Naschke brothers lead Woodland Christian to prep football section championship game
Woodland Christian High School is relatively tiny, with an enrollment around 200 students. So it was something of an emergency for football coach Mike Paschke needed to convince five guys to play football. He took them out to breakfast, gave his pitch and recruited them to play this season.
It’s working out in a big way. The Cardinals rallied late to beat Esparto 36-32 Friday night in a Division VII semifinal. The natural grass field was surrounded by about 1,000 fans seated on a berm. Red, black and white balloons were everywhere. A news helicopter hovered over the field during the first quarter.
Welcome to the big time.
“It’s huge,” Paschke said. “I really wasn’t expecting to be this good. Like I told you before, I feel like we’ve laid the groundwork in the youth program and that’s what I’m waiting for. ... And then these guys just blew me away.”
The top-seeded Cardinals nearly blew the fourth-seeded Spartans away in the first half, but Esparto rallied from three touchdowns down to take a 32-29 lead with 8:55 remaining in the game.
With the game on the line, Paschke turned the game over to Billy Hinkle. The explosive receiver/running back was hobbled by an ankle injury, but entered the game as a quarterback in the fourth quarter. With Woodland Christian trailing for the first time since the first quarter, Hinkle had runs of 26 and 37 yards to get the Cardinals down to the 6-yard line.
“He was not even close to 100%,” Paschke said. “But what else do you do? … He was begging me for more carries all game.”
Then Paschke turned the game over to Daniel Naschke, who already had three rushing touchdowns. His fourth, a 2-yard power run, put Woodland Christian up 36-32 with 4:20 to play.
Esparto had two more possessions, but each ended in a turnover. The last came as the Spartans quarterback was drilled by a Woodland Christian blitzer while he was throwing the ball. Diminutive Robert Naschke, whose nickname “Big Bob” is so prevalent it’s listed as his official name on an online recruiting site, picked off the pass to effectively end the game.
Daniel Naschke, the older brother, beamed with pride after the game. Sure, he scored four touchdowns. But seeing his little brother pick off that pass might have been the highlight of the night.
“You know, he’s a little guy, but he’s got the biggest heart on the field and I love him very much,” Daniel Naschke said. “He’s got to be one of the hardest players out there.”
The Cardinals’ toughness was tested by an Esparto team that caught fire in the second half.
On the Spartans’ first possession of the third quarter, Silas Umbay hauled in a 50-yard reception, then galloped 16 yards for a touchdown on consecutive plays as Esparto closed Woodland Christian’s lead to 29-21. An interception set up a chip-shot field goal on the next possession to make it 29-24. And Umbay galloped 53 yards for a touchdown on the next possession as the Spartans stormed into the lead.
Like Paschke, Chris Carr had to convince a few kids to show up for his first season coaching the Spartans. In the previous four full seasons, Esparto won no more than two games. But the kids bought in this year and Carr beamed after the game.
“I’m so proud of the work that these kids put in, to be on a team that was averaging a couple of wins a year, and now we’re going to the semifinals,” Carr said. “We went from me picking up the phone and calling the kids because I couldn’t get them to come to spring practice. And now they’re at practice every day on time. I’m so proud of the kids. And they have worked their absolute tails off.”
After the game, there were a few kids upset, but mostly the Esparto players smiled and hugged, a stark contrast from the usual sobs and moaning after a difficult playoff loss. These Spartans are different, Carr said, and many of them will be back next year. Nico Hernandez, Nate Arismendez and Umbay will all return for their senior seasons.
Amid all the postgame hugs, Carr just smiled when asked about his team’s upbeat vibe.
“They’re just naturally that way and sometimes you’ve got to rein them in,” he said.
The future is now for Woodland Christian. The Cardinals will face third-seeded Le Grand at 2 p.m. Friday at Hughes Stadium for a Sac-Joaquin Section championship.
Sac-Joaquin Section
Division I
Rocklin 51, St. Mary’s 48
Folsom at Jesuit, 1 p.m., Saturday
Championship
No. 1 Rocklin vs. Folsom/Jesuit
Friday, 7 p.m.
At Sacramento City College
Division II
Central Catholic 35, Antelope 0
Monterey Trail 27, Elk Grove 23
Championship
No. 1 Central Catholic vs. No. 11 Monterey Trail
Saturday, 6 p.m.
At Sacramento City College
Division III
Oakdale 33, Patterson 7
Manteca 27, Lincoln 3
Championship
No. 1 Oakdale vs. No. 3 Manteca
Friday, 7 p.m.
At St. Mary’s High School
Division IV
Merced 51, Kimball 50
Vanden 67, Vista del Lago 27
Championship
No. 2 Vanden vs. No. 4 Merced
Saturday, 1 p.m.
At St. Mary’s High School
Division V
Escalon 34, Ripon 10
Hilmar 41, Casa Roble 8
Championship
No. 6 Hilmar at No. 1 Escalon
Saturday, 6 p.m.
At St. Mary’s High School
Division VI
Rosemont 18, Bradshaw Christian 13
Argonaut 37, Livingston 24
Championship
No. 2 Argonaut vs. No. 5 Rosemont
Saturday, 1 p.m.
At Sacramento City College
Division VI
Woodland Chrisitian 36, Esparto 32
Championship
No. 1 Woodland Christian vs. No. 3 Le Grand
Friday, 2 p.m.
At Sacramento City College