Last second touchdown secures South victory in 48th Lions All-Star football game
What looked like a shutout win in the 48th annual Lions All-Star Football Game quickly turned into an instant classic at Tracy High’s Wayne Schneider Stadium Saturday night.
After the South took a 12-point lead into the fourth quarter, it looked like the game was wrapped up, but the North answered with 15 straight points to take a lead with under two minutes left.
North quarterback, St. Mary’s graduate Samson Hunkin, took home the game’s Offensive MVP award after an evening of scrambling and extending plays. According to stats provided by Cal-Hi Sports, Hunkin completed 18 of 32 passes for 249 yards and two touchdowns.
Los Banos quarterback and 2023 Western Athletic Conference MVP David Herrera overcame a pair of interceptions early in the game, finding Central Catholic’s Trace Hernandez wide open in the back of the end zone on a scramble drill touchdown for an 18-15 South team win. The South has now won five of the last games.
After punctuating the 46-yard drive with the score, Hernandez was mobbed on the South sideline by teammates and coaches before turning to the crowd to celebrate the eventual game-winning touchdown. According to Cal-Hi Sports, the speedy receiver finished the game with six catches for 106 yards and had three carries for 10 yards. Herrera completed 10 of 17 passes for 133 yards.
“We saw a lot of zone coverage and with 12 seconds left and the game on the line, we’re not going to be expecting man coverage,” Hernandez said. “The quarterback did his job, rolled out and avoided the sack and found me in the end zone. Can’t write a script any better than that.”
The South jumped out to a 12-0 lead thanks to a pair of rushing touchdowns from Enochs’ Aiden Muhammad.
The shifty running back burst through a hole in the second quarter for the first touchdown of the game on a 38-yard run as the South took a 6-0 lead into halftime. On the first drive of the second half, Muhammad and the South struck again, rushing for a two-yard score.
“Getting that first touchdown was really big for us,” Muhammad said. “Trace got me to the two-yard-line (on the second touchdown). A big shoutout goes out to my O-line. I couldn’t do that without them.”
He also picked up a key first down late in the game to set up the game-winning touchdown.
Muhammad took home game MVP honors after his 13-carry, 77-yard night.
“My mindset was to give it everything I have,” Muhammad said. “Got to show what I usually try to show in games.”
“With all of these great players out here, the last thing you’re thinking is you’re the best player out here. But to come out with the (MVP) trophy, it feels great.”
Jalonn Booth believes every player on a football field has his job to do. Saturday, Booth’s job was simple: Get sacks.
The Merced High defensive lineman and Central California Conference MVP played his role to perfection, collecting nine tackles and five sacks in Saturday’s all-star game. When the South needed a play to slow the North’s momentum, Booth was there to make it. Whether it was taking down a rusher in the backfield or chasing down North quarterback Samson Hunkin after a 29-yard gain.
“This is going to sound super cliche, but when I was a freshman on varsity, my coach programmed me to do my job,” Booth said. “In every phase of the game, there’s a job to be done by 11 men, and it’s my job to not let the other 10 guys on the field down.”
Booth credits his coach, Rob Sheidt, and the season he spent on the varsity team alongside his older brother, Jaylen Thao-Booth, for turning him into the player he is today. He puts his head down and works. He doesn’t focus on the accolades. His sophomore season was Jaylen’s senior year and he was making the plays. If Jalonn wanted to stay on the field, it was by doing the little things. That mindset translated through the rest of his high school career.
He has a unique way of thinking about the game. Jalonn compares football to math.
“There’s steps in the game that you have to follow that lead you to victory and success just like math,” he said. “There’s steps to solving math problems and there’s steps to being successful on the football field.”
Booth took home defensive MVP honors. His nine tackles were a game-high and the five sacks could be a game record, according to Cal-Hi Sports.
“To be honest, I was kind of nervous because it’s all-stars, so everybody’s good,” Booth said. “Everybody plays at a high level. I knew coming out that it was going to be about executing.”
Every year, the Lions All-Star Game gives recently graduated seniors the chance to put on their high school helmets, lace up their cleats and take the field one final time before moving on to the next chapter of their lives.
Some are like Muhammad and Booth. The Enochs running back plans to play at Modesto JC while Booth is picking between MJC and Fresno City College as both schools are about 45 minutes from his home in Merced.
Some are like Hernandez, who already made the decision to give up football after high school. So he thought.
“This whole week, just getting that feeling back of waking up, working out twice a day, going to practice, having that grind, it’s something I missed,” he said. “Having something to work for is always fun.”
Safe to say Saturday night’s hero has some things to think about over the next few weeks before he starts college.
“It’s an itch,” he said. “Definitely a conversation I’ll have to have with my parents about it. You never know what’s next.”
This story was originally published June 24, 2024 at 11:39 AM.
