West Ranch football came out firing against John Burroughs High School of Burbank in a 54-0 electrifying win in their first home game at Valencia High School on Thursday.
Setting the tone early, quarterback Weston Eget connected with Jovan Camacho on a 26-yard touchdown pass to put the Wildcats up on the board first.
“I’m definitely confident having Weston back there. I wouldn’t have anyone else,” Camacho said. “I know he’s going to make those great passes and do his best so I’m just trying to keep up my end.”
After an interception by Zachary Van Bennekum at the eight-minute mark of the first quarter, the Wildcats’ (2-0) offense didn’t let off the gas pedal giving Eget another chance to prove that his accuracy is on point.
On the very next play after the interception, Eget found Brandon Wyre for a 42-yard touchdown catch, putting the Wildcats up 14-0.
“Weston and our offense was on point all night long and our defense kept getting stops so that was a plus,” said Ryan Camacho.
Eget finished the game throwing for 290 yards on 8-for-15 pass attempts and four touchdowns, adding 15 yards on the ground.
Thanks to some penalties by the Wildcats, their up-tempo offense was slowed, but not for long.
As the Indians (0-1) were driving, Jovan read the opposing quarterback’s eyes and stepped in front of a pass and returned it to the house for a 79-yard touchdown.
“Our team is doing really great and if we keep this up we will be trouble for a lot of teams this year,” Ryan said. “We got off to a fast start so we hope to keep this going all year long.”
In the early minutes of the third quarter, Jovan came up big again, laying the lumber on an Indian receiver, knocking the ball loose and allowing John Collier to rumble into the end zone for a 48-yard fumble recovery score.
The touchdown put the Wildcats up 27-0 with just over 11 minutes to go in the first half.
Combining to score five touchdowns on the ground, through the air, and on an interception returned for a touchdown, Jovan and Ryan showed how talented this Wildcats team is, providing leadership and inspiration.
Jovan finished the game with three receptions for 102 yards and two touchdowns. Ryan finished the game with two touchdowns and 99 yards on the ground plus the interception returned for a touchdown.
Hart transfer Jackson Reyes got in on the scoring, catching a 69-yard touchdown pass from Eget. Reyes finished with a 100 receiving yards and a touchdown through the air, adding 15 yards on the ground.
Defensively, the Wildcats were led by linebacker Bryce Buchanan, who constantly disrupted the Indian offense by getting to the quarterback. Jeremiah Guzman and Van Bennekum combined for eight tackles.
“Our team overall helped out and contributed on both sides of the ball,” Jovan said. “Even people that don’t score found a way to be a factor.”
The Wildcats have a tough test ahead of them as they host a strong St. Genevieve team next week at Valencia High School on Friday at 7 p.m.
“We will have to find out because I don’t think we are clicking just yet, to be honest,” said West Ranch head coach Chris Varner. “We learned a lot these past two weeks, but St. Genevieve is a big, strong and athletic team so I think that will be a real test.”
