jaden walk-green

It took 10 offensive plays for Corona Centennial to have an opening-round playoff win wrapped up against Mater Dei. The Huskies held a three-touchdown lead at Santa Ana Stadium on Friday, and not even nine minutes had ticked off the clock.

This dominance began with an efficient drive. Senior quarterback and Hawaii commit Jaden Jefferson led the Huskies 80 yards down the field on eight plays, including three runs for 27 yards and a 32-yard screen pass to former Mater Dei player and senior wide receiver Kennie Leggett for a touchdown.

The Monarchs went three-and-out on their first drive, and a very short pooch-punt from freshman quarterback Paytyn Guess gave the Huskies great field position. That immediately turned into points when junior running back Malaki Davis broke tackles and took the ball 52 yards for a score.

After another three-and-out, Mater Dei punted the ball to Washington commit Jaden Walk-Green. The senior took it 37 yards to set up the Huskies’ offense inside the red zone. Jefferson immediately took off for the remaining 14 yards to the end zone on a quarterback draw.

From there, it was no contest. Mater Dei’s inability to tackle plagued it all night long, and Centennial (8-3) won 45-15 in the Southern Section Division 1 playoff opener. The Huskies led 35-0 at one point in the third quarter. Everything went according to plan.

“No turnovers,” Centennial coach Matt Logan said before the game. “If we can hang on to the football, control ourselves and maybe create a turnover or two, the game will go in our favor.”

Centennial defensive back Jaden Walk-Green brings down a Mater Dei receiver Friday night.

(Nick Koza)

Logan also said his team hasn’t done things the easy way all season. Injuries and close losses put the team at 7-3 coming into the game, forcing Centennial to play away from home. And on Friday, the start of the game had to be pushed back 30 minutes because a crash on the freeway made the Huskies late.

Against Mater Dei, however, adversity was hard to come by.

Jefferson finished the game completing 11 of 20 passes for 126 yards with four touchdowns, while rushing for 158 yards and another score. Star wide receiver and USC commit Quentin Hale, who returned after a month out because of a shoulder injury, had 55 yards on six catches and two touchdowns, including an almost impossible back-shoulder grab in the corner of the end zone.

The star of the night, however, was Walk-Green. He missed a large chunk of the season, including Centennial’s 10-9 loss against Mater Dei on Sept. 11, and made up for it by doing everything possible on the field.

He kicked extra points, made a field goal, caught passes, punted and returned punts and made a couple of tackles in open space in his primary position as safety. On one play, Walk-Green ripped the ball out of his opponent’s hands and took it 30 yards down the field.

And, as the cherry on top, he completed a 21-yard pass to Jefferson. The “athlete” designation beside Walk-Green’s name on the roster is the most accurate description possible. He also plays baseball for Centennial.

Corona Centennial linebacker Matt Salmeron lets out a yell after making a play against Mater Dei on Friday night.

(Nick Koza)

After the game, Walk-Green said he had been itching to get on the field. He put on a performance worthy of a comeback story.

“My parents taught me to be versatile and use every ability that I’ve got. That’s all I do,” Walk-Green said. “I always do good against Mater Dei. I love playing against them.”

A comedy of offensive errors in the second quarter, with the ball on the one-yard line, destroyed Mater Dei coach Raul Lara’s plan for a controlled performance. It started with a bad snap, then a sack and then another bad snap on a field-goal attempt, which kept the home team scoreless at halftime.

Guess finished with 55 yards passing, completing 33% of his passes. He was subbed at halftime after taking sacks and tackles for losses. Senior Cameron Pooley got a chance to make a mark in his final high school game and finished with 228 yards passing and a 59-yard touchdown. He did have a pass intercepted by junior cornerback Caleb Bynum, but was able to give the Monarchs some life in the second half.

Freshman wide receiver Tristan Brown was the other bright spot for Mater Dei, with six catches for 151 yards and a touchdown. The Monarchs finish the season 8-3.

A wild third quarter, which included an onside kick recovery for both teams, made a blowout into an intriguing affair. The craziest part of the night, however, was that a Centennial and Mater Dei playoff game ended with a running clock for the fourth quarter.