Hifo, Takitaki, Virgil Star in Heritage's Season-Opening Victory

Limiahi Hifo runs for a 17-yard gain in the third quarter of Heritage High's 37-13 victory Friday night.

Heritage High football coach Kraig Broach summed it up when addressing his players after the Patriots' 37-13 victory over San Jacinto in Friday night's season opener at Marion Ashley Stadium.

"You guys did a lot of great things tonight," said Broach, holding his 8-year-old daughter Kalee in his arms and looking out into a sea of smiling faces. "Take that home and enjoy it tonight."

Yet even while playing the daddy role and celebrating a 24-point victory, Broach couldn't help but let some of the football coach come out before dismissing his troops.

"But just think about what might have been," he said with a grin.

You mean what might have been, had the Patriots not been called for 22 penalties totaling 155 yards? Granted, it could've been a cleaner performance, but Broach (right, with quarterback Brett Virgil) didn't want his players treating it as anything more than a challenge for next week's practice sessions.

No, there were too many positive aspects to this one to get hung up on false start flags. For one, senior running back Limihai Hifo rushed for 136 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries, punishing San Jacinto defenders with his 5-foot-11, 225-pound frame and deceptive speed. For another, senior Sione Takitaki had a big game on both sides of the ball, scoring on a 40-yard touchdown run (below) and making big hits from his linebacker position.

On top of that, the Patriots got encouraging news from sophomore QB Virgil, who completed 6 of 9 pass attempts for 116 yards and two touchdowns, connecting with Stefan Patterson on a 34-yard scoring strike (above) to open the scoring and with Reggie Murphy on an 8-yard TD pass in the second quarter.

Heritage led 14-0 after one quarter, 27-7 at halftime and never looked back. In addition to an offense that had more than enough to overcome the penalties, the defense stifled San Jacinto quarterback P.J. Murrieta and running back Malik Kimbrough (12 carries, 60 yards).

Heritage is the defending league champion and is highly regarded again this season. Yet while allowing his players to celebrate this victory, Broach wants to keep things in perspective.

"Yes, we did some really good things," he admitted. "Hifo and Takitaki played very well. We forced three or four turnovers early that made a big difference. Brett (Virgil, at right) made some good plays, and our sophomore kicker (Tyler Baca) did a heckuva job. Offensively, when we weren't false starting, we looked good.

"The penalties? Well, it's the first game, and it's nonleague. We have to remember that. We'll have some growing pains and we're playing a strong JW North team next week. We just have to take care of ourselves right now."

The game was only a couple minutes old when Murphy picked off a deflected pass by Murrieta on San Jacinto's first drive, giving the Patriots the ball at the San Jacinto 37. Two plays later, Virgil passed 34 yards to Patterson for the touchdown.


On the ensuing kickoff, a San Jacinto player mishandled the ball and Heritage recovered the ball on the Tigers' 27. On the next play, Hifo rambled all the way into the end zone. Baca's PAT kick gave Heritage an early 14-0 lead.

Heritage's defense set the tone early as well, with plays such as the one at left, where McKinley Grant and Jalen Glover wrap up a San Jacinto receiver.

Late in the first quarter, Grant intercepted a pass, setting up a long drive that resulted in the TD pass from Virgil to Murphy.

"Grant is a great kid," Broach said. "So many of these seniors didn't get a lot of playing time last year. This was the first actual game for a lot of guys."

Heritage is on the road for the next four games, not returning home until an Oct. 11 Sunbelt League game against Perris.

Heritage defenders Limihai Hifo (10) and Christian Decker-Weible wrap up San Jacinto ballcarrier Mario Rubio.