Sophomore QB shines in varsity debut as top-ranked Folsom shuts out No. 7 Monterey Trail
Paul Doherty doesn’t get overly excited about opening night, certainly not as much as the teenagers he coaches, a bunch that would scale mountains for a chance to crash into others in shoulder pads.
The Folsom High School football coach appreciates the weight room sessions that start in January, and he’s a practice guy who revels in watching players and teams come of age. So entering Friday’s season opener at Monterey Trail in South Sacramento, Doherty wasn’t sure what to expect outside of effort. He knew The Bee No. 1-ranked Bulldogs would compete because that’s what they’ve done at an entirely different level than anyone in the Sacramento region around since 2010.
What Doherty found out is that, despite mass losses to graduation, Folsom is still top dog, and then some. The Bulldogs stormed to a four-touchdown lead in the first quarter and defeated the No. 7 Mustangs 35-0 in what figures to be another championship chase for a program that is running out of room in the trophy case.
Folsom has lost just one season opener since 2011, to famed De La Salle in 2018. The program’s remarkable ability to retool in quick order has kept the Bulldogs in the running to the tune of 11 league, nine CIF Sac-Joaquin Section and four CIF state banners with two additional trips to the state finals for good measure. The root of the success is the youth feeder programs, and Folsom has become a destination school with incoming transfers.
The new quarterback is Ryder Lyons, a 6-foot-3, 205-pound sophomore who has all the skills. He was the freshman team star last season who made his first varsity start here. He set the early tone with crisp passing and swift legs, rushing for scores of 5 and 4 yards to help his club storm to a 28-0 first-quarter lead.
Lyons made long throws and short ones. He was poised, and he attacked with his legs.
The Folsom defense has newcomers such as Jaron Hodson, who scooped up a fumble and rumbled in for a 14-0 lead, and a veteran defensive back in RJ Whitten, whose interception set up Lyons’ second score.
Dayma Rivera ran in from 4 yards out to make it 28-0. Monterey Trail was shut out for just the second time in the 20-year history of the program, the last time coming against Antelope in 2015.
Monterey Trail is a young team that showed glimpses of promise, including not allowing any points in the second half for coach TJ Ewing, the only coach in program history.
“I’m happy for the kids,” Doherty said in sizing up the Bulldogs. “I’m encouraged. The kids have improved tremendously, and that’s what you want. That’s a real thing. Do your best, every day, whether it’s in the weight room or on the practice field, and with all the new guys, we’ve made immense strides.”
If it starts with line play, a quarterback and defense, then the Bulldogs are in good shape. Three starters returned in the trenches on offense in Kenny Redhead, Luke Sorensen and Remington Masterson. That unit provided holes, including for Jameson Powell to take off for a 71-yard touchdown sprint for a 35-0 lead with 4:50 to go in the half.
The Folsom defense under coordinator Sam Cole returned anchors on the defensive line in Lucas Hardeman, Elijah Gulewich and Theo Greule, and the coaches have challenged those guys to play like champions.
Doherty has also challenged Lyons to play beyond his years, and he’s responded. He raved about Lyons, the younger brother of prep All-American tight end Walker Lyons, who is on a Mormon mission and will play on scholarship at USC. Lyons passed for 188 yards.
“He has remained humble and hungry, the epitome of our program,” the coach said. “There were no 7-on-7 passing leagues this summer, no recruiting trips. He turned down Georgia and Alabama and Oregon on visits. He’s pretty mature, and he’s played incredibly well. He’s beyond his years. He takes the pre-snap reads, the drops, the progressions. He has good decision making, good timing, and he’s accurate. You combine all of those skills with athleticism, and you’ve got a player. He can move.”
It doesn’t get much easier for Monterey Trail with Central Coast Section powerhouse Saint Francis of Mountain View coming for a visit on Sept. 1, followed by a road game at North Coast Section heavy Pittsburg.
“We’re so young, but we compete,” Ewing said of his Mustangs, who competed to the final whistle.
Folsom now prepares for a showdown at Northern California No. 1-ranked Serra of San Mateo on Saturday in a rematch of last season’s early season 17-12 slugfest victory by the Padres, who finished top-ranked in NorCal and played for the CIF state Open Division championship game, the highest classification in the state.
This story was originally published August 18, 2023 at 10:24 PM.