61-yard touchdown run with 4:29 to go in the third quarter. It was the first play the Padres consolidated into their classic double wing-T formation, likely a move to counter an effective Mitty defense that had frustrated Serra throughout the first half.

“It’s huge,” Walsh said of the double wing-T. “It’s always there. It’s like a warm security blanket for us. It’s there, it’s tough, it’s rugged, it’s four-minute offense. And that run by Danny Niu, that will go down in history in Padre football.”

Niu’s touchdown run started innocently enough as he took a pitch from quarterback Maualiuaki Smith. The junior running back had fresh legs, however, as it was his first carry out of the backfield in three postseason games, and the 6-foot, 190-pound standout showed of his strength and speed, bulling through a hit at the line of scrimmage to break one tackle, and then another, then accelerating for the electrifying 61-yard score to give Serra a 13-7 lead.

“Every play is drawn to get a touchdown,” Walsh said with a hearty laugh. “But that was just a unique effort by a unique player. Danny Niu has got so much heart and soul. And this whole team does.”

After totaling 114 points through their first two playoff wins — 57-7 over Palma, and 57-21 over Salinas — Friday’s championship game saw the Padres get off to a well-enough start. After forcing a turnover on downs near midfield on Mitty’s opening possession, Serra struck quickly with a seven-play, 51-yard drive.

Smith got sacked on Serra’s first offensive play. So, the Padres turned to the ground game, rushing six straight times, including a 22-yard carry by Johnny Latu and a 15-yard sweep by Jaden Green, before Smith scored on a 2-yard QB sneak to give his team a 7-0 advantage.

But the Monarchs (9-4) contained Serra next three possessions. They recovered a fumble on Smith’s only pass completion of the first half, then forced two punts. And as the first-half clock wound down, Mitty went on the march, using 13 plays to drive 69 yards before scoring with one second left in the half on a 7-yard scoring pass from Wills Towers to Danny Scudero.

“They have a lot of great receivers, a lot of athletes, and their QB, he can throw,” Serra safety Kyon Loud said. “So, props to them. But we were ready, and we have a good defense.”

Before the Padres headed into the halftime locker room, Walsh gathered his team at the 50-yard line, where all the players took a knee in their patented team huddle. Walsh had a calming message and, as it turned out, it was the calm before the storm the Padres would stir up in the second half.

“I didn’t want anyone to panic because in title fights things happen,” Walsh said. “The other team throws uppercuts too. And they gave us their best shot and wanted to pull the guys up and say: ‘Look, nothing’s wrong. Football is hard, and championship football is harder. And don’t lose sight of all the great things that we are and everything we’ve done because the other team’s fighting back.’ And that was my message at halftime.”

It was a huge play on defense that turned the tide, though. And that play came from Loud when the junior read a long post route over the middle and flew in to break up a potential touchdown play.

With the score tied 7-7, Towers had been making magic through the air. Mitty’s senior quarterback was 23-of-38 passing for 332 yards in the game. Scudero totaled six catches for 98 yards. But it was the 58-yard look Loud averted as he sprinted over to lend double coverage on Scudero and Towers lofted a long pass on the mark that kept Mitty from seizing momentum in the game.

“[Scudero] is just a good player,” Loud said. “He’s been doing that the whole game. So, I mentally prepared myself. I was watching film on him all week, and he had a great game today. Props to him. … I seen the receiver’s eyes get big, so once I saw that I put my eyes out and deflected the ball.”

Serra later stifled the possession when junior linebacker Jabari Mann came up with a third-down sack. It was one of four Serra sacks on the night.

“DI Bari,” Loud said. “There’s something special. He’s the center of our defense. So, without him, we wouldn’t be nothing.”

Niu gave the Padres the lead on the next play from scrimmage with his 61-yard bolt. Serra forced a three-and-out and soon flipped the field for a quick score. Green opened the drive with a 45-yard pickup to the Mitty 27. Three plays later, junior Johnny Latu glided in to give Serra a 20-7 lead.

Mitty responded with a quick-strike score. Towers opened the drive with a 65-yard pass to Charlie Butler, who totaled four catches for a game-high 111 yards. On the next play, Scudero rushed for a 3-yard score, making it 20-14.

But these were the last points the Monarchs would score. Serra opened the fourth quarter with a 34-yard pass from Smith to Seamus Gilmartin, who advanced to the Mitty 1. On the next play, Mann scored on a straight snap to up the lead to 27-14.

Serra sophomore Teddy Chung produced an interception three plays later, and the Padres quickly scored. Green took it to the end zone this time for a 9-yard score. Mitty advanced the ball near midfield on its next drive, but a strip by Mann allowed Green to scoop up the fumble and move it to the Monarchs’ 25. Latu then scored his second TD of the night on a 2-yard run to seal the win.

“I couldn’t be more proud to be the head coach at Serra High School,” Walsh said. “This has been a long time coming, and to ever think we’d be 13-0 and all the superlatives thrown on this team, these guys deserve it because they’re great kids.”

As the No. 1 team in Northern California, Serra is now the presumptive choice to represent the region in the CIF Open Division State Championship Bowl, to be played Saturday, Dec. 10 at Saddleback College. It is the second straight year the Padres will advance to the California high school football’s biggest stage.

The likely matchup will feature Southern Section champion St. John Bosco-Bellflower, after the Braves topped reigning CIF Open Division champion Mater Dei 24-22 Friday night. St. John Bosco offensive coordinator Steven Lo formerly served as Serra’s offensive coordinator under Walsh for the Padres’ only state title in the 2017 Division 2-AA State Championship Bowl.