Rancho Alamitos Passes Test From Esperanza With Ease

PLACENTIA — Rancho Alamitos Coach Doug Case scheduled Esperanza because he wanted to see how his talented Division VIII team measured up against an elite Division I program.

Apparently they measure up pretty well: Rancho Alamitos 38, Esperanza 14.

And it wasn’t really even that close.

Esperanza had the bigger program--it dressed more than 100 players to Rancho Alamitos’ 39, the bigger line by an average of 60 pounds a player and the higher ranking--third to ninth. But Esperanza was humbled by a faster, quicker and more determined Rancho Alamitos team.

Rancho Alamitos running backs Alex Blanco and David Vickers proved they will be legitimate Division I college backs. They rumbled over, sprinted past and flew around a bewildered Esperanza defense for a combined 349 yards and four touchdowns Thursday night at Valencia High. On defense, Rancho Alamitos’ slippery but undersized line stuffed Esperanza’s running game and pressured quarterback Grant Wagner into throwing three interceptions, two of which were caught by Vickers from his outside linebacker position.

Afterward, a delirious Case was asked if the victory was the biggest in Rancho Alamitos history.

“Absolutely, at least the biggest in my [five-year] tenure,” Case said. “A Division VIII school going against a perennial powerhouse and us coming out on top?”

Vickers, who rushed for 162 yards and three touchdowns, said he had no idea it would be so easy.

“I didn’t have any doubt that we could win, but this kind of dominance surprised me,” he said.

Vickers was also surprised that Esperanza continued to talk about how little Rancho Alamitos’ program is while they were being shut out at halftime, 17-0.

“They kept yelling, ‘Division who,’ ” Vickers said. “That just added fuel to the fire and made this even sweeter.”

Vickers and Blanco (187 yards, one touchdown, 29 carries) might have been a two-man wrecking crew, but they had plenty of help from their offense line.

“I’m extremely proud,” line coach Dean Jacobs said. “These guys exceeded my expectations. Everybody talked about how big they were, but my guys opened up holes all night.”

The Vaquero line opened a hole on the second play from scrimmage and Vickers opened some eyes by sprinting 80 yards for a touchdown before Esperanza’s fans were even in their seats. Esperanza scored early in the third quarter to trim the lead to 17-7, but Rancho Alamitos responded with a 58-yard, 10-play drive that was capped by a Vickers seven-yard touchdown run that he punctuated by running over an Esperanza defender at the two-yard line.

“That drive was huge,” Case said. “If we have to put, we might be looking at 17-14. I thought my kids responded.”

Esperanza (1-1) closed to within 24-14 with eight minutes left, but Rancho Alamitos put the game away with a 15-yard Alex Blanco run that featured Blanco running over one defender and through two more.