GUSTINE — Denair High running back Bryson Salazar is always happy when his team wins, regardless of his statistics. But head coach Anthony Armas had a hunch that the junior speedster was expecting more from the 63-yard rushing performance he had in last week’s league-opening 36-21 victory over Stone Ridge Christian.
“He didn't say it, but I think he was a little bummed,” Armas said. “But I tell these kids, it’s somebody's turn every week.”
Friday night was Salazar’s turn, as he exploded for 131 yards on six carries and four total touchdowns as the Coyotes cruised to a 42-14 victory on the road against Gustine High.
The Coyotes improved to 5-1 overall and to 2-0 in the Southern Athletic League, while the Reds dropped to 2-4 on the year and 0-2 against conference opponents.
“I really wasn’t expecting all this coming in the game,” Salazar admitted. “We knew last year that Gustine had beat Stone Ridge, so they are a tough team. We knew we were going to have to put up a fight against them. To do this, I’m pretty pumped about it.”
The Coyotes held a 7-0 lead before Salazar ever recorded his first touch, as they had scored on just their second play from scrimmage when senior tailback Degan Butler broke off a 50-yard touchdown run. On the team’s third offensive play (after the defense forced their first of two turnovers in the game) Salazar ran into the end zone nearly untouched from 24 yards out.
After the Denair defense forced a turnover on downs on the ensuing drive, it took just four plays for Salazar to turn a corner and cash in on a 15-yard score to extend the lead to 21-0.
The Coyotes went away from Salazar briefly when quarterback Derek Potter connected with Harlan Brown from 42 yards out to make it a 28-0 ballgame right before halftime, but just over a minute into the second half action, Salazar found the open field again, dashing 68 yards for the touchdown.
That was the last touch Salazar saw until the start of the fourth quarter.
“After that, Salazar wasn’t seeing a lot of action, I was literally talking to my coaches on the headset that we needed to get him some touches,” Armas shared. “And then he kind of takes matters into his own hands.”
Or his own legs, for that matter, as the speedster capped off his night with a 68-yard punt return touchdown.
“I just caught it, saw two players to the outside of me, and I split them, my teammate Connor Hart was lead blocking on the sideline for me, and I just raced down the sideline,” Salazar said. “That’s the team we are. We all really want this, we’re all dedicated and show up to practice because we know this year is the year for us to be great.”
The Coyotes are off to their best start since 2018, when the program started 5-0 and went on to win the CIF Division 7-AA state championship.
Hart was a force throughout the game, especially early on as he made four tackles in the first quarter alone. Alongside him making things difficult for the Reds was Sebastian Esquivel with his six tackles and a sack. Even Coronel, another defensive force who plays both sides of the ball, recovered a fumble to set up the long pass by Potter to Brown — the only completed pass between either team on the night.
Butler ran for 87 yards on seven carries.
“We have some pretty darn good lineman, and we have pretty darn good skill guys on our offense and defense,” Armas said. “We always talk about being fast and physical. You always have an idea of what you could be based on what you see from guys coming in and during some practices. So far, these guys have been good.
“They're a smart group, which I can't emphasize enough, in terms of scheme on both sides of the ball. There's not a whole lot we have to hold back, because they pick stuff up pretty quick. Tonight, (Gustine) came out in a different defense than we thought, and the kids were fine. In the second half, they went back to that defense, and we were good. We know what we're doing, and it’s impressive.”
The Reds had their share of successes in the second half, nabbing their first points of the night with about 11 minutes to play when a 12-play drive was capped off with an 11-yard touchdown rush by Avery Etheridge. But by that point, it was 35-0 and there was a running clock.
With just under three minutes on the clock, Daniel Navarro took a direct snap the 55-yard distance to make it 42-14 after a successful 2-point conversion try. With junior captain Crue Correa not available due to an injury suffered last week against Mariposa — seven days removed from putting up four touchdowns the week prior in a win against Riverbank — Navarro finished as the Reds’ leading rusher with 94 yards on 11 carries, while Etheridge racked up 68 yards on nine tries.
Both teams will have home games next week, with the Coyotes hosting Le Grand for homecoming and the Reds welcoming Waterford.
Le Grand improved to 4-1 overall and 2-0 in the SAL after defeating Waterford 21-14 on Friday night. The Wildcats dropped to 3-2 on the year, with Friday’s game being their first league contest.
