Del Oro routs Dragons; braces for Placer invasion

It should be just like old times Friday night at Eagle Stadium when Del Oro's Golden Eagles host Placer High School in a second-round CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Div. III playoff game. If the weather cooperates, Del Oro officials are expecting a huge crowd, which pairs the former longtime rivals who are playing on the gridiron for the first time since 2005. Number two seed Del Oro, 10-1, advanced to the second round after pitching a 42-0 shutout of Sacramento High in last Friday's first round. Placer, the No. 7 seed in the Div. III bracket, pulled away from a 21-21 standoff at halftime to defeat Patterson, 48-28, last Friday in Auburn. Friday's Del Oro-Placer victor will then advance to the Div. III semi-finals which are slated for Nov. 25 against the winner of Friday's game between Cosumnes Oaks and Whitney high schools. The Div. III championship game is then slated either Dec. 2 or Dec. 3 at California State University, Sacramento's Hornet Stadium. In last week's win, the Golden Eagles got off to a rousing start as they tallied all six of their touchdowns in the first half. Del Oro football coach Casey Taylor said he was proud of the intensity his team brought in the first six minutes of the game. "We knew we had to get off to a good start," Taylor said. "Our defense played phenomenally. Our offense, too." Del Oro junior running back Brandon Monroe proved why he was voted the All-Sierra Foothill League Offensive MVP. His speedy 38-yard touchdown run in the first quarter set the tone for the rest of the night. His next big run took him 13 yards to the 2-yard line. He then dashed in to finish the job. Continuing the electric first-half play, sophomore linebacker Tanner Woods intercepted a pass from Sacramento junior quarterback Josiah Johnson, and went on the move with it for a touchdown. "It was crazy. I saw it was short and so I got forward and I just screened it," Woods said. "It could have been a close game, but we all came out prepared." Golden Eagle senior quarterback Bobby Heatherington was on-point with a 36-yard completed pass that sliced right into the arms of senior wide receiver Daniel Thomas, who was waiting in the end zone. Thomas had three catches for 55 yards, while Alex Bertrando had two grabs for 38 yards. Cody Otten, Therin Heryford and Tanner Huber also had pass receptions. Quarterback Zach La Bar also completed two passes for 10 yards. ~ Staff report