Following his Huskies' 27-6 first-round playoff loss Friday, Hillcrest coach Lee Leslie talked so highly of Northridge quarterback John Martinez you would have thought he was either his father or his agent.
Meantime, Northridge coach Fred Fernandes credited his team's rushing attack - led by Todd Nielson's 113-yard outing - as being key to the Knights' first playoff victory in school history.In addition, Northridge's defense had eight sacks, three interceptions, stopped Hillcrest on fourth down twice and gave up only two field goals.
Sure, it was Halloween, but the Knights are looking more and more like a legitimate contender. No tricking.
"We were 0-9 a year ago, so I don't know how much respect you can ask for," said Fernandes, now in his second year as head coach at Northridge. "I know we're one of the top eight teams. That's all I know."
Northridge will face Granger, which pounded Jordan 42-20, in the 5A quarterfinals next week. Both finished second in their regions, so there will be a coin toss to determine who will host the game.
Leslie said he'll be at that game, admiring Martinez from the 50-yard line. On Friday, he became a big fan of the lanky 6-foot-4 quarterback, who kept the Huskies' defense off-balance all day.
Martinez, a senior who went to Ogden as a sophomore and lived in Hawaii last year, completed 10-of-14 passes for 134 yards. But he was especially effective on the ground, rushing for 63 yards - both scrambling and on designed runs.
"He's a great passer, but he's every bit as tough on the bootleg," Fernandes said. "He's a double threat, and that makes him tough to defend."
Leslie, a former college quarterback at Southern Utah, compared Martinez to Brighton's Reno Mahe as far as being the player who can individually make the biggest impact on a game. That was at least true on Friday.
"Some of the state colleges better not let this kid slip by," Leslie said.
It was Nielson who came up with the biggest play of the game. Three minutes after scoring from six yards out, he broke free from the pack for a 77-yard touchdown. Northridge lineman Taylor Swensen leveled a Hillcrest defensive back to clear a path for Nielson on the play.
Nielson's back-to-back TDs put the Knights up 19-3 in the exciting first half that saw Hillcrest quarterback Shawn Kojima throw for 224 yards.
Jeremy Kentch scored the Knights' final touchdown with a 3-yard run in the fourth quarter.
Northridge linebacker Colby Bockwoldt had three sacks, while defensive linemen Chad Dunn and Dale Webster created havoc in Hill-crest's backfield all game long.
"Koj was running for his life," said Leslie, adding that Northridge only used a four-man front for most of the game. "They won it where it counts - up front."