“The sky is falling, the sky is falling!” But fear not Lowell football fans, those are merely footballs soaring through the air, an unusual sight. For as long as anyone can remember, the Cardinal program’s calling card has been its running game. Easily 95 percent of the squad’s offensive production has historically been brutally bashed out by the team’s backs, while successful pass attempts have been as rare as a good Lowell lunch. This year, however, look for some diversity in Lowell’s offensive attack.

In a 30-0 romp over Tamalpais High School on Sept. 16 at Lowell, head coach Danny Chan handed the reigns over to junior quarterback Matt Jew. With half of the backfield out with various maladies, Chan moved senior quarterback and co-captain Carter Rockwell to wingback to fill the void.

“I’ll be at wingback for the rest of the season,” Rockwell said. That left the quarterbacking duties to the relatively inexperienced Jew, who did not disappoint.

Lianna Leal Senior Wingback JR Ayalde breaks free from a Tamalpais defender in Sept. 16 game. Ayalde was on the receiving end of a 50-yard touchdown pass from senior Carter Rockwell against Mills on Sept. 8. Lowell beat the Vikings 20-10 and the Hawks 30-0.

Jew hooked up with senior wingback and co-captain JR Ayalde twice against Tamalpais, both times yielding spectacular results. In the second quarter, Ayalde made a 30-yard grab, leaping over the top of an opponent at least six inches taller than himself in the process. In the fourth quarter, Jew lofted another 30-yarder beautifully down the left sideline, this time connecting with Ayalde for a touchdown.

On Friday, Sept. 8 at Mills High School in Millbrae, Rockwell, this time playing quarterback, led the Cardinals to a solid 20-10 win over the Vikings, accumulating some gaudy stats along the way. He had a near perfect day, compiling a 149.25 passer rating (158.3 is the highest rating allowed by the system; anything over a 100 is considered superb), highlighted by a 50-yard touchdown bomb down the left sideline to Ayalde with five seconds remaining in the first half. With the impressive score, the Cardinals went into halftime with a 12-10 lead and full control of the game’s momentum.

Though Lowell’s spontaneous aerial attack wowed the fans, it was the bruising running game that ultimately secured the victory. Ayalde led a vintage Cardinal touchdown drive to open the game. The team marched 60 yards on 15 exhausting plays, 14 of which came on the ground. By the end of the seven-minute, 30-second marathon drive capped off by an Ayalde TD run, Mills’ defense was already dragging.

Lowell’s defense initially had trouble containing athletic senior playmakers Lucas Hagberg and Shawn Echols. The two combined for over 100 yards and 10 points in the first half. Cardinal defensive coordinator Al Gamboa reportedly startled several families just east of the Mississippi River with his deafening screams of “Can somebody wrap up (their tackles)!?” The young defense, equipped with merely two returning starters from last year’s squad, evidently heard their coach loud and clear. They tightened up their tackles and didn’t allow the Viking offense to score a single point in the second half. Junior safety Spencer MacDonald and senior linebacker Raymond Wong both came up with clutch interceptions in fourth-quarter crunch time.

Senior AJ Thomas, who sat out his junior season, will greatly boost the unit. The powerful defensive lineman, in on seemingly every tackle, wreaked havoc on Mills.

The AAA is a notoriously run-oriented league; therefore, the run defense must firm up if the Cardinals are to succeed in the regular season. The linebacking core will have to wrap up their tackles, and the defensive line must consistently plug up the gaps against athletic AAA opponents. Look to senior defensive end and co-captain Pat Schock to anchor the line and terrorize the pocket. The 6’ 2”, 210 pounder earned the “Camp Stud” award at a summer training camp in Vallejo. Junior linebacker Jairo Rueda, the only sophomore starter on last year’s defense, has a knack for big hits that will pose problems for opposing offenses.

For the first time in years, it seems that Lowell’s biggest concern may be their running game. Against the Vikings, the Cardinals were without their top two wingbacks for most of the second half. Junior Bismark Navarro, the city’s 100-meter dash champion, was expected to lead the ground attack this season. But Navarro has had a history of injury problems. Entering the Mills contest nursing mild lower back and ankle injuries, he sustained an even more serious injury just before halftime on just his second carry of the game, separating his left shoulder while stiff-arming a would-be tackler. At the start of the fourth quarter, Ayalde began to experience violent hamstring cramps, and sat out the rest of the game. While cramps are by no means a serious injury, they are something to keep an eye on.

Without their top two backs, seniors Duc Anh Le and Marcos Cronander handled the burden remarkably well. On the final drive of the game, the tandem appeared to feed off each other. Le had several flashy sprints down the right sideline, while Cronander punished the Viking defense with tough runs up the gut. The two led a 70-yard drive to end the game.

With their preseason tune-ups out of the way, the Cardinals aren’t sure where the season will go from here. They are scheduled to play Thurgood Marshall on Sept. 22, but Marshall may not be able to field a team. In the event of a forfeit, Lowell could play Monterey High School in the grand-opening of their spiffy new stadium. That game would begin at 6 pm, under the lights.