I’ll take this one OC. Yes! That way the schedule catches up to the narrative.
Football Scoreboard - December 6/7
- Thread starter Streak One
- Start date
On a scale of 1 to 10—1 being ‘I’m calm, I got a cup of chamomile tea in my hand,’ and 10 being ‘I just flipped over a coffee table and cussed out my goldfish’—how angry does Folsom High School’s schedule really make you?
Agree with most of this, but Pitt made a lot of mistakes too, especially early on. Both teams had turnovers. That inexplicable punt that Pitt didn’t down and suddenly the Folsom return man picked up for a huge return was a big play( great heads up by the Folsom kid) , fumbles both ways. Great game. Lyons performance was a little disappointing, but Pitt remembered what he did to them last year, and did a great job holding the edges most of the game, keeping his running in check. Biggest difference from last year’s game , and kept Pitt in it
Honestly, I thought Pitt had better players all over the field with exception of Sharma. I think they play 10x and Pitt wins 7+ of those games. They got down 21! Once pitt figured them out they controlled the game.
Lyons was more than disappointing. He is always the best athlete playing in the SFL but this isn't Del Oro. Guys like Calhoun are faster and stronger and this is what he will be facing at the next level. He has a lot to work on and it was exposed big time. Right now to me he is a great athlete first and pocket passer a distant second. He needs to narrow that gap next year.
Got to say most of the games I watched were really great games. Seems most of the matchups worked this year. On to the state championship games and the end of another great HS football season.
I thought the teams were evenly matched, but Pitt had better athletes and did a much better job of putting them in positions to make big plays. Pitt's defense deserves high praise for effectively limiting Folsom's quarterback's running game, which had been a key part of their offense.
Regarding Folsom, in a closely contested game like this, I would have opted to kick the extra point (XP) to potentially extend the game into overtime. Not doing so seemed to shift the momentum in Pitt's favor. Additionally, I wonder if Folsom shot themselves in the foot by not showcasing their Nevada-committed running back.
He was clearly their best runner, which was evident during moments in the Pitt game. He broke off a couple of impressive runs, and it appeared the middle of the field was open all game as Pitt focused heavily on containing the outside and covering the receivers.
In a game of this magnitude, I would have leaned heavily on the running back and the USC-committed tight end, similar to how Pitt showcased their receiver. Doing so would have diversified Folsom's offense and opened up more opportunities for their superstar quarterback to make plays with his arm and feet!
Regarding Folsom, in a closely contested game like this, I would have opted to kick the extra point (XP) to potentially extend the game into overtime. Not doing so seemed to shift the momentum in Pitt's favor. Additionally, I wonder if Folsom shot themselves in the foot by not showcasing their Nevada-committed running back.
He was clearly their best runner, which was evident during moments in the Pitt game. He broke off a couple of impressive runs, and it appeared the middle of the field was open all game as Pitt focused heavily on containing the outside and covering the receivers.
In a game of this magnitude, I would have leaned heavily on the running back and the USC-committed tight end, similar to how Pitt showcased their receiver. Doing so would have diversified Folsom's offense and opened up more opportunities for their superstar quarterback to make plays with his arm and feet!
Good point about that RB, he seemed effective every time he touched the ball. Amazing they didn’t go to him more. Folsom also had a huge size advantage in the interior of their OL. Instead, running plays sideline to sideline played into the strength of Pitt’s team speed.
No NorCal school has won against the current incarnation of SoCal's best, Mater Dei and St. John Bosco with its So-Cal-wide recruiting, bleeding at times into NorCal. It's a different beast than Palo Alto and DLS faced years ago.
Agree with your Take on Lyons, Definitely got exposed by Serra and PITT…. Seems like he is more of a runner and he struggles against better teams, especially that are physical and have speed….
DLS contained him and beat Folsom with him at QB the year Before as well….
Totally agree with your take on why didn’t Folsom run more up the middle?…. They seemed to have a huge size advantage on the line….
And if you watched DLS vs PITT which I assume Folsom Did, they would have seen that DLS gained almost all their yards in the interior and their runners could get to the second level on PITT and broke some big runs that way….
PITT had too much speed on the edges and DLS couldn’t do anything there…. More of the RB and less of Lyons maybe wins the game for Folsom…. PITT seemed determined not to let Lyons beat them….
Indeed! Pitt had too much speed on the edge..And would not let the QB beat them!
I was baffled that Folsom didn't rely on their RB and O line! He was running well out of the backfield and special teams!
Underutilizing him may have been why they also struggled with Serra. Looks like he only had 4 carries that game.
Most teams don't have the luxury of having a D1 (FBS) RB.
The only thing, concerning High School football, that I would ever be angry with is if coaches are beating or molesting players. That being said I was just expressing my opinion about Folsom cupcake approach to scheduling and need to be taken seriously.
I’m late to the party but wanted to talk about a couple of the games as I watched both in entirety on NFHS…
Folsom-Pitt —- I’ve seen many commenting how Lyons was trying to do too much and how none of the receivers could get open due to pitts superior athletes. I haven’t seen anyone talk about Folsoms top WR Jameson Powell (2026 4 star) playing injured. He missed the oak ridge game and couldn’t make any separation against Pitt. This would help explain why Lyons was scrambling so much. Congrats to Pitt. They are so much better with the new coaching staff.
Grant-SF — Pacers have steadily improved since the start of the season. You can tell how much that tough preseason schedule has helped them, especially in close games, unlike Folsom. Grant has some really good play makers and they are a young team. Future likes bright for Grant.
Folsom-Pitt —- I’ve seen many commenting how Lyons was trying to do too much and how none of the receivers could get open due to pitts superior athletes. I haven’t seen anyone talk about Folsoms top WR Jameson Powell (2026 4 star) playing injured. He missed the oak ridge game and couldn’t make any separation against Pitt. This would help explain why Lyons was scrambling so much. Congrats to Pitt. They are so much better with the new coaching staff.
Grant-SF — Pacers have steadily improved since the start of the season. You can tell how much that tough preseason schedule has helped them, especially in close games, unlike Folsom. Grant has some really good play makers and they are a young team. Future likes bright for Grant.
HA!… Do we have an “Excuse Thread” on this Board?…. 🤣
Was Powell sitting out when Folsom Lost to Serra?…..
HA!…. Yes, Sharma not playing against Serra was obvious, you can’t miss that kid!!!…. What an incredible player!!….
They did a phenomenal job IMO. Arguably the best containment and disruption of Lyons I've seen yet. He's not easy to corral, and typically toys with defenses -- even fast ones.
Powell is a 5"8 160 lb speedster who's offers are highly suspect. He's way to small to play big time football at the next level. Been watching him for years and wouldn't have mattered if he was healthy. The Pitt kids are faster and bigger.
Sharma is a future Sunday player.
Pitt took an example from the Serra defensive off that has neutralized the Folsom offense as good as any team the past two years. They also played against the 4 star WR. Pitts team speed and physicality took its toll on Folsom and also Pitt reduced its mistakes. Folsom overall is a better team.
Grant athleticism and physicality hurt the Lancers but also Lancers made mistakes. That was a great game against two evenly matched teams. Grant made the plays at the end. Grant also has to reduce its penalties. That really hurt them throughout the game. May not have been as close.
I don’t know about this…. What exactly makes Folsom a Better team than PITT?….
PITT dominated Folsom for the last 3 quarters…. They teams played twice the last 2 years and the difference in the games was 4 points…. PITT looked like the better team Friday Night…. 🤣
I would put Lyons more in the Kayden Bennett level…. Great against overmatched teams, Not so Great against good teams….
Lyons is 0-3 vs DLS & Serra….
182 Avg Passing Yards
3 Passing TD’s, 2 Rushing TD’s
2 INT’s, Sacked 7 Times
Against SSD3 ST Bonnie’s he had 145 Passing yards, I Passing TD and 1 Rushing TD….
In 2 games against PITT he was sacked 10 times and turned the ball over Twice…. Didn’t Crack 200 yards passing in either game BUT he did have an incredible 3 Passing TD’s and 5 Rushing TD’s…. His record is 1-1….
So in 6 games against the best Competition he has played he looks like this….
5 Games Under 200 yards Passing (228)
4 Turnovers
17 Times Sacked
7 Passing TD’s
8 Rushing TD’s
2-4 Record Against these teams.
I think 15 TD’s in 6 games is pretty great but his team lost 4 of them and 8 of those came against PITT…. The other 4 games he had a Combined 7 TD’s…. He just doesn’t get other players involved, he just runs, and teams with Speed sack him, ST Bonnie’s didn’t post stats for their game so their could have been more Sacks….
He definitely looks the part, But so did Bennett…. And once again, He lost to a 6 loss Serra team…. #2 Recruit in the Country seems pretty high for him….
Eh, Lyons is way better than Kaiden Bennett. Gotta remember, he's only a Junior, too.
I'd focus more blame on Folsom's coaching decision making and lack of adjustments against good teams.
This is the ultimate "team" game, not an individual sport. The team record doesn't reflect upon one player.
By that logic, most every QB the De La Salle Spartans have had over the past 32 years were better than elite level talents like Lyons because their team record for the longest time was stellar if not perfect.
Not at all…. Lyons is the #2 recruit in the country or something, he should be Dominating SSD3 teams and a 6 loss Serra team….
DLS has Never had a QB with that type of Rrcruiting…. Maybe only Matt Gutierrez and He dominated against the Beat teams they played who were all equally or more talented than DLS (MD and LBP)….
The Good News for Lyons is I am far from a Recruiter so He will be just fine…. 🤣
Let's stop pretending Serra and Pitt don't have good or great defenses. Because they do. They are coached up very very well.
Furthermore, let's also not pretend to understand that Folsom only lost to both teams by a single point. Games in which the Folsom coaching staff made decisions to go for 4th down inside their own 10 yard line (against Serra) then went for 2 with over 2 minutes remaining (Pitt) among many other questionable decisions/calls throughout the game that helped decide those games.
None of that is on Ryder Lyons. With better coaching and decision making, Folsom could easily be 15-0 right now and in a State Bowl game. With a Junior QB.
As for slighting Lyons for the St. Bonaventure game the season before, again, see the above. And also recognize that the kid was a freaking Sophomore.
I realize that you have a natural inclination to dislike or root against Folsom, I get it. But let's not go crazy here. The kid is a phenomenal young QB prospect and a couple of close losses largely due to an over-matched coaching staff do not diminish or change that.
Is he perfect? Of course not! I even detailed some tendencies that get him into trouble against good, fast, and disciplined defenses. But that's all part of the learning curve for talents like him. His coaching staff needs to be better in calling plays that don't always rely upon his legs or Houdini act. They have a ton of talent and could do a better job of spreading the wealth and keeping defenses off balance and not so solely focused on stopping #3.
Lyons needs to spend time in the lab in the offseason. He was unwilling to stay in the pocket whenever he saw a heavy rush and took off way too early. As the announcers stated he had happy feet which led to inaccurate throws or took off running sustaining some brutal hits and fumbles. He's a phenomenal QB prospect, but needs to work on his technique.
Lyons is a great athlete for sure buuuttt he is a "SUPER EIGHT" kid. By that I mean he did 8th grade twice and not bc of grades (4.0) kid...The lineman for Folsom is also a 'super eight" kid.....must be the water in ElDorado Hills?
Are you sure about this?….. Serra got Boatraced by DLS and SJB giving up 39 and 56 points…. With all that D1 Talent Folsom has including the #2 QB in the country, they should have won by 3 TD’s like less talents DLS did…. Serra lost 6 games this year….
PITT is definitely better but gave up 42 points to Riordan, but Lyons has played well against PITT they just sack him a lot, 10 times in 2 games, but he has 8TD’s in those 2 games which is pretty awesome….
I am sorry, but just not that impressed with him…. He looks like just another Folsom QB who runs up Stats against the Bad Schedule Folsom plays year in and year out and when Folsom plays the top teams, his stats go way down and Folsom loses….. Hence his 0-3 record vs Serra and DLS…..
