Thirteen points in nine games.

No matter how you size it up, that's playing defense – a dominating, suffocating, "No, you don't," defense.

Grant High School has long been a football power with a championship pedigree unrivaled in the Sacramento region. But the Pacers have never had a defense like this.

It can be argued no team in regional history has. Seven shutouts in nine games, three opponents held to negative rushing yardage. And Grant still has a chance to play as many as five more games.

And anyone heard of this rallying cry: "Defense wins championships?" Grant is hitching its title hopes on an unyielding, immovable "D" that features size in the trenches, speed on the outside and ferocity everywhere.

"It's pretty remarkable what they've done," said Mark Tennis, a prep guru for Cal-Hi Sports/ESPN who sees teams from across the country. "That's the best defense I've seen this year."

Top-ranked in Northern California, the 9-0 Pacers take stopping other teams personally. This group becomes grumpy when it allows a first down. And touchdowns? End zone access for opponents means there will be hell to pay.

Judging from the steam coming out of the ears of defensive coordinator Reggie Harris as he sprints up and down the sideline, it's no wonder his motto is, "Failure is not an option."

"Any mistake we make on defense – and we don't make many – it's like a car crash to Reggie," Grant defensive tackle Vei Moala said. "Man, does he get mad."

Harris doesn't deny it. The way he figures it, the Pacers are too good to give up big plays. And a touchdown is a big play. Rosemont scored on a double-reverse, 70-yard pass to tie the score 7-7 in what became a 56-7 Grant win.

"I admit, that was a perfectly executed play, but was I mad? Yes. Yes. Yes!" Harris said, eyes widening for emphasis before allowing a laugh.

Saturday, McClatchy scored late in a 62-6 loss on a 45-yard bomb, and the Lions celebrated the feat.

Grant coach Mike Alberghini can live with an occasional touchdown, as it serves to inspire his team.

"A little humility is a good thing," he said.

But Harris? Humility stings.

"Oh, man, that McClatchy score boiled me," Harris said. "It's a standard we've set here. We want perfection. On defense, we want to inflict our will on opponents, period, and the only way to do that is to be relentless."

Grant beat national power Bellevue of Washington, which has averaged 38.9 points outside the Grant contest, 14-0. The Pacers blanked Oak Ridge, which otherwise has averaged 35.5 points, 14-0.

"They have three down linemen, and you can't block one with just one guy. You have the linebackers who think, 'Where's the ball? I'm going to blow it up,' and the (defensive backs) who are good, too," Oak Ridge coach Eric Cavaliere said. "And their scheme fits their personality perfectly. Great defense."

Most remarkable is that Grant returned not a single defensive starter from its 14-0 team of 2008. The defense is a junior-dominated unit, seemingly improving by the week.

The leader is Moala, a mountain of a man at nearly 6-foot-4 and 340 pounds who draws double teams, thus allowing his teammates to plug the gaps. The junior's nickname is Tiny, but it's a gag title because nothing about him makes one conclude small.

Moala wears size-15 cleats with a body the width of a refrigerator and a shock of curly hair. Moala burst onto the national recruiting radar last year in the state bowl win over Long Beach Poly, the No. 2 ranked team in the land at the time. Poly could not handle him.

"Vei is an immense young man who can move," Alberghini said, "with hands like shovels."

Darryl Paulo and Puka Lopa are 6-2, 240-pound junior end-linebackers with speed, power and instincts. And insight.

"You can't lose if you don't give up points or many yards," Lopa said.

Other standouts include senior Ronald Fields and junior James Sample. They are 6-2, 175-pound defensive backs who can cover and hit. And this: All of these players are good students, which is music to recruiters' ears.

"They have five or six major D-I recruits on that defense," Tennis said. "And they'll be even better next year."

"They look the part, and they play it, too," said longtime Montgomery of Santa Rosa coach Jason Franci, whose team lost 42-0 to Grant. "It's the best defense I've seen in a very long time, maybe ever."

Call The Bee's Joe Davidson, (916) 321-1280.