Exploding on offense and clamping on defense, Folsom cruises past Downey in D-I playoffs

The Bulldogs football machine kept rolling Friday night, with Folsom overwhelming the Downey Knights of Modesto, 68-28, in the second round of the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division I playoffs.

Star quarterback Ryder Lyons torched the Knights’ defense with 527 passing yards and eight touchdowns — despite sitting out the fourth quarter.

Lyons’ 527 yards are fourth-most in Folsom history. Jake Browning’s 689-yard performance in 2014 still holds the record.

But it wasn’t just the Bulldogs’ high-powered offense that stole the show. Their defense suffocated Downey’s normally potent passing attack, setting the tone for a game that was over long before the final whistle.

Coach Paul Doherty praised his defense for shutting down the Knights’ usual passing game.

“Defense has been lights out all year,” Doherty said. “That’s not just coach speak, it’s a real thing. The ebb and flow of the game didn’t give them a lot of time on the bench. We scored and they were right back out there. No time for coaching. We kind of scripted it that way. We wanted to move fast. Because down the road, who knows if we’ve got an opponent who is firing right back at us.”

Some of the defensive leaders that set that in motion were seniors Theo Greule, Logan Hutton and Jaron Hodson. Hodson, a Sacramento State recruit, praised his teammates for leaving it all out on the field.

“We’re a disciplined team,” Hodson said. “We just play really well together. We rely on the defensive leadership to stick together as a group. Each week it gets harder and harder, and we have to step up our game. Tonight, we took no breaks and never let up.”

Hodson plays in the secondary alongside senior Kam Totton, junior Brooks Dupree and junior Joaquin Rodriguez, who got the lone interception of the night. Hodson blocked two field goals and was third on the team for total tackles.

He said going to Sacramento State is special for him.

“They’ve got a lot of Folsom guys there,” Hodson said. “It just feels like home for me. I’m really excited to get the chance to play there. I’ve been here at Folsom for all of high school and just want to go to a program that I can enjoy as much as I have enjoyed my time here.”

The Bulldogs will face Inderkum next week and Doherty says there’s work that needs to be done.

“We’ve got to slow them down somehow,” Doherty said. “They played us really, really well last year. They’ve got a great quarterback and a standout defense. Coach Reggie Harris is an amazing coach. A defensive coach which makes life difficult for me. The way we played tonight was a precursor to how we have to play against teams like Inderkum.”

‘Getting better every week’

The defensive line that shut down the Knights run game is led by seniors Theo Greule, Josiah Sharma, junior August Dupree, and sophomore Lua Duberry.

Seniors Christopher Warren, Logan Hutton and Joshua De La Cruz round out the defense in the linebacker positions.

Hutton nearly had two picks, including swatting down a pass from the 2-yard line that resulted in a turnover on downs.

In addition to Lyons’ stellar night, sophomore receiver Rob Larson brought in three touchdowns and totaled 204 yards on seven receptions.

“Robbie Larson was great tonight,” Doherty said. “What’s impressive is we have kids that just keep getting better during the season. I’ve been coaching a long time; you don’t see that very often. Normally, you play a couple weeks and settle in. Not these guys. They’ve been getting better every week because they know there’s a lot of competition and only limited time on the field. These last two weeks of practice, Robbie’s been fantastic and it really showed tonight.”

Taniela Tupou, a 6-foot-5 senior tight end, also had three touchdowns to go with 108 total yards receiving. Senior Daymion Rivera had two touchdowns, sophomore backup quarterback Blake Nycum connected with sophomore Joseph Eyerman, and Kam Totton rounded out the scoring with a 91-yard touchdown return from a kickoff.

This was not supposed to be an easy game. Folsom made it look easy.

Knights senior quarterback Carson Lamb led the section for passing yards. They only had one loss, which came against No. 6 Turlock early in the season.

To his credit, Lamb threw three passing touchdowns on the night, all to star senior Joseph Ramirez. The last touchdown was a late run by senior Elijah Tamayo.

The win sets up a semifinal showdown with No. 4 Inderkum, and while Folsom’s offense dazzles, it’s the defense that Doherty says will need to rise to the challenge once again.