HAYWARD — This one was all Moreau, right from the start.
Quarterback Jeremiah Charles put on a show, completing all nine passes he attempted for 278 yards and four touchdowns as Moreau Catholic won the Northern California Division 7-AA championship Friday night, 42-11 over Leland.
The Mariners (10-4), becoming the first team from the school to do so, advances to the state Division 7-AA championship, Friday at 4 p.m. at Fullerton High School. They will face Lindsay (10-5) of Tulare County, a 35-20 winner over Chatsworth in the SoCal regional championship game.
“It’s great for the city of Hayward,” Moreau coach Keith Minor said. “It’s a testament to the seniors on our team, the administration that supports us so much and so well. We couldn’t do it all without a great team effort.”
Moreau Catholic’s head coach Keith Minor gets water tossed on him after his team wins against Leland during the NorCal Division 7-AA championship at Moreau Catholic High School in Hayward, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
The 6-foot-4 Charles has now thrown 30 touchdown passes on the season with only three interceptions.
“The whole world is sleeping on him,” Minor said. “The system’s broken, there’s no way in the world that man shouldn’t have a Division I scholarship. He is an absolute incredible football player. To do what he did tonight in a NorCal regional championship is incredible.”
Four plays into the game Charles connected with his favorite receiver Jalen Arnold on a 24-yard touchdown pass.
Leland (10-4) came into the game planning to try to control the ball and clock with its running game. The Chargers were highly effective in executing their game plan on their first possession, driving from their own 21 to the Moreau 4 on 13 running plays, without once putting the ball in the air, but had to settle for a 23-yard field goal by freshman David Ahlgren.
Moreau Catholic’s Jameson Ransburg (14) scores a touchdown against Leland in the second quarter during the NorCal Division 7-AA championship at Moreau Catholic High School in Hayward, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
Moreau took over at the 20 and needed only one play, an 80-yard bomb from Charles to Jameson Ransburg, to seize back momentum.
Leland went three-and-out and Moreau put together a 54-yard, five-play drive with Jayden Bryant scoring on a 6-yard run.
Moreau quickly regained ball possession after another three-and-out as Lance Mitchell came up with the first of his two sacks, and again needed only one play to cash in, this time on a 58-yard pass from Charles to Ransburg.
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“They’ve got a lot of athletes, a lot of talent,” Leland coach Kelly King Jr. said. “They’re going to be a hard team to beat next week.”
The Mariners went into the locker room at halftime with a 35-3 lead. Charles was 8-of-8 for 260 yards in the first half. On his only pass of the second half on the first possession of the third quarter he hit Arnold for another touchdown, and then sat out the remainder of the game and started looking forward to next week..
“This is what we’ve been playing for this whole time,” Charles said. “We’ve been talking about going all the way. Our group-chant name is `future state champs,’ and we’re trying to live up to it.”
Ransburg’s two catches both went for touchdowns with a combined total of 138 yards. Arnold, who came into the game with 60 catches for 1,429 yards and 17 touchdowns, finished with four receptions for 64 yards and two TDs.
“The chemistry (between he and Charles), honestly, starts in the offseason,” Arnold said. “Me and Jeremiah and a couple other friends on the wide receiver corps go to a field, get some routes in, go one on one, and get the work in during the offseason. We’re where we wanted to be. We wanted to go to state and get a ring.”
Leland’s touchdown came in the fourth quarter on a 5-yard pass from Jacob Gibson to Wyatt Markos, who then ran in the two-point conversion. Gibson led the Chargers on the ground with 73 yards rushing on 16 carries. Hudson Vye gained 36 yards on 12 carries and Brady Hernandez 32 yards on 10 carries.
Moreau Catholic’s Peyton Collins (20) runs with the ball against Leland’s Rory Windsor (7) and Leland’s Caden Canter (2) in the first quarter during the NorCal Division 7-AA championship at Moreau Catholic High School in Hayward, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
Moreau Catholic’s Peyton Collins (20) runs with the ball against Leland’s Rory Windsor (7) and Leland’s Cole Canter (5) in the second quarter during the NorCal Division 7-AA championship at Moreau Catholic High School in Hayward, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
Moreau Catholic’s Jameson Ransburg (14), Moreau Catholic’s Peyton Collins (20) and Moreau Catholic’s Jalen Arnold (13) celebrate a touchdown against Leland in the first quarter during the NorCal Division 7-AA championship at Moreau Catholic High School in Hayward, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
Leland’s Jacob Gibson (3) throws the ball against Moreau Catholic in the second quarter during the NorCal Division 7-AA championship at Moreau Catholic High School in Hayward, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
