Front PageSportsHigh School Los Angeles and San Diego go to the wire in the California Classic All-Star High School game
Los Angeles and San Diego go to the wire in the California Classic All-Star High School game
Written by Jason Lewis (Sports Editor), on 02-02-2012 17:46
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Westchester quarterback Nicholas King reaches for the goal line after running for 35-yards. The score gave the Los Angeles City Section a 21-6 lead over the San Diego Section team in the California Classic All Star High School football game. Photo by Jason Lewis
By Jason Lewis Sentinel Sports Editor
Senior high school football players from the Los Angeles City Section and the San Diego Section showed up at the Home Depot Center in Carson this past Sunday to determine which city produced the best football players, and for three quarters, it was clear that it was Los Angeles.
The Los Angeles team scored first when Westchester quarterback Nicholas King hit Venice wide receiver Gabriel Marks on a 45-yard touchdown pass. King finished the game with 148 yards passing and 55 yards rushing. He also scored on a 35-yard touchdown run. Marks finished the game with two catches for 86 yards.
Hamilton running back Marciss Grigsby ran hard, and he finished with 106 yards on only five carries, and Arleta running back Dejon Coleman ran for 36 yards on only two carries.
Heading into the 4th quarter the Los Angeles team held a 21-6 lead, and they were having a good time on their sidelines at that point, but the San Diego team was not ready to go home without putting up a fight.
Two touchdowns, one in the final minute of the game, made the score 21-20 in favor of the Los Angeles team. After San Diego’s second touchdown of the quarter they went for the two-point conversion and the win because there was no overtime in the game. An incomplete pass sent the Los Angeles sideline into a frenzy, because it appeared that they had won the game.
But San Diego had one last chance, and they made the most of it by recovering an onside kick. A few plays later the San Diego team lined up for a 45-yard field goal on the final play of the game, and their kicker nailed it, giving San Diego a 23-21 victory.
Both teams played their hearts out, and it was a great sendoff for these football players in their final high school football game. Some of them will continue playing in college, but for some, this is the end of the road.
This was the fourth year that this game has been played. It was created by Chris Richards of Plays and Grades, which is an organization that assists high school athletes with their schoolwork and prepares them for the SAT and ACT exams.
Adidas jumped on board so that the game could be played at the Home Depot Center, and Prepstar and B2G Sports played roles in making this game bigger than ever.
Earlier in the day two eighth grade teams played, and that game was won on the final play off of an interception returned for a touchdown that broke a 28-28 tie. In the final game of the day, the Southern Section South team defeated the Southern Section North team 38-20.
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