Members of the Legacy High football team pose for a photo at the Las Vegas Sun’s high school football media day July 20, 2016 at the South Point. They include, from left, Jamal Britt, A.J. Culpepper, and Marcellus McCoy.
Friday, Sept. 23, 2016 | 11:23 p.m.
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Undefeated Legacy took out seven years’ worth of frustration at home Friday night against Palo Verde.
The Longhorns defeated the Panthers for the first time since 2009 with a performance that was equally merciless and masterful. Junior quarterback Roberto Valenzuela threw for three touchdowns in the first half alone as Legacy manhandled Palo Verde 45-14.
“Statement game,” Legacy coach John Isola said. “We heard a lot of, ‘Yeah, you’re 3-0 but who did you beat?’-type stuff.”
Isola saw a nice level of intensity out of his players, who were peeved by people picking against them. Senior running back Samuel Turner broke loose for more than a 50-yard run on the second play of the game to set up a touchdown as part of a night where he had 10 carries for 101 yards.
Senior wide receiver Marquell Evans eclipsed 100 receiving yards, while senior Marcus Brown also came close. Brown caught a 51-yard touchdown pass from Valenzuela.
The win sets up a Northwest division showdown with major playoff implications Friday at Centennial. By Isola’s own admission, Legacy has been inconsistent over the last couple years.
But he believes that’s now behind the Longhorns.
“We’re proving this is a different team for a different year,” Isola said. “We are built on a great defense, and the past two years, we weren’t a fourth quarter team. Now we’re a fourth quarter team.”
Case Keefer can be reached at 702-948-2790 or [email protected]. Follow Case on Twitter at twitter.com/casekeefer.
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