Pittsburg looks to end De La Salle's 33-year win streak at section championship
Most people are aware of the De La Salle High School football program and their famous 151-game winning streak. But the last local team to beat them was Pittsburg High School, and on Friday, the two teams will meet again to decide the sectional championship.
For Pittsburg's head coach, it may be deja vu all over again.
Everyone is aware of the dominance of the De La Salle Spartans. In the North Coast Section, they have a record of 276 wins and 0 losses. That's right, they haven't lost a game in their section in 33 years, including 33 wins over Pittsburg.
So, it's understandable that there should be some concern on the Pittsburg campus.
"They keep on losing to this team, so this is a pretty big game," said Pittsburg cheerleader Emiah Scott. "This is going to be a very exciting game."
"I think it's crazy but coming from where we come from, I feel like we could do it," said JV player Ethan Folsom. "As long as we fight really hard, and we all have passion, I feel like we could do it."
Both teams are already doing well, De La Salle is undefeated, and Pittsburg's only loss came against national powerhouse St. John Bosco. But when they play on Friday, Pittsburg will have someone on the team who knows how to handle the Spartans.
Head Coach Charlie Ramirez played on the Pirate team that last beat them in 1991.
"You know, honestly, that team is not too dissimilar to the team that we have now," said Ramirez. "Great senior leadership, a lot of confidence. And that's what I remember about that year."
Ramirez played linebacker for Pittsburg when the two teams met in the sectional playoff at the Oakland Coliseum. De La Salle was already riding a 33-game winning streak, but in the fourth quarter, Pittsburg was leading by one point.
A shanked punt put the Spartans on Pittsburg's 35-yard line and they were marching when a pass was intercepted and run back to give the Pirates an 8-point lead. Playing for the Spartans that year was receiver Omani Toomer, who would later win a Super Bowl with the N.Y. Giants.
They tried pass after pass, but with 35 seconds remaining, De La Salle's quarterback was sacked and fumbled the ball. Pittsburg recovered it, sealing the win and setting off a wild celebration on the field and in the stands that followed the team all the way back to campus.
Ramirez remembers the moment.
"Going through downtown and everybody coming out of the restaurants and cars honking. All the parents and all the fans, they're sitting in their cars. The bus pulls up and all the horns and cheers. I mean, it was something out of a movie scene," he recalled.
That was the last game De La Salle would lose in their section. The next season "the streak" began and they would not lose any game again for the next 12 years.
But when the Spartans meet the Pirates on Friday night at DVC, it will be the first time as "head coach" that Ramirez will have a chance to try to slay the dragon, again.
"He motivates us, hypes us every day about this game," said player Dominik Calhoun. "You know, it just gets us ready and fired up. We're going to be that next team under the man who beat them, to be the second team to beat them. And I feel highly about that, as well."
"It's been amazing," said senior quarterback Marley Alcantara. "He's always, like, 'We haven't beat them since '91.' And he's always kind of pushing for that Pushing us to be better and pushing us to beat De La Salle."
In fact, even during practice, the scoreboard towering overhead reads: "Pirates...Spartans."
"Like I told the kids, you know, I would schedule De La Salle ten times if we could. Let's just rinse and repeat. Let's keep playing this game over and over again," said Ramirez, with a smile. "Playing against a team like this? Man, this is what brings out the best in you. It's playing at the highest of levels."
And, of course, it's always easier to imagine winning when you've done it before.
