Colfax High football team finds a winning groove as team wrestles with fire recovery

For some in Colfax green, the 2021 football season has been a means of escape.

Escape is the apropos word, as members of the Falcons football team – and hundreds more in the Colfax community – faced evacuation, panic and fear in the path of the raging River Fire that engulfed Placer and Nevada Counties in August. It burned more than 2,600 acres and destroyed nearly 150 structures, including more than 100 homes.

Thanks in part to evacuation orders, Cal Fire reported zero deaths by the time the blaze was fully contained. But several Colfax homes were not spared. Among them was that of legendary coach and Sac-Joaquin Section Hall of Famer Ron Pucci. The namesake for the main gym at Colfax High School campus had his home of more than 40 years destroyed by the fire.

It’s an ongoing battle for a handful of Colfax football players who were displaced. Longtime Colfax coach Tony Martello said at least six of his players’ homes were at least partially damaged by the fire. Some remain uninhabitable.

Senior linebacker Peter Molino had a normal morning of fishing during his summer break before returning to a black plume of smoke dangerously close to his neighborhood. Molino called his father, a fire captain in Reno, who directed his son to pack the RV with irreplaceables – family pictures, scrapbooks, art projects and livestock. Molino’s mother got home from work in time to hook up the trailer and escape.

“As we were leaving, I watched the house across the street from mine go up in flames,” said Molino, who was able to stop and rescue some neighbors’ animals on their way out. “We have solar panels on our house that sent us notifications that they’d shut off due to excessive heat. That’s when we really thought it was gone.”

While Molino’s home suffered severe smoke damage, it’s still standing. His family, livestock and all, will be able to live in it again one day after a complete gutting and makeover.

“Stuff is stuff. It can all be replaced,” he said. “It’s the people inside that make a home. You cannot get worked up about the little things but just get back up and attack life again.”

Molino’s family stayed at a nearby RV campground in the wake of the destruction. Molino said a family member contracted COVID-19 during that period, when Molino was scheduled to resume classes and football practice at Colfax. Molino decided to quarantine himself from his family, who stayed in the RV. He knew he needed an outlet in football and he wasn’t going to risk missing a day of practice.

He slept in the bed of his truck for four weeks.

“Football was my escape. I doubled down on football,” Molino said. “It’s something to get my mind off things. Just focus on football, be with my brothers playing, something to help me get away.”

FOOTBALL STILL MATTERS

After such a devastating experience, high school football games seem miniscule. But not to the Falcons, who keep playing games as though they matter more than anything. They do matter. Football has helped keep the team level-headed and feeling normal during abnormal and uncertain times. The Falcons, of course, have gained perspective as well.

“It’s not all about football,” said senior cornerback Christopher Jones, who was evacuated from his home for a week before thankfully returning to minimal damage. “It made us realize that anything can happen. Any day could be your last day to live here or go to school here. But (football) gave us something to fight for on the team and helped us with motivation.”

Colfax improved to 5-2 overall and 3-0 in the Pioneer Valley League after a 20-17 win Thursday night at Marysville. Falcons quarterback Noah Souza had touchdown passes of 80 yards to Luke Green and 17 yards to Connor Vaughan while limping through most of the game with a roughed-up knee.

Marysville’s defense created four turnovers, including a fumble recovery in the end zone by Cole Tyler in the first quarter. Elijah Marin had 168 rushing yards, Jace Roper nailed a 33-yard field goal, and Joseph Endicott punched in a short score to give the Indians a brief fourth-quarter lead at 17-14.

Colfax responded by bleeding the clock and capping a long drive with a short go-ahead score by sophomore Malaki Thompson with 1:50 to play. Cannon Tomlin’s interception closed the door on a last-ditch effort from the Indians, helping Colfax escape with its fourth straight win.

ANOTHER MARTELLO MILESTONE

Martello recalls when his family had to evacuate for three days as the River Fire approached.

“I saw it coming up the hill, and it created this windstorm, pulling leaves off the trees,” he said. “I see this fire raging and climbing up the hill. I looked at my wife and said, ‘Sweetie, we are outta here.’ ”

Fortunately, the Martello residence, just a football field’s distance away from major destruction, also survived. However, the neighborhood surrounding Martello’s was “completely demolished, burnt to a crisp,” he said. “It looked like a deadzone.”

“There’s no rhyme or reason why one’s standing and another’s gone,” Martello said. “Thank God (firefighters) put it out in a timely fashion. They really attacked that fire beautifully. We’re all very thankful for that.”

Martello notched career win No. 225 earlier this season, all coming with his alma mater. Martello was an all-league two-way lineman for Colfax in the 1980s and has been the Falcons’ head coach since 1995.

Unlike many coaches who might downplay such a milestone, Martello embraces it. Martello is responsible for four of Colfax’s five Sac-Joaquin Section banners, including three straight from 2001–03 and in 2018, when the Falcons were one win shy of a state crown and a perfect 14-0 record. Central Catholic’s Roger Canepa is the only other active coach in the section with more wins than Martello.

“I’d be a liar if I said it didn’t (mean something). Of course it does,” Martello said. “I’m proud of my longevity and sticking through lots of seasons here at Colfax. I’m proud of our kids, and if nothing else, it just means I’m a grinder.”

Colfax continues to grind through the remainder of its schedule, which concludes with a road game at Lindhurst on Oct. 22 and a home game against Bear River on Oct. 29. The Falcons entered the week as a top-eight team in the Division VI field.

“The season’s not over yet,” Martello said. “Hopefully we can finish strong and make a run in the playoffs.”

Marysville (5-3, 1-2 PVL), which entered this week on the Bee’s Top 25 bubble and as the final team projected to reach the D-V bracket, finishes its regular season schedule with Center on Oct. 22 and at Foothill on Oct. 29. The Indians seek their first playoff berth since 2016.

This story was originally published October 15, 2021 at 6:35 AM.