It was a real cat fight Friday night with the Cougars taking on the Panthers on Homecoming weekend. Things started out great for the home side with the first drive going 10 straight running plays highlighted by a 36 yard romp by PJ Modena and a 6 yard bolt for a touchdown by Harrison Tobias. With the Julian Jimenez extra point, it was 7-0 home team. Burlingame went three and out on their first drive and after the punt, the Cougars pounced again. On first down, Owen Miller hit Kai Zannette for a 39 yard pass bringing the ball to the Panthers 35 yard line. Three plays later Modena exploded for 21 yards and a touchdown, giving the Cougars a 14-0 lead just before the end of the first quarter. On their next series the Panthers felt the game slipping away so they tried a pass on 4th and 5 from their own territory but couldn’t convert.The Cougars took the ball on the Panther 41 yard line and were moving in for the kill, but ended up having a pass intercepted. Burlingame went on to score twice in the second quarter to tie the score 14-14 at halftime. Offensive Player of the Week PJ Modena scored another touchdown in the 3rd quarter and totaled 161 yards on just 19 carries. Miller added 50 yards on the ground and went 6 of 9 passing for 106 yards including a 26 yard touchdown pass to Dio Lucido late in the game. At 21-14 at the end of the third it looked promising, but the Panthers scored twice in the fourth quarter. On their last PAT attempt, the Burlingame snap was low and the holder scrambled, evaded tacklers and threw a pass into the end zone for a two point conversion. This gave them 29 points and when the Cougars failed on their two point attempt after the Miller to Lucido TD pass, the score stood at 29-27 with 48 seconds remaining. Special Teams players of the Week Gael Segura and Ayden Courtney teamed up for an improbable but successful on-sides kick recovery which gave the Cougars a final opportunity. Miller completed two passes to work the ball down to the 25 yard line but the Cougars failed to score before time ran out. During the game,several possessions were stifled by the Cougars with notable plays, like Miller recovering a Panther fumble and a sack delivered by Modena. For his play on the defensive line, Alan Avila was named Defensive Player of the Week for his consistency, effort and getting in on numerous tackles. Gio Lopez-Ruano was named Scout Team Player of the Week.
The loss was a tough one, but the Cougars are very much alive in the playoff hunt with two regular season games remaining. This Friday the Cougars will travel to Aragon at 7 PM and then will host the rival Tigers of Terra Nova on Cougar Hill Friday night, November 4th. Go Cougars !!
The week’s Community Cougars are the HMBHS broadcasting dream team of Pat Olson (Play by Play) and John Carey (Color Man). Mr. Olson and Mr. Carey have been the personalities of the “Mark Foyer Press Box” for years. Mr. Olson has also kept stats for the Cougars for years. We’d like to thank these two teachers for all that they contribute to Cougar Football.