Junior Varsity Football: Napa 29, Rocklin 28

ROCKLIN — The Napa High junior varsity football team was singing “Happy Birthday” in the post-game huddle Friday night after giving head coach Nick Tedesco a thrilling 29-28 win over Rocklin on his 29th birthday.

The song was a big release for the Indians (2-3 overall) after what had transpired moments before.

The teams played a relatively uneventful, scoreless third quarter compared to the first half, when Cody Jensen ran 55 and 65 yards for Napa touchdowns and quarterback Cody Thompson added another on a 15-yard keeper. Johnny Douma was 1-for-2 on PATs, but was the difference as the Indians clung to a 21-20 halftime lead.

It stayed that way until the Thunder put together an 11-play, 67-yard scoring drive in the fourth quarter. The quarterback scored from a yard out and also ran in the conversion for a 28-21 lead with 3:36 left.

But after Joe Martinez recovered a squib kick at the Indians’ 35, Napa promptly answered. Thompson’s 31-yard completion to Daniel Salinas got the Indians knocking at the Rocklin 15, and Thompson scampered in around the left side for the score.

Tedesco went for the win by having his offense try the ususual “water pick” play the varsity ran successfully in its season opener, where most of the linemen line up to the left of the quarterback. “This wasn’t a league game, and the kids believed we could do it,” Tedesco said afterward.

Thompson snagged a slightly high shotgun snap, avoided a sack and juked his way in for the go-ahead converson with 1:06 left.

It wasn’t over, however, until Rocklin — after three straight incomplete passes — until a field-goal try from a whopping 48 yards out fell well short with 13 seconds left, allowing Napa to run out the clock.

Tedesco praised his offensive linemen — Cody Goehenouer, Jason Priestley, Max Kampton, Michael Falcon, Spencer Klew, Josh Myers and Alex Deits.

“I’m proud of the guys,” Tedesco said, whose team turned the ball over just once. “Everybody stayed positive and battled.”

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