Rebels Outlast Bell-Jeff for Season-Opening Win

It wasn’t the prettiest of victories. But was satisfied to get started on the right track as the Rebels opened their season with a 12-8 nonleague victory over Bellarmine-Jefferson on Friday night at North Hollywood High.

“The boys kept fighting and fighting. That was one of our things last year,” Rebels coach Antonio Harrison said. “Whether we’re up or down by the fourth quarter, we seemed stalled. Today we had a different team. These boys fought the whole way.”

Flintridge Prep (1-0) scored the game winner with 7:23 left to play as Chris Wirthlin scored on a one-yard run. One play earlier Wirthlin caught a 32-yard pass from quarterback Clayton Weirick to put the Rebels within striking distance.

“I put it in the air for my gamer Chris,” Harrison said of the play. “He said ‘Coach, I owe you one,’ so he went and got me one.”

The contest was a battle of two solid defenses that forced a combined seven turnovers.

“We’ve got a small team, so in practice we can’t go live against each other,” Harrison said. “I think the boys realized we’re playing somebody else and you’re moving fast.”

Weirick, a junior, came back from a shaky first half to lead the Rebels back to victory.

He finished 10 of 20 passing for 116 yards with two interceptions.

“Our line did a great job, especially in the passing game. Clayton our quarterback, I told him I don’t care if you throw an interception,” Harrison said. “If you see someone open, put it in there.”

Bell-Jeff (0-1) took an 8-0 lead on the first play of the second quarter as Josh Martinez scored on a two-yard run. The Guards were successful on the two-point conversion attempt as Mitch Kellogg hooked up with Demitri Moreno on a pass play.

The Rebels fought back, taking advantage of one of the Guards’ four turnovers.

Wirthlin nearly scored on a two-yard run, but fumbled the ball just before he was about to get into the end zone. Fortunately for the Rebels, Daniel Jung jumped on the loose ball in the end zone for the touchdown.

“I tried to reach over to put that touchdown in and when I reached over I guess it just fell out of my hands,” Wirthlin said.

Weirick said he saw great strides over the course of the game.

“I definitely came in jittery. Two interceptions and a couple of fumbles wouldn’t be the way I’d like to play my first game, but you can’t be unhappy with a win,” Weirick said. “Coach told me we’d go more to a passing based offense and once he confided in me, I settled down.”

Second Quarter

BJ—Martinez 2 run (Moreno pass from Kellogg)

FP – Jung recovered fumble in end zone (run failed)

Fourth Quarter

FP – Wirthlin 1 run (pass failed)

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

PASSING:

FP: Weirick (10 of 20, 116 yards, 2 INTs); BJ: Kellogg (1 of 3, 27 yards, INT).

RUSHING:

FP: Wirthlin (16 carries, 74 yards, TD); BJ: Martinez (17 carries, 74 yards, TD).

RECEIVING:

FP: Smith 4 catches, 21 yards. BJ: Martinez 1 catch, 27 yards.