Late in the fourth quarter as the clock and season ticked away, Richards senior quarterback Noah Escobedo was walking up and down the sideline trying to pick up his teammates.
“I’m just trying to keep things positive,” Escobedo said after the Bulldogs lost 42-21 to visiting Hersey in a Class 7A second-round game on Nov. 7. “… I want to be that guy for them.”
Escobedo was that guy for the Bulldogs, according to his teammates and coach Tony Sheehan.
“Last year Myles (Mitchell, a star running back) took more of the leadership (role) and we needed him to because Escobedo was a young quarterback,” Sheehan said. “But this year, he’s taken charge. He’s the leader of the band and he’s been more vocal.”
“He’s just always been a leader,” teammate Ahmad Buchanan said. “That’s just the type of person he is.”
Against Hersey, Escobedo went 19-of-38 passing for 234 yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed 14 times for 54 yards.
The Bulldogs quarterback saw an uptick in many offensive stats this season, including throwing yards and touchdowns.
One key to his success was Richards quarterback coach Tommy Makuch.
“He helped me tremendously,” Escobedo said. “He taught me the reads, the mechanics, all that.”
“His football IQ got better,” Sheehan said of Escobedo. “He’d sit with coach Makuch and they’d go over film together and he asked a lot of questions. We saw him grow immensely as a player.”
Escobedo not only worked with his coach, but also with his teammates and anyone who could help him with his craft.
“He’d go to QB things on Sundays,” Sheehan said. “He got the guys up here over the summer to throw. He’d stay after practice with a net and throw by himself or with a couple guys.”
Carmelo Palumbo (five receptions, 63 yards) and Jaiden Henry (three receptions, 64 yards) each caught a touchdown against Hersey. Kamari Sapara rushed twice for 25 yards and caught eight passes for a team-high 90 yards.
The final offensive score of the Bulldogs’ season came on Escobedo’s 4-yard pass to Ahmad Buchanan, who had three catches for 17 yards. The senior running back finished with 145 yards on 19 carries.
“He does his role well,” Escobedo said. “When we ask him to run the ball, he gives it his all. When we’re in pass (protection) and he gets to step up and make a block, he does that too.
“And mind you, he’s playing defense too — he’s been playing both sides the whole game.”
“He’s major,” Sheehan said of Buchanan. “We asked him to do a lot, and he never complained about it. He’s another guy we’re going to sorely miss.”
Escobedo’s time on a high-school football field has ended, but he hopes to play the game in college. He said a few schools, mostly Division III, have shown interest.
“That’s definitely going to be a decision I think over when the season’s over,” Escobedo said.
He’s not completely done with prep sports as he’ll be playing baseball come spring.
In the meantime, he can reflect on the Bulldogs’ 36th conference championship and 42nd playoff appearance. The work done by Escobedo proved to be vital for this year’s run and his contributions will not go unnoticed.
“I’m very proud of him, he’s just really grown in the last few years and I’m really going to miss him,” Sheehan said.