On Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025, the SCHS Bruins football team played against the Los Altos High School Eagles. The Bruins came into the game aiming to take it one play at a time and work together to try to take down Los Altos, who were multiple divisions above them.
After losing their quarterback, junior Kalani Tesimale, to a season-ending injury, senior Damian Lopez subbed as the new quarterback. In order to play effectively, he prioritized good collaboration with the other players on the field.
“Just communicating with the line, wide receivers, and with everybody on offense and defense,” Lopez said. “Trying to have a real team and be a communicative team, being able to talk and to have no one stuck or not knowing where to be.”
Both teams’ defenses worked hard, getting turnovers left and right. In the first quarter, SCHS was able to intercept the ball and keep the game close with a score of 7-7. Los Altos, however, did not let down.
In the second quarter, their defense shut down SCHS’s offense, getting a pick-six and recovering the ball after a fumble. Assistant coach Rodney Chand felt the mistakes definitely affected the game, but the team stuck to the new strategies and did not give up.
“We also introduced a lot of new stuff to the offense,” Chand said. “So it was a lot for the kids to catch up on, but at the end of the day, just taking it one play at a time and winning one game at a time.”
Despite struggling through missed opportunities on big plays, SCHS persevered and was able to score. Lopez threw the ball over the defender’s reach into the arms of senior Nolan Gallo, who caught it and scored a 71-yard touchdown.
This drive boosted the morale of SCHS’s team, especially on defense, where a Los Altos fumble ended in possession for the Bruins. The offense, however, was not able to convert due to the Eagles’ defense applying constant pressure.
In the third quarter, Los Altos kept the pressure high, forcing turnovers, getting interceptions, and running up the scoreboard. SCHS’s offense struggled to make completions against, but Lopez eventually threw another pass to Gallo, who scored a touchdown.
Junior wide receiver Savion Thomas appreciated Lopez’s support, saying that he was always there to pick up the team with his fighting spirit.
“Our quarterback is just sticking through it,” Thomas said. “Every pick he threw, he stuck in it, kept working in it and then just kept doing his job. Our running back stuck with it, linemen were doing their job and then the wide receivers like Nolan, they caught the ball and were able to score touchdowns.”
The fourth quarter did not see many changes, with SCHS’s offense struggling to find their way to the endzone and Los Altos continuing to force turnovers. With a final score of 49-21, the Bruins accepted their loss.
“I think they did great,” Chand said. “I think there’s a lot of unfortunate circumstances and turnovers that are out of our control, but as a team, we did great, and we showed heart. I believe that’s what matters.”