Comets rise to occasion

By: MARWAN RAZOUK - Staff Writer | Sunday, September 16, 2007 12:35 AM PDT ∞

ESCONDIDO ---- The return of legendary football coach Tom Craft and his son and starting quarterback Kevin Craft to their old stomping grounds of Palomar was largely anticlimactic in a 31-23 victory for the Comets over Mt. San Antonio College on Saturday afternoon at Escondido High.

Palomar (3-0), ranked No. 11 in the J.C. Grid-Wire poll, received a stifling effort from its defense, and after Kevin Craft ---- a Valley Center High alumnus ---- left the game in the opening series of the second half with severe dehydration, No. 9 Mt. SAC (2-1) just wasn't the same offensively.

"We put pressure on the (quarterbacks) when we could and forced them into positions where we could help ourselves," said sixth-year head coach Joe Early, who replaced Tom Craft after he left to coach San Diego State in 2002. "We could have had (a lot) of interceptions and we ended up with only one. We have to take advantage of those things."

The defense was relentless all game long, harassing Craft (14-of-28, 242 yards, two touchdowns) and replacement Dominic Salmon (6-of-20, 63 yards, one interception) to the tune of three fumbles, one of which resulted in a touchdown ---- a sack and forced fumble by Simon Malo and recovery by Andrew Sugg in the end zone for a 14-9 Comets lead.

Comets sophomore quarterback and Torrey Pines alum Hunter Wanket (11-of-25, 226 yards) ---- who had his chin glued at halftime and was given stitches after the game ---- found Tobias Shanks (five catches, 114 yards, TD) and Kyle Hill on scoring passes from 57 and 11, respectively, to give the Comets a 28-9 lead in the second quarter.

Palomar's defense recorded six sacks in addition to countless quarterback hurries.

"We stepped it up ---- we had good game preparation," said Geraldo Powell, a 6-foot-1, 220-pound defensive lineman. "(Coaches) were talking about Tom Craft and Kevin Craft how they'll have the same offense. It's stuff we see everyday in practice."

Tom Craft spent a combined 16 seasons over two stints as head coach of the Comets beginning in 1983, compiling a 115-56-1 record to go with three community college state championships and three national championships.

After a four-year stint as head coach of SDSU, where he finished 19-29, Craft spent last year volunteering with the Comets before accepting the offensive coordinator position under Bob Jastrab with the Mounties.

Kevin Craft, who used to be a ball boy for his father at Palomar, decided to join his father for his sophomore year after leading the Aztecs in passing a year ago, for what he said was an opportunity to play under the volume and variety of his father's offense. Tom Craft said his son was taken to Palomar Hospital for treatment of total body cramping as a precautionary measure.

Powell had two of those sacks, but his constant pressure on Mt. SAC's signal-callers resulted in a handful of other successful plays for the defense.

"Coach (J.G.) Aegerter couldn't stress that enough," Powell said. "They said I owed them one ---- I missed a sack last week against Grossmont."

Mt. SAC had a glimmer of hope at the end of the game when John McDowell recovered a blocked punt in the end zone to cut the score to 31-23, but the Mounties were unable to recover the ensuing onside kick.

Contact staff writer Marwan Razouk at mrazouk@yahoo.com.

First name only. Comments including last names, contact addresses, e-mail addresses or phone numbers will be deleted. Attempts to misrepresent your identity or impersonate any person will not be approved. All comments are screened before they appear online, so please keep them brief. Comments reflect the views of those commenting and not necessarily those of the North County Times or its staff writers. Click here to view additional comment policies.