Rick Hayashida and Thomas Randolph found themselves on opposite sidelines Halloween eve, but their football story began on the same one. Randolph once played for Hayashida, later coached alongside him, and now faced off against the man who helped shape his football mind. But this meeting carried more weight than old memories. Randolph’s Taft Toreadors are in the middle of a renaissance, led by quarterback Nathan Swinson, who had already compiled over 2,300 passing yards this season and could carve up any defense if given time.

Across the field, Hayashida’s El Camino Real Royals brought a bruising, three-headed running attack that dared defenses to stop them. “We run the ‘Power Pitch’,” Hayashida explained. “I’ve run that offense for the better part of four decades, so it’s not like they don’t know what we’re going to do, but these kids have bought in.”

The Royals opened the game in dramatic fashion, though not the way they planned. Their returner slipped on the kickoff and went down at the one-yard line. Two false starts later, the ball sat precariously near the goal line. It looked like Taft might start the night with a huge defensive play.

Instead, El Camino’s Shane Bogacz powered through the line for an eight-yard gain, giving the Royals breathing room. From there, they imposed their will, marching 99 yards down the field on a steady diet of power pitches that Taft’s defense simply couldn’t stop. Takia Campbell capped the drive with a 53-yard gallop to put El Camino up 7-0.

Perhaps because they knew each other‘s tendencies so well, Randolph tried to establish the run early – to no avail. Facing fourth down near midfield, he decided on an early gamble, but Swinson’s pass fell incomplete, giving the ball right back to the Royals.

El Camino continued to dish out nothing but power pitches. If they can’t stop it, keep doing it seemed to be the mantra and why not. Campbell and Bogacz looked like Mercury Morris and Larry Csonka. Bogacz finished the drive with 4 straight tough carries, punching in a two-yard touchdown run to make it 14-0 with 4:11 left in the first quarter. The rout appeared to be on.

Predictably, Taft’s next drive leaned on Swinson’s arm. And while he completed all three of his passes, penalties stalled the series and left the Toreadors facing another fourth down. The conversion failed again, turning the ball over once more.

In the 2nd quarter El Camino fell victim to its own penalties and an ineffective pass game. Despite dominating every facet, the Royals led just 14-0 at halftime. 

Somehow, Taft was still in it when they received the second-half kickoff determined to shift momentum. And for a moment, it looked like they might. Sophomore Jacob Southall broke a 10-yard run, and Swinson connected with Erik Koron on a 52-yard deep cross down to the Royals’ eight-yard line.

But just two plays later, El Camino’s relentless pass rush forced Swinson into a hurried throw over the middle that was intercepted in the end zone by A.J. Gupta, who returned it to midfield. The turnover set up Campbell’s second score, a nine-yard run to make it 20-0 after a missed extra point.

It was the ultimate momentum killer. A touchdown could have finally put a little pressure on the Royals. From there, the Royals’ defense stifled Taft’s usually high-powered offense. All-night long, plagued by penalties, the Toreadors never found a rhythm. Campbell scored his third touchdown of the night, then added a two-point conversion. Campbell finished with 184 yards on only 19 carries. Bogacz tallied 79 on 15 carries and the one score. The Royals accumulated 340 yards on the ground and dominated time of possession. 

Swinson’s final drive ended much like his earlier attempt – picked off again by Gupta, his second interception of the night.

Not to be overlooked, El Camino’s defense turned in a flawless performance, completely shutting down the Taft offense. “The difference is we’re now starting to get that belief,” Hayashida reflected, “that we should be winning. Rather than ‘are we’ or ‘if’ we’re going to win.” Should the Royals continue to play this brand of smash-mouth football in all facets of the game, they’ll be a team no one wants to face in the D1 playoffs. 

As for Taft, Coach Randolph summed it up bluntly: “I feel like we weren’t at our best. And you have to be buttoned up. You have to be disciplined when you’re going against a D1 team coached by Rick Hayashida. Can’t have those self-inflicted wounds. We had a lot of penalties. We dropped touchdown passes. We threw interceptions in the end zone. Can’t do that against a good team.”

All images by VST Senior Photographer Benjamin Becher