Salinas football

 You can't prepare for the suddenness of a season ending in a split second. Not when the expectation is to play more football.
 For several of the seniors on the Cowboys football team, walking off the field in uniform was for the final time last Friday after falling in overtime 43-42 to Placer.
 It likely didn't set in until most of them woke up the next morning. If it didn't hit them then, it surely did Monday when players began turning in uniforms to head coach Steve Zenk.
 "Collecting uniforms always sucks,'' Zenk said. "It's always emotional. This season was incredible and a testament to the kids' hard work, great attitudes and willingness to both lead and follow.''
 The Cowboys historic season included snapping a 15-year losing streak to Palma, going undefeated in the Gabilan Division and capturing a Central Coast Section Open Division I title.
 It tied the school record for wins in a single season with 11 and ran off a record 10 straight wins to reach uncharted waters in the State Northern California Division 4-AA bowl game.
 Looking back at the Cowboys season, it began with five different players scoring touchdowns in a 42-6 romp over Oak Grove in their season opener.
 Yet, there were some bumps and barriers in their path, such as suffering back-to-back losses to Terra Nova and Milpitas.
 Salinas was outscored 41-0 in the first half in those game, creating questions, but never doubts about the direction Zenk was taking the program
 "We stuck together,'' Zenk said. "We did this together like everything we do because we're Cowboys. That's what we do.''
 What transpired was Salinas taking its student body on a ride of a lifetime, starting in Seaside when it erased a one-point first quarter deficit with a 21-point uprising.
 So much for those first half offensive struggles. Granted the defense helped as Hunter Mason had his second pick six of the season.
 But the Cowboys chalked up over 300 rushing yards as Ritchie Cerda and Brett Reade both rushed for over 100 yards while Mike Cortez added 98, combining for four touchdowns.
 Reade gave opponents a glimpse of what was to come by throwing a touchdown and rushing for a touchdown -- something he would end up doing 32 times this year.
 A season high 48 points against North Salinas could have been a lot worse -- if you ask former North Salinas coach Darren Spence.
 "Salinas could have put 100 up on us that night,'' Spence said. "I really appreciated the class Steve and his staff showed that night.''
 The game circled on the calenders of most wearing purple the minute schedules were released was right in front of them in Palma.
 In the past, emotions or mental mistakes have gotten the best of Salinas when facing Palma en route to 15 straight losses. Clinging to a 7-0 halftime lead left Zenk somewhat worried.
 But with Reade completing 19-of-19 pass attempts that night, the Cowboys put up two more scores in the second half to beat Palma 21-7.
 Emotions were kept in check. Well, maybe in the lockerroom it was a little noisy. But the business like approach continued the following week in Hollister.
 Concerns about a letdown were erased the moment Salinas got off the bus as Reade tossed a pair of touchdowns in the first half to stake them to a 28-0 lead in a 41-13 pasting.
 Reade was giving Salinas another option on the ground, rushing for 130 yards, while throwing for 154 yards and three touchdowns.
 The following week Reade rushed for 175 yards in a route of Monte Vista, then fired two touchdown passes to Jeff Weimer in a 21-0 win over Alvarez.
 A battle of unbeatens in the Gabilan unfolded in a road trip to Aptos, where Salinas was down 14-10 before running off 14 straight points behind touchdown runs for Cerda and Drew Schuler.
 Reade also rushed for two touchdowns and was 14-of-17 threw the air in a 31-21 win, completing an undefeated league season.
 Whether it was the 3-7 record Palo Alto brought in or not, the Cowboys were flat in their postseason opener, mustering just a touchdown pass and touchdown run from Reade.
 Yet, the defense was big in critical moments, using an interception from Schuler late in the fourth to salvage a 14-7 win.
 Reade put the team on his shoulders in the semifinals, throwing for 251 yards and three touchdowns and rushing for three touchdowns as Salinas built a 42-0 lead in a route of Los Gatos.
 Reade also became the first Salinas player to rush for over 1,000 yards and throw for over 1,000 in a single season.
 A redemption tour that included ending losing streaks to Palma and Aptos had one more on its list in Milpitas, who had beaten the Cowboys three straight years, including 10 weeks earlier.
 The Cowboys hadn't scored a touchdown against Milpitas in 13 straight quarters until Reade plowed in from eight yards out to give them a 7-5 lead in the second quarter.
 The 12-0 Trojans answered with 13 straight points, including a touchdown to open the second half to take an 18-7 lead.
 If there was one play that defied Salinas' magical season, it came on its next drive when Reade hit  Weimer on fourth-and-long for 27 yards to keep the chains moving.
 Moments later Reade connected with Ivan Curiel on a nine-yard touchdown in the left corner to get them to within five.
 Momentum turned just like that. Milpitas could not reestablish a ground game that had 228 yards in the first three quarters as Schuler and Noah Habes led a resurgent Cowboys defense.
 When Cerda pounded his way into the end zone, Salinas had a 20-18 lead going into the final quarter -- the first time Milpitas had trailed in a game in the fourth quarter.
 "It looks like they're sleeping over there,'' said Zenk, as the fourth quarter began.
 A 41-yard field goal by Adrian Hernandez put the Cowboys up by five with 11:18 left in the game, a lead that would increase to seven when the defense recorded a safety.
 Milpitas, who tossed three touchdown passes in its win over Salinas back on Sept. 15, threw for just 27 yards with Kelly McDermott sealing the section title with an interception.
 For the first time since Salinas prevailed 7-6 in the mud at Gilroy in 2001 over San Benito, it won a CCS championship.
 "I personally just want to say 'Thank You Cowboys','' Zenk said. "I love everyone of these kids. What a ride.''