Despite lower expectations coming into the season, varsity football is putting together one of their best seasons in years, jumping out to a 4-1 start and rocketing up the Central Coast Section (CCS) standings.
“I think the season is going really great,” junior lineman Quincy Yu said. “We’re [19th] in our division, up with schools like Serra and [Menlo-Atherton].”
This run of form continued on Friday, Oct. 4, as the Panthers grabbed their first league victory with a 43-17 blowout win against Mountain View High School.
Offensively, the team relied on the run game—and it paid off, as senior Lucas Kirk delivered a 212-yard, four-touchdown performance. Senior Luke Dimech and junior Ciaran Baker also added rushing touchdowns against the Spartans.
The defense also shined, anchored by Ravi Krishan’s defensive masterclass. The junior linebacker was all over the field, ending the night with 14 total tackles, 1.5 TFL (tackle for loss), an interception, a sack, and a forced fumble.
“My favorite play of the game was one of the last, it was definitely when I got a sack and forced a fumble on the [quarterback],” Krishnan said.
The Panthers attribute their newfound—and frankly surprising—success to a variety of factors. After all, just about everyone on the team acknowledges this team is starkly different compared to last year’s squad. In fact, it was this Mountain View team that ended the Panthers season last year 49-21 in the CCS playoffs.
“We got new coaches, new players, and we changed up our scheme,” Yu said. “Ever since then, we’ve been dominating.”
Fueled by their success so far, the Panthers have high aspirations for the remainder of the year.
“We want to aim for first place in our division, and we want to win every single game for the rest of the season,” Yu said.
These goals will be tested Friday with a matchup against a strong Hillsdale team who, along with Burlingame, are the main contenders for the Peninsula Athletic League De-Anza title.
“We got some things to work on, and we’re going to focus on that during practice this week,” Yu said. “Then, we’re going to pop out next week [against Hillsdale].”
