Carson Can Still Overwhelm : High school football: Longtime powerhouse looks anything but diminished in 49-26 rout of Fairfax.

Carson High may no longer have the City Section’s most dominant football program, but the Colts still have enough talent to run away from most teams.

Fairfax found that out Friday afternoon, losing, 49-26, at Carson.

The Colts amassed 295 yards and five touchdowns on the ground.

Junior tailback Patrick McCall led with two touchdowns and 105 yards in 12 carries, with reserves Jason Houston and George Armstrong combining for 100 yards and two touchdowns in only seven carries.

“It was real important for us to get a win under our belts,� McCall said a week after the Colts (1-1) lost their season opener to La Puente Bishop Amat. “Our goal is to get Carson’s program back to the championship level again. That’s what we’re about now.�

Under Coach Joe Maiale, who took over at Fairfax only three weeks ago, the Lions opened the game with a no-huddle run-and-shoot offense and drove 80 yards in eight plays to take a 6-0 lead on a six-yard touchdown pass from David Bennett to Jermaine Walton.

“They caught us off guard when they drove down the field and scored passing,� Carson first-year Coach Mike Sakurai said. “We had to make some adjustments and not allow them to throw the ball over our heads.�

It did not take the Colts long to answer. McCall ran untouched 15 yards to tie the score four minutes later. Carson took its first lead, 8-6, late in the first quarter when the Colts’ Kato Iosua tackled Fairfax punter Larry Cantor, who had taken a bad snap, in the end zone for a safety.

McCall scored again midway through the second quarter on a 10-yard run to give Carson a 14-6 lead at halftime.

The Colts blew the game open in the third quarter with three touchdowns on short runs by Houston and Armstrong and a 48-yard pass from sophomore Allen Viena to Joshua Canales.

Fullback Greg Merchant, who finished with 91 yards in seven carries, stretched the Colts’ lead to 42-6 with a one-yard run as the fourth quarter began. Reserve quarterback Kenneth Lindsay finished the Colts’ scoring when he teamed up with tight end David Martin for a 65-yard touchdown pass play.

Fairfax (1-1), which beat Granada Hills last week, made the score close in the fourth quarter with three touchdown passes by Bennett, who completed 10 of 30 passes for 257 yards and four touchdowns.

Carson, which has reached the City finals 18 times with nine titles, will play top-ranked Los Alamitos on Thursday night at Long Beach City College.