WEEK TWO FOOTBALL: Perez does enough in first start while defense puts up a zero in Glenn’s first victory

John Glenn High senior wide receiver and defensive back Jonah Mason had a night to remember in last Friday night’s 14-0 win over California Military Institute.  He caught a 26-yard pass on third down which led to Glenn’s first touchdown. Then he was crowned homecoming king at halftime. Finally, he had a 16-yard punt return five plays before the second touchdown. From left to right: father and defensive coach Ken, Jonah, brother Lake, sister Michelle and mother Chamnan.

September 5, 2023

By Loren Kopff • @LorenKopff on X

John Glenn High’s eight-game losing streak is now history and following the team’s 14-0 win over California Military Institute last Friday, first-year head coach Dwon Drummer hoped it was the first of many. If the team’s defense has anything to say about that the rest of this season, the Eagles figure to get more victories not just this season, but in the years to come.

Senior defensive back Evan Perez picked off Daniel De Los Santos twice in the first half, senior defensive back Juan Navarro recovered a fumble in the first quarter, and the Glenn defense forced the Rough Riders to punt five times while limiting the Perris-based school to 137 yards total offense in a 14-0 homecoming win. It was the first shutout for Glenn since blanking Bosco Tech High 41-0 on Sept. 8, 2017, and the eighth homecoming win since 1999, the first since 2023 when Glenn defeated Godinez High 31-10.

“It was a tough game; we battled, and we found ourselves in the fourth quarter,” said Drummer. “The defense played a hell of a game. Kudos to our defensive coaches; coach [Carlos] Alvarez, coach [Ken] Mason and coach [Tyler] Charlton. They put together a great game plan to stop this offense that takes time to learn. and it takes time to be able to prepare for it.

“On offense, we were without a lot of guys,” he continued. “We had a lot of injuries…we had four starters missing on offense and they were key senior guys. We had four guys who are cornerstones of our offense, and they were out, and it was next man up.”

Senior running back and defensive back Okaro Lee (hyper-extended left knee), senior quarterback and linebacker Luis Vergara and senior linemen Alex Fajardo (ankle) and Emmanuel Lopez (ankle) were the four he was referring to which meant sophomore quarterback Ryder Perez had to pick up most of the slack if the Eagles were to win.

He accounted for both touchdowns, first connecting with junior wide receiver Cody Smith for 34 yards with 4:38 left in the first half, and then adding a clinching 23-yard touchdown run with 3:12 remaining in the contest.

“He had his ups and downs; it was a roller coaster ride of a game,” said Drummer. “But like I told the team, and I tell him every day, I have a high expectation for him as a football player. He’s a good football player, and he’s got many more games in front of him. He’s a sophomore; he’s got time, but [it’s] next man up.”

Perez found out on Monday that Vergara couldn’t go and that he would start against CMI.

“My preparation started during the summer learning plays, learning what I need to do and what my job is,” said Perez. “And then this week, I was locked in, waiting for this moment.”

On the first play of the game, Evan Perez had the first of his two interceptions, which would be the beginning of a sloppy opening quarter by both teams. Glenn’s first drive of the game ended with Arthur Tomashevskiy sacking Ryder Perez for an eight-yard touchdown loss on fourth and goal from the one-yard line.

“Okoro Lee not being in the game…there was some miscommunication in the backfield,” said Drummer. “We had to shuffle some things around and we had a person in that situation…that wasn’t prepared and there wasn’t enough practice time to get him prepared for that moment and we got stopped.”

CMI couldn’t convert as it fumbled at the Glenn 17-yard line, only to see Ryder Perez picked off by Adan Solario at the eight-yard line. In the first 5:51 of the game, the teams combined for 10 plays, 15 yards, four penalties and three turnovers.

The Rough Riders, also seeking their first win of the season, were driving deep into Glenn territory early in the second quarter when Evan Perez intercepted De Los Santos at the 18-yard line and went the other direction for a potential score. However, the Eagles were called for an illegal block infraction and had to settle for their fourth drive of the game beginning at their 40-yard line.

After consecutive false start penalties, Glenn picked up 14 yards on the next two plays, then had its biggest play of the half when Ryder Perez found senior wide receiver Jonah Mason, the homecoming king, open for a 26-yard connection. Two plays later, it would be 7-0 in favor of the hosts.

“It was exciting running up there,” said Ryder Perez of the game’s first touchdown. “I was expecting to get tackled, then I see everybody blocking for me; the pieces to the puzzle connecting, then I ran to the end zone.”

Glenn ran 15 plays in the first half, getting 86 yards on total offense in just over 10 minutes while collecting 50 yards on seven penalties. And while the defense was limiting CMI to 84 yards on 25 plays in the first 24 minutes, Drummer’s halftime speech was a stern one.

“I don’t know if I can use that language,” he chuckled. “It’s just that they were better than what they were performing, and there is a high expectation level that I have for them, and they were not meeting that expectation level. We need to play the way we know how to play.”

The second half began the same way as the beginning of the game with Matthew Cabrerra intercepting Ryder Perez near midfield. However, both teams would combine for five punts and two drives ending on downs before Ryder Perez sealed the game with his 23-yard touchdown run.

If things had gone the right way, Glenn would be looking at a 3-0 mark instead of 1-2. The Eagles rallied from a 14-0 halftime deficit against Mountain View High in the opener, took a one-point lead before falling 47-21. The next week against Savanna High, Glenn had leads of 6-0 and 12-6 before the Rebels escaped with a 22-18 win.

“We’re learning how to win, we’re learning how to prepare, we’re learning how to fight,” said Drummer. “But I also knew that we would have our struggles just because we were playing so many young guys and first-time guys.”

“[This win] can lead up to more momentum in the following games,” said Ryder Perez. “My first high school win…it feels good.”

He would complete seven of 15 passes for 92 yards and pick up another 42 yards on 12 carries while Mason caught two of those seven passes for 35 yards and had a pair of rushes for 33 yards. In fact, Mason’s 16-yard punt return with 5:35 left in the game enabled Glenn to begin its game-clinching touchdown at the CMI 41-yard line.

The Eagles will host Compton Early College on Friday. The Rising Phoenix ended a 12-game losing streak to begin its program with a 49-21 win last Friday against Mark Keppel High.

“Ultimately, like I tell the guys and the coaches, we’re playing against ourselves right now,” said Drummer. “We’re playing against John Glenn. We’re battling ourselves, and our expectations and just our discipline and the process. We have a vision for what we want the program to be. There’s a process of working hard; we just have to have the self-discipline and keep at it. This is a step in that direction.

“To have a win like this; a tough ugly win, I think we needed that,” he continued. “This is what programs are built off and wins like this.”