Roosevelt football rallies to beat Burbank in Division 6 quarterfinals

EASTVALE — The Roosevelt football team will remember Friday night for the rest of their lives.

With rainy weather throughout the Division 6 CIF Southern Section quarterfinals, Roosevelt (7-5) came from behind to pull off a 14-13 nail-biter at home against Burbank (9-3) to advance to the semifinals for the first time since 2021.

The Mustangs advanced to the CIF SS Division 3 semifinals in 2017 but lost to Apple Valley. Roosevelt is hoping to rewrite history on Friday at home against St. Pius X-St. Matthias.

“I just want to say I am proud of our guys. I told them that it’s going to take all four quarters,” Roosevelt head coach Aaron Crone said. “At halftime, I told them not to waver. Believe in ourselves.”

Mustangs junior quarterback Blake Nadler became the hero on Friday night in front of the Mustang faithful on the final drive. Burbank had a chance to win the game with under two minutes remaining after collecting a pick-six off Nadler, but was called back because of an unnecessary roughness penalty.

The Bulldogs later punted on that drive, but gave the Mustangs good field position with under 30 seconds remaining.

It didn’t take long for Roosevelt to find the end zone. After two straight pass interference calls on the Bulldogs, it helped set up the Mustangs inside the 30-yard line. Nadler found junior wide receiver Ja’iris Shaw for a 9-yard game-tying touchdown with under 27 seconds remaining.

Shaw had five targets on Friday night, but was unable to cash on any of them until the game-tying touchdown. Shaw mentioned after the game that he was grateful to make a play when the team needed it.

After senior kicker Brandon Snook kicked the go-ahead field goal to give Roosevelt their first and only lead of the game, it was up to the defense to make a stop. Burbank had a chance for a miracle, but the Mustangs’ defense swallowed the Bulldogs’ offense in the final seconds.

The rain played a factor for both teams on Friday night, especially for the Bulldogs. Burbank is known for their passing offense, but had to resort to the run game for most of the game.

It took the Bulldogs until the second quarter to get the first points on the board with a 25-yard passing touchdown from junior quarterback Deshawn Laporte to junior wide receiver Tyler Hudson to go ahead 7-0.

Roosevelt had several chances to get on the board, but had two interceptions in the first half from two different quarterbacks. Roosevelt started with senior quarterback Matthew Ochoa for most of the first half, but that didn’t matter to Bulldogs senior strong safety Thomas Adzhemyan, as he forced the first turnover with an interception in the first quarter.

Roosevelt was on the hunt to score in the closing minutes of the second quarter, but senior cornerback Elijah Pendleton from Burbank picked off Nadler for the second turnover in the half.

Burbank started the second half with the ball and wasted zero time. After taking it the full length of the field, Laporte found senior wide receiver Chase Miles for a 35-yard receiving touchdown to put the Bulldogs ahead 13-0, but a missed extra point would cost them in the end. Laporte finished with over 100 yards passing.

After a punt gone bad by Burbank helped pin Roosevelt inside their own 35-yard line, the Mustangs capitalized on the Bulldogs’ mistake by taking it down the field for a 3-yard rushing touchdown from senior running back Aidan Quintanar to cut the score 13-7 in the third quarter.

Despite finishing with two turnovers, Nadler finished the game with over 100 passing yards and over 40 rushing yards on the ground.

The Mustangs played with a purpose in the second half after letting Burbank take a 13-0 lead. Roosevelt stayed true to their game, which helped them advance to the Division 6 CIF SS semifinals.

Burbank will have to wait another year for a chance to make it to the championship game, but they finished their season 9-3 overall.