OCEANSIDE – Rene Siluano paused in the end zone and waited for a handful of teammates for a brief celebration last night. The Oceanside running back had just broken loose on a 14-yard run after it appeared he was stopped for no gain.
Siluano spun out of a tackler pulling his jersey while holding himself up with his left hand. All Siluano needed was to run over somebody on his way to the end zone to resemble something out of a Bo Jackson highlight reel.
There was plenty for the Pirates to be happy about in a 49-21 Valley League win against visiting Valley Center in what was deemed to be a showdown between offensive powerhouses.
The game appeared to head that way until the Pirates (9-0, 5-0) ran away with their 21st straight win thanks to a second-half stingy defense and an explosive attack.
And Siluano was an integral part of that, using his speed and balance to sift through tackles as if he were covered in butter.
“I didn't know I had those moves,” said Siluano, who rushed for 157 yards on 12 carries and one touchdown. “Coaches have always stressed that I have to make a move. I said, 'Coach, I'm not a move guy.' ”
Siluano has settled in as the Pirates' premier running back. But more importantly, he's helped establish a rushing attack top-ranked Oceanside was missing.
“We officially have a running game now,” said Pirates' quarterback Jordan Wynn. “With Rene back there it gives us a whole other option. It balances our offense. That's going to make it difficult to stop.”
The Jaguars (7-2, 3-2) couldn't stop the Pirates' aerial attack in the first half.
Wynn (10-of-17 for 132 yards) connected with Demario Coleman (11 yards) and Siluano (43 yards) for touchdowns. Siluano's came on a screen play with 7:32 left in the first quarter to open up the score.
Coleman had a 56-yard touchdown run and Jake Fely added another from a yard out to complete the Pirates first half scoring. Jerry Whitaker (19 yards) and King Holder (18 yards) scored on second half runs before Oceanside's reserves took to the field.
Valley Center kept it close by answering a couple of Oceanside three-play touchdown drives with scores of its own.
Jaguars quarterback Tyler Bernard scored on a 3-yard run and tossed two touchdown passes. His first TD was to James Johnson (five catches, 54 yards) for 9 yards. The other went to tight end Jeremy Dozier on a 5-yard quick out with 28.8 seconds left in the half to cut the Oceanside lead to 28-21 at halftime.
“We believed, but in the second half they showed us they're the best team,” Johnson said. “They won 21 straight. Can't get no better than that. And the best thing is that they're classy about it.”
