The final score isn’t one that anyone associated with the Burroughs High football team is proud of.
Then again, the final score was not a good indicator of how the 2026 season opener went.
In the 45-29 loss at South Torrance High, the Bears had no trouble moving the ball. Rather, it was a few unlucky turnovers that proved to be the difference.
“Nobody wins when you turn the ball over. We had a couple of critical ones, the bad snap. We had a couple of interceptions that we need to make better choices on those,” Burroughs coach Jose Calzadilla said. “I was super proud of the effort tonight. We played with the fire that we didn’t have before. Our seniors wanted to be leaders and get it done and juniors stepped up and were believing. Lots of good stuff tonight. We felt we could do almost anything we wanted to on the ground, but we believe if we are going to be successful in league and onwards we have to try to throw the ball and be a little more balanced.”
After turning the ball over on a fumble on its first possession, Burroughs had essentially held the host Spartans off the board. Or so they thought. The Bears were called for a pass interference penalty on fourth down on a play that could have been called either way or simply left alone as both players were battling for the ball.
South Torrance ended up getting a 25-yard field goal as a result.
Burroughs took a 7-3 lead at the 10:50 mark of the second quarter as quarterback Sean Ghaman found Tony Sanchez on a 19-yard touchdown.
The Bears appeared to have stopped the host Spartans once again on the ensuing drive before South Torrance was able to hold onto the ball by converting a fourth down and 13 situation to the 11-yard-line. Three players later, South Torrance running back Chris Noubi scored on a 3-yard run to make it 10-7.
Just before halftime, Burroughs forced South Torrance into a field-goal situation that ended before it started as a bad snap led to the Spartans turning the ball over.
Burroughs then returned the favor on its first play of the new drive as the ball was snapped over the head of Ghaman and South Torracne defensive end Charles Olson jumped on the loose ball that was in the end zone.
That made it 17-7 with 45 seconds left in the half.
But Burroughs wasn’t ready to go into the locker room down by 10.
Ghaman hooked up with Sho Fujita on a 49-yard pass play that resulted in Fujita being knocked out of bounds at the 6-yard-line with two seconds left.
The Bears were unable to convert a pass attempt on the final play of the half.
Burroughs cut the deficit to 17-13 midway through the third quarter, as Brandon Chapparo, who had taken over for Ghaman at quarterback after being shaken up, scored on a 12-yard run.
South Torrance came back with a solid drive that ended with a 2-yard-run by Noubi with 3:02 left in the third quarter, making it 24-13.
Burroughs turned the ball over on a fumble in the middle of the field late in the third quarter, as Noubi scored on a 74-yard screen pass on the first play of the fourth quarter to make it 31-13.
With Ghaman back at quarterback, Burroughs suffered a big blow as Noubi made an interception and returned it 60 yards for the touchdown.
The South Torrance star on offense, Noubi almost looked as if he was hidden behind a much larger lineman and out of Ghaman’s sight.
Fujita, who had 214 yards on 22 carries on the ground for Burroughs, scored on a 1-yard-run with 5:50 to play, making it 38-21.
Noubi added another touchdown, this one a 4-yard run, with 2:46 to play. He finished with 22 carries for 93 yards and three rushing touchdowns.
Fujita came back with his second touchdown, a 5-yard-run with 1:28 to play.
‘It’s not the outcome we wanted, but we did some really nice things,” Fujita said. “I think we are a lot more put together than last year.”
Ghaman finished 10 of 21 for 154 yards passing with a touchdown and two interceptions.
