What a difference 365 days can make, eh? 

The MacDonald Condors were shutout in the team’s first-ever varsity football game in school history back on Aug. 30, 2024. MacDonald fell on their home turf to cross-town rival Santa Clara High by a score of 40-0.

Flash forward a year later and MacDonald earned its revenge, not only with a win, but with an emphatic, blowout victory. The Condors cruised to the tune of a 28-6 Bruin beatdown. All told, it was a 62-point turnaround, losing by 40 a year ago, to winning by a 22-point margin of victory.

In the team’s first-ever game with a senior class, the Condors, a C-league team, ran all over the B-league Bruins. Just how much confidence does this resounding win give MacDonald moving forward the rest of the season? 

“Confidence is going to be at an all-time high for sure,” chimed Condors Head Coach Burt Codera. “This is the only B-league team on our schedule. We’re not counting our chickens or anything, we know we have to take it one week at a time, but I think the guys kind of know that we have a special group here this year. The expectations are high.” 

The Condors are now flying high headed into Week 2 in large part due to the team’s ground attack and non-stop motor on defense. Offensively against the Bruins, MacDonald flashed a two-headed monster, an impressive one-two punch of tailbacks with seniors John Leonard and Isiah Tela churning up explosive runs left and right. 

“Isiah and John did a phenomenal job, but we gotta shout out our line man,” remarked Condors Quarterback Moussa Fall. “They are the true unsung heroes, Deray Villamar, Isiah [Meza], Aaron [Xu], and all those guys are the backbone of this team. That’s the reason why we won today.”

Certainly, the offensive line was one of the main driving forces for MacDonald, but the defense definitely has an argument that it was its side of the ball that set the tone. 

While Pablo Guzman picked up a pair of interceptions to lead the defensive stat sheet, it was the overall, never-quit attitude that allowed MacDonald to hold the Bruins scoreless through three quarters. Late in the first half, with the Bruins marching, MacDonald stopped what looked like a big gain for the Bruins when sophomore defensive back Josiah Chavez stripped the ball loose, forcing a fumble that his teammates recovered. Even when the defense wasn’t forcing turnovers, the swarm tackling, led by Siaosi Hautau, had the Bruins frequently going backwards on offense. It truly looked like the Condors wanted this game more than their opponents. 

“They really stuck it to us last year and we had a sour taste in our mouth,” admitted Coach Codera. “I could just say it’s just another game, but to the kids and to me, it wasn’t. They grew up with each other, elementary school, Little League baseball. I myself have a lot of connections to Santa Clara. It was kind of personal for everybody. We all knew that. The kids played with a little extra fire. You heard those pads hitting, you saw our guys flying.”

The Condors won’t just be flying now as the team moves forward; it will be soaring into Week 2 against Mt. Pleasant on Friday, Sept. 2, having reached a heightened level of confidence.