Folsom Bulldogs shake flu bug; blow by Raiders to reach 11th section final since 2010
A day before his top-ranked Folsom Bulldogs kicked off against Central Catholic, coach Paul Doherty was a mix of anguished and optimistic, proud and concerned.
It’s what coaches do. It’s the playoffs. Nothing is supposed to be easy.
“We’re playing a powerhouse, a team that’s won section championships in Division VI, III, II, and primed to win it in D-I,” Doherty said. “This is probably the toughest matchup we’ve had all year, and the flu hit us this week. It’s been a disaster, the perfect storm at the wrong time.”
And then the game happened.
Looking fit and frisky and without any flu-like issues, Folsom rolled past the Raiders of Modesto 62-27 in a Sac-Joaquin Section Division I semifinal on Friday night at Prairie City Stadium. It was the first meeting of section super powers that have, since 2010, combined to win eight CIF state championships.
Folsom trailed 7-0 in an instant when Tyler Jacklich took his team’s first carry and was off for a 78-yard scoring romp, but it was all Bulldogs from there.
Austin Mack passed for 431 yards on 31-of-39 passing and seven touchdowns, two each to Brian Ray and Onterrio Smith Jr., and Folsom charged back into its 11th section final since 2010. The Bulldogs seek their ninth banner in that stretch next weekend at Sacramento City College. They play Sierra Foothill League rival Oak Ridge, a 24-0 winner over Turlock in the other semifinal, for honors that go well beyond Highway 50 bragging rights.
Mack, a 6-foot-6 junior national recruit, has 41 touchdown passes and three interceptions this fall, one in which he continues to work on his craft and has the respect of his coaches and teammates. Ray had a career day with 12 catches for 203 yards.
Central Catholic came in having won a record 20 section banners, including last season in D-II, but despite the pedigree, talent and coaching excellence of Roger Canepa, who has 273 career victories, the Raiders were sickened at the view of the Bulldogs racing right past them.
“Great football team,” Canepa said of Folsom before the game.
He wasn’t nearly as happy afterward as he barked at Doherty, irked that the Bulldogs kept passing in the fourth quarter.
Mack hit Smith for scoring strikes of 4 and 40 yards, and he found Rico Flores Jr. for a 1-yard score after Flores had a 67-yard catch-and-run to set it up. Ray for an 8-yard touchdown and Greco Carillo had a 12-yarder as Folsom moved to 11-1. The loss was on Aug. 26 to Northern California No. 1-ranked Serra of San Mateo, 17-12. Serra beat Central Catholic 42-30 on Sept. 10.
Mack’s pass to Ray gave Folsom a 28-13 lead with 30 seconds left in the half, and his 12-yarder to Carrillo came after a fourth-and-1 stop inside the Folsom 20.
“We hung tough,” coach Doherty said. “We didn’t know how we’d respond, who’d play well with all the kids that were sick. Proud of them.”
On trailing 7-0 early, Doherty said, “Maybe that was the best thing to happen to us — wake us up a little.”
Doherty hopes college recruiters wake up a bit on Ray, his 6-foot-2, 200-pound junior receiver who played the game of his life. On a team dotted with recruits, Ray is waiting for some scholarship notice.
“He’s a junior Bulldogs through and through and he had a great game, and he’s big, physical and fast,” Doherty said. “But he has no scholarship offers. People need to see film of him. He works hard. He wants to be successful. He’s a home-run player for us.”
Doherty, in true coaching form, said Folsom can get better and has to get better with Oak Ridge looming. The Trojans have not defeated Folsom since 2006.
“We didn’t play perfect, and we’ve got to get better, and we will,” he said. “It’s Oak Ridge. They’re good again. It’s hard to beat a team twice in the same season.”
This story was originally published November 18, 2022 at 10:51 PM with the headline "Folsom Bulldogs shake flu bug; blow by Raiders to reach 11th section final since 2010."