Dolphins Bowl Over Granada Hills

P.J. Hurst Throws for Three Touchdowns in 28-0 Win as Pali High Football Retains Trophy

As complicated as his position may seem at times, Palisades High quarterback P.J. Hurst likes to keep it simple: get his playmakers the football.

Hurst did his job more effectively than ever before last Friday night, his teammates did the rest and at the end of the game he found himself holding a trophy.

“We wanted to start the game off as we usually do, pounding the rock as Coach  Hyde would say,” Hurst said after completing 10 of 13 passes for 253 yards and three touchdowns to key a 28-0 victory over Granada Hills in the Charter Bowl. “They came out with a great game plan for it, so we had to make adjustments. We decided to go to the air game  with my athletes on the outside and they made me look good.”

Hurst honed his skills at the Manning Passing Academy in Louisiana over the summer and his efficiency rating Friday was Peyton-esque. His primary target was Herbert Acosta, who had six receptions for 129 yards, including a 45-yard touchdown grab that gave Palisades a 21-point lead on the last play of the third quarter.

“Herbert and I know each other really well,” said Hurst, a junior who backed up starter Taylor Mensik last season. “He knows me and I know where he’s going to be almost every time, even when I’m out of the pocket.”

Even after Hurst made his lone mistake, throwing an interception  deep in Granada Hills territory on the Dolphins’ first drive of the second half, he was bailed out by the defense — namely cornerback Aaron Butler, who made a diving interception at the Highlanders’ 32-yard line.

After a scoreless first quarter the Dolphins drove 72 yards in six plays, capped by Hurst’s eight-yard strike to tight end James Mann. Granada Hills (1-4) was forced to punt on its next possession and made the mistake of kicking to Dhaamir Lomax, who reversed his field, alluded the first wave of pursuers and weaved his way for a highlight-reel 71-yard return to make it 14-0.

“To be honest I didn’t know the ball was coming to me but as soon as I caught it I ran towards our sideline, then cut back because I saw a hole open up,” Lomax said. “I hit the hole, ran towards the other sideline where I had blockers doing their job and that allowed me to take it to the house. I only had to break one tackle.”

It was Palisades’ fourth victory in the last five Charter Bowl games and gave the Dolphins a 5-4 edge in the annual rivalry game that began in 2006.

“Experience is definitely giving me a lot of confidence,” Hurst said. “The more we get out there, the more I’m learning. I’m even learning from the picks I’m throwing. They’re mistakes I’m going to make but they actually help a lot.”

Brad Boorstin paced the ground game with 74 yards in 15 carries and had three long runs nullified by penalties. Desmond Box added 46 yards in seven carries and  Willy Rosenfield and Brandon Joseph each had two carries.

Several times Hurst slithered free from would-be tacklers in the backfield to extend plays.

“He’s only going to get better,” Coach Tim Hyde said of his quarterback. “I love coaching him.”

Ethan Erickson had a chance to extend his team’s lead at the end of the half, but his 45-yard field goal attempt hit the upright. He was also wide on a 43-yarder in the third quarter, but neither miss proved costly, for the Dolphins’ defense held Granada Hills to  153 yards from scrimmage and forced the Highlanders to punt on seven of their nine possessions.

After sitting out the Canoga Park  game with an ankle sprain, linebacker Alec Simpson came back with a vengeance, making a team-high eight tackles (three for losses) and firing up his unit with his raw emotion and intensity. Mario Lofton added six tackles, two for losses, and broke up two passes.

“We had their receivers locked down and our D-line stayed disciplined and made big plays — especially Corey Rose and Kenny Jones,” said Lomax, who had five tackles and a sack at defensive back.

Palisades (3-1) was playing without injured safety Duane McBroom for the third straight game and center Alex Clarke missed his second straight game.

“Overall, it was a good, tough win for us,” Hyde said. “We did a lot of good things and we got contributions from everybody and P.J.’s ability to run was a key to the game,” Hyde said. “We competed hard for 48 minutes and it was an all-around team win.”

Midway through the third quarter, Hurst hit Quincy Cowherd over the middle and the senior wideout broke to the outside, turned on the jets and raced 81 yards for the game’s final touchdown.

Palisades drove deep into Granada Hills territory with under a minute remaining, but with the ball on the 5-yard line Hyde instructed Hurst to take a knee to kill the clock rather than trying to score.

It was the Dolphins’ third shutout in five Charter Bowl victories and the second time they kept their opponents off the scoreboard in Hyde’s two seasons. The first was a 14-0 triumph over Hamilton in the Dolphins’ regular season finale last year.

“I mean, we did everything that we want to do in this program,” Hyde said. “We played good defense, our special teams scored a touchdown and set up another touchdown, Ethan had all his kickoffs in the end zone, we ran the ball effectively and once we saw them blitzing every play, we threw the ball at will.”