Mission Prep, SLO, Morro Bay post wins as SLO County football kicks off

Mission Prep, Morro Bay and San Luis Obispo high schools each posted wins on Friday as the high school football season commenced with a full slate of non-league games.

The Royals and Pirates edged out their opponents by 3-point margins, while the Tigers secured a blowout win, holding their opponent scoreless.

Four other county teams in Nipomo, Templeton, Paso Robles and Arroyo Grande lost and will be looking to get into the win column next week. Each of those four teams fell by less than two scores.

Atascadero starts its season on Aug. 29.

Here are the opening week results SLO County football action.

Mission Prep 22, Oxnard 19

Mission Prep (1-0) held strong at home against Oxnard, leaning heavily on the ground game powered by senior Ronnie Kardashian. The senior running back kept the Royals’ offense moving all night, providing a spark when the passing attack struggled to find rhythm. Kardashian recorded three rushing scores and added a two-point conversion.

Oxnard struck first with a rushing touchdown in the second quarter, giving the Yellowjackets an early lead. But Kardashian responded by grinding out tough yards to push the Royals into Oxnard territory. A 15-yard burst set Mission Prep up inside the red zone, and a few plays later, Kardashian capped off the drive with a seven-yard touchdown run to even the score.

A botched snap by the Yellowjackets and a tackle inside their own 1-yard line gave the Royals a jolt of momentum. Taking over with prime field position, Mission Prep handed the ball to Kardashian, who powered in for his second touchdown of the night. The score extended the Royals’ lead to 14-7.

Flags were called frequently through the night on both ends of the field by both teams.

The Yellowjackets, however, responded after the Royals’ second touchdown and completed a 36-yard passing touchdown of their own. However, the kick was blocked by senior Joe Villa, and the Royals went into halftime up one point.

Both teams looked fatigued after the first half, and it became clear the second half would come down to which side could execute late.

Just minutes into the final quarter of the game, Oxnard drove inside the 1-yard line and had a series of goal-line attempts. A critical stop by Eddie Turrentine derailed the Oxnard offense, but the Yellowjackets eventually broke through on the goal line. Looking to extend their lead, Oxnard converted a two-point attempt, only to have it wiped away by an illegal-man-downfield penalty. The points were revoked, leaving the Yellowjackets ahead 19-14 as the clock wound into the final minutes.

With what could have been the final drive of the game, Mission Prep had one last chance to put points on the board and reclaim the lead after falling behind early in the fourth quarter.

All night long, the Royals had leaned on Kardashian’s explosiveness, and once again, the senior back shouldered the load, ripping off chunks of yardage to push Mission Prep deep into Yellowjacket territory.

Finding himself in the red zone once again, Kardashian powered in for his third touchdown of the night, a six-yard rush into the end zone. The Royals followed it up with a two-point conversion, and once again it was Kardashian who delivered.

“That last touchdown, there wasn’t a whole lot that we actually blocked,” Royals Coach David Schuster said. “Ronnie just made it happen.”

Schuster praised the defense for its execution throughout the night, while also pointing to Kardashian’s late-game effort as the spark that sealed the Royals’ comeback.

Coming into the season opener, Kardashian said Coach Schuster told him it was going to be a big game for him.

Mission Prep hosts Bishop Union on Friday.

San Luis Obispo 31, Mt. Whitney 0

SLO High School (1-0) won in a shutout against Mt. Whitney. Kickoff was delayed due to the 100-degree weather.

Colbin Garrison led the way with three rushing touchdowns, setting the tone for a Tigers offense filled with new contributors. Despite the roster turnover, Head Coach Pat Johnston said he was impressed with how quickly his players came together in their first test of the season.

“It was really hot out here, and they battled through that,” Johnston said. “I was impressed that they came out and didn’t let those conditions get the best of them.”

San Luis Obispo hosts Mission Oaks on Friday.

Golden West 35, Arroyo Grande 28

Arroyo Grande (0-1) opened its season on the road under new Head Coach Stephen Field, falling by a touchdown in a back-and-forth battle against Golden West.

The Trailblazers struck first, but the Eagles answered when Caleb Clark returned a kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown. The game stayed close through the first half before Golden West built a 28-13 lead.

Arroyo Grande clawed its way back in the fourth quarter behind running back Zack Tayman, who powered in for a 4-yard touchdown to cut the deficit. He later added a 5-yard score, pulling the Eagles within one possession at 35-28. The Eagles were unable to mount a full comeback and dropped their season opener.

“We have to continue to get better,” Field said. “All three phases of the ball did some things well tonight, but all three passes of the ball also struggled tonight, drastically.”

Arroyo Grande is at Newbury Park on Friday.

Kingsburg 24, Paso Robles 14

The Bearcats (0-1) lost on the road to open the season.

Running back Matthew Ammann punched in a 12-yard scoring run.

And new junior quarterback Blayne Lowry, a transfer from Nipomo, added the Bearcats second score.

“We lost 45-6 last year to Kingsburg, so this year is a complete 180,” said Coach Matthew Carroll. “We did some good things. But we still have some things to work on. We’ll need to establish our run better moving forward.”

Paso Robles hosts Garces Memorial on Friday.

Edison 28, Templeton 20 (2OT)

Templeton struck first with a touchdown in the opening quarter, and the Eagles held a slim 8-7 lead until the third, when quarterback Colter Tannehill connected on an 18-yard pass to Ethan Armet for a score.

The game stayed tight, and by the end of regulation, the teams were locked in a 20-20 tie, forcing overtime.

Edison broke through with a 1-yard rushing touchdown in the extra period, then sealed the win with a two-point conversion to hand Templeton a hard-fought loss.

Templeton is on the road at Monache on Friday.

Morro Bay 23, Foothill 20

The Pirates (1-1) grinded out their first win with a home victory after losing their opening contest on the road in Maui 68-41 to King Kekaulike High.

In Friday’s home opener, star quarterback Sands Dougherty tossed a touchdown and senior running back Lucca Macari ran for a score.

“It feels good to get the first win,” said Coach Robert Dougherty. “It’s always nice to win a game that you don’t play particularly well in.”

Dougherty said the team will work on some of the shortcomings to improve.

Last week in Hawaii the Pirates tallied five touchdowns, with Dougherty throwing for each of the scores, putting up 457 yards. Senior Efrain Hernandez hauled in four touchdown catches in Hawaii and Anthony Campanario snagged a scoring catch as well.

Dougherty said the trip to Hawaii was an impressive cultural experience, where players enjoyed the beauty of the island and learned about a different way of life, as much as a football one.

“My wife is from Hawaii and Sands spent 9.5 years of his life there,” Dougherty said. “But more than anything, it was a great opportunity for the players to get to experience it.”

Morro Bay hosts Lindsay on Friday.

Lompoc 17, Nipomo 7

The Titans (0-1) fell in the home opener.

Quarterback Griffin Groshart tossed Nipomo’s only score, a 40-yard touchdown to senior tight end Travis Barr.

Coach Russ Edwards said that he’ll go back to the film and see what they might do to improve in all aspects of the game. Nipomo was set back by multiple turnovers.

“We just didn’t execute to the best of our abilities with respect to assignment football, so that that can be improved on,” Edwards said. “We had chances to win.”

Sophomore Sam Gutierrez entered the game in the second half and played a quarter and a half at quarteback, as Groshart played on both sides of the field during the game.

“We’ll look at the film and examine the ongoing QB battle,” Edwards said. “There are two other guys that are improving at QB and putting their hat in the ring as well.”

Nipomo is at Righetti on Friday.

This story was originally published August 22, 2025 at 11:46 PM.