Coronado Islanders 24, Kearny Komets 27
The Kearny Komets went down, 14-0, early against the Coronado Islanders Friday night. But behind the one-man-show that was Takoda Browne, they pulled in front and then held on for dear-life.
These two teams battled it out to the end. The Islanders went up 14-0 early, but the Komets and the Browne show fought back to make it a 14-14 halftime score. Coronado struck first in the second half with an Andres Gonzalez-Iuna 36-yard field goal, to go up 17-14. The Komets responded with back-to-back touchdowns to go up 27-17 with time running out, but the Islanders got a late touchdown to bring the score to 27-24. Then the Islanders managed to recover the onside kick with less than 2 minutes left in the game. They made a short push down-field, before a Komets’ interception sealed the game for the boys from Kearny.
This was truly the story of two standouts battling it out from start to finish. Coronado’s sophomore quarterback Briley Knight, in his second start, didn’t look awful – showing signs of promise moving forward. Coronado will be happy to have him for two more years. But let’s be honest, Christopher Haas runs the show in Coronado. With 25 carries for nearly 150 yards on the ground and a touchdown, 5 receptions for 78 yards and another touchdown, and another 68 yards in kick returns – Haas finished with nearly 300 all-purpose yards and two TD’s. Haas was rarely on the sidelines, as he was also second in tackles and led the team with one interception. Impressive, but somehow out-shined.
Takoda Browne, “someone get this kid some skittles.” That’s right, the Kearny Komets have found themselves someone truly deserving of the title, Beast Mode. Browne ended the game with more than 300 yards rushing, 3 rushing touchdowns and added a passing touchdown to keep his fantasy owners extra happy on Friday night. Walking the sideline, you could see a college scout standing there watching. You could ask him who he was there to see, but you already knew the answer. This kid is no joke.
As I predicted in my preview, it was a close game, with Kearny coming out on top. I wouldn’t say they stopped Christopher Haas, and I’m not sure that’s even possible. But they were able to limit him just enough to pull out the win this week. Takoda Browne’s presence also seemed to help a bit.
Preview: This Friday night the Coronado Islanders travel to Kearny to face the Kearny Komets in an inner-conference matchup.
The Islanders are an even .500 on the season so far, with three wins and three losses. All of their wins were either blowouts or shutouts. When they get going, they really get going. One of the biggest issues they face is their overwhelming reliance on one player, Christopher Haas. The senior, Haas has carried the ball more than 100 times already this season – totally nearly 750 yards on the ground and nine rushing touchdowns. He also leads the team in receptions and total receiving yards, leads the team in punt and kick returns, and is third on the team in total tackles. He has accounted for 11 of the team’s 18 touchdowns this season. If the Komets can contain him, they have a very strong chance at walking away with the W.
The Komets, 2-5, have a more balanced attack, with three running back getting more than 25 carries so far this season, two of which have rushed for more than 520 yards each. Those two account for nine of the team’s ten rushing touchdowns on the year. The passing game is very healthy, with five separate receivers recording a touchdown so far – 11 total. Takoda Browne is the clear leader of this team, leading in rushing and receiving – second in tackles.
Expect this one to be a relatively close matchup, with Kearny coming out on top at home, as long as they can limit Christopher Haas.
Be sure to tune in to KUSI at 10:30 p.m. Friday night for highlights of this game and all others, on The Prep Pigskin Report.
