By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor
Efficient is an accurate description of the Palisades High varsity football team’s offensive performance in Friday’s Western League opener against University at Stadium by the Sea.
The Dolphins had the ball only seven times but scored five touchdowns, which proved to be
more than enough for a 35-14 victory, their fifth win in a row.
“The playoffs started tonight and every single play matters,” Coach Tim Hyde told his players in the post-game talk. “You have to play like its zero-zero, no matter what the scoreboard says.”
Inspired by the presence of their former All-City signal-caller P.J. Hurst (now a freshman quarterback at Tulane), who flew home after learning the Green Wave’s game at Central Florida was postponed because of Hurricane Matthew, the Dolphins rolled up nearly 300 yards. Innocent Okoh led the charge with 18 carries for 137 yards and three touchdowns
(his fifth straight game running for 100+ yards) and added two receptions for 63 yards and one score.
Jonah Manheim, making his fifth consecutive start at quarterback, completed three of his seven pass attempts for 74 yards and piloted three scoring drives. One drive ended on an interception and the other was a punt from deep in the Dolphins’ own territory.
“It wasn’t our best football game, but we scored 35 points and I’ll take that any day,” Manheim said. “We handled our business here at home, now we have to do the same on the road.”
Gabe Galef, who began the fall as Palisades’ starting quarterback but tore his medial collateral ligament on the third play of the season opener against Sierra Canyon, returned for the first time since and ran once for one yard.
Kicker Jake Taitelman made all five of his extra points, Cameron Bailey returned a kickoff 65 yards and Quinn Perry booted a 65-yard punt.
Venice dealt Palisades a 42-13 loss to open league last year, but the Dolphins won their next four.
Friday marked Palisades’ ninth consecutive victory over the Wildcats and the Dolphins improved to 4-0 against University under Hyde.
Kareem Miles caught five passes for University, including a 39-yard touchdown in the third quarter.
Tommy Beattie, a sophomore transfer from Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, took over for Manheim with 3:54 left in the third quarter. On his first play he fired a bullet over the middle to Okoh for a first down. Okoh capped the 61-yard drive with a four-yard run to make it 28-7.
“I knew I was going to play, I just didn’t know when,” said Beattie, who had to sit out Palisades’ first five games in compliance with transfer eligibility rules. “Coach [Rocky] Montz had me write up 12 plays I liked and when I went in my first thought was ‘Don’t be my own worst enemy.’ I always want to throw the ball and I was glad I hit that first one.”
After Perry recovered a fumble, Beattie threw a 30-yard strike to Taitelman for a 37-yard gain inside the Wildcats’ 10-yard line. Marrio Lofton plowed into the end zone two plays later for the Dolphins’ final touchdown.
Beattie completed two of his four pass attempts for 63 yards and engineered two scoring drives.
“Just to relax,” Manheim said when asked what advice he gave Beattie. “That kid is the future of our program. P.J. took me under his wing, now I’m doing the same for Tommy. What’s cool is all of us [quarterbacks] played. I’m here to do whatever the coaches need.”
After a sack by Perry forced a punt, Palisades drove 70 yards in six plays on its first possession, scoring on Okoh’s 37-yard catch and run.
Rayne Camden intercepted a pass to halt a long University drive, but Miles picked off a Manheim pass on the third play of Palisades’ ensuing drive. However, Terrell Cox, Jr. was tackled in the backfield on 4th-and-goal at the 2-yard line and the Dolphins took over on downs.
Late in the second quarter, Jimmy Reyes pounced on a loose ball at the University 23 and the Dolphins cashed in the turnover on Okoh’s three-yard scoring run to make it 14-0 before halftime.
“It was a solid gameplan by them to control the clock and limit our possessions,” Hyde said.
Palisades marched 67 yards in four plays on its first drive of the second half. Okoh finished it on a three-yard run to make it 21-0.
Perry led the defense with 17 tackles (five for losses) with one sack, Noah Karp had 12 tackles and Donald Cook and Dakotah Hamilton each added 10. Lofton and Nathan Campos also had solo sacks.
“To have a home playoff game we have to go 5-0 in league,” Manheim said. “We’re the team to beat, but it won’t be an easy path.”
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.