La Costa Canyon Mavericks 38, Escondido Cougars 0

The rain definitely came as a shock to everyone across San Diego County Friday night, but what didn’t was La Costa Canyon’s dominance on the both sides of the ball.

The Mavericks (3-0) skated through Week Three with a lopsided victory against the Escondido Cougars (1-2), shutting them out 38-0.

Senior quarterback Jake Neufeld was one of the standout players on the field Friday night, recording two passing touchdowns, as well as another one that he ran in himself.

The real winner of the night, however, was the Maverick’s defense. Their whole line was tenacious on every snap, making it difficult for the Cougars to gain any leverage on the field.

Escondido struggled offensively, but their kryptonite was their fumbles they had in the first half.

The Cougars’ first fumble of the game happened in the first quarter when Robbie Ramos Jr. lost control of the ball after running in to one of his running backs in the back field.

Christian Estrella recovered it on the Cougars’ 20-yard line, setting up the quarterback keeper for a Jake Neufeld touchdown. At this point, the Mavericks were leading 14-0.

Another fumble occurred in the second quarter off a bobbled snap. This placed the Mavericks on the Cougars’ 15-yard line, setting up a 28-yard field goal for Nicholas McAllister a few plays later.

La Costa Canyon will be traveling to Poway High School (1-2) next week in hopes of keeping their undefeated season alive. Escondido will head south for Week Four and match-up against the Serra Conquistadors.

Make sure to tune into the Prep Pigskin Report next Friday for Week Four coverage and highlights from next week’s match-ups. Also, don’t forget to follow us on Twitter @KUSIPPR and @RedJacketArmy for live updates and all kinds of PPR exclusives. 

PREVIEW: The La Costa Canyon Mavericks (2-0) have proven for two consecutive weeks in a row that they want to be considered a power house in San Diego County. The Green and Navy Blue are coming off a big win against Mt. Carmel High School last week in a lopsided 50-13 victory and are hoping to keep the momentum going as they head in to Week Three.  

The Mavericks will be hosting Escondido High School (1-1) this Friday, a team who might be an under dog, but has the potential to pull off the upset of the night.

The Cougars have had a rough couple of years on the field, but two years in as head coach, Jud Bordman is making strides with this 2017 roster.

Something different he’s pursuing? Having a freshman start at quarterback.

This isn’t something you see at most varsity levels, but freshman quarter back Robbie Ramos Jr. has proven that he deserves to play with the big boys.

Last week the freshman completed a 27-yard touchdown pass to Mason Malone, and then helped assist on a two-point conversion to tie the game against the Mira Mesa Marauders. Even though the Cougars ended up falling, seeing a freshman perform with such ease in a high intensity environment is impressive within itself.

The Cougars are also backed by Kevin Rodriguez, a running back who owns the offensive side of the ball and knows how to navigate the field with ease. So far this season, the senior has already recorded five touchdowns in just two games.

Escondido is solid on the offensive side of the ball, but as they head in to Week Three, they are being paired against an even better defense. As a whole, the mavericks have already recorded ten sacks on the season.

Veteran quarterback Jake Neufeld returns as the Maverick’s starter for a second year in a row. As a junior, Neufeld threw for almost 1500-yards.

In his past two games, head coach Sean Sovacool isn’t surprised by the senior’s success.

“Jake is very athletic. He has a great release and is very accurate. He’s been having such a good year already in just two games, but isn’t even close to his best football. He has a strong grasp of our system and has been a huge help to a lot of our young skill players.”

Another stand-out player on the Maverick’s roster is running back Karson Lipper. Just this past week, the senior recorded 155-yards rushing and three touchdowns against Mt. Carmel’s defense.

La Costa Canyon will be playing with a full roster this Friday as they head in to Week Three with no injuries. There is no injury report for Escondido High School at this time and are expected to be playing with a full roster as well.

La Costa Canyon has played Escondido five times in both school’s game histories and have won each meeting. Will history repeat itself? Or will the books be rewritten?

Highlights of this game and 29 others from around San Diego County can be seen on the Emmy-Award winning high school football show "Prep Pigskin Report." Kick off is at 10:30 every Friday night during the fall on KUSI-TV Channel 9/51. Live streaming of the show will also be available on KUSI.com.