Templeton, Arroyo Grande win league titles, while SLO is a co-champ

As the regular season of high school football closed Friday night, two San Luis Obispo County teams clinched league titles and another earned co-champion status.

Under the CIF playoff format, teams needed at least a .300 winning percentage to qualify for playoffs, and every county team reached it. Playoff brackets and matchups are expected to be released soon.

Here’s a look at the full results from Thursday and Friday.

San Luis Obispo 28, Atascadero 14

Coming into Friday night, four Sunset League teams — Santa Ynez, Atascadero, Righetti, and San Luis Obispo — sat tied at 2-1, with a share of the league title on the line.

San Luis Obispo (6-4, 3-1 Sunset) broke the deadlock with a 28-14 win over Atascadero (5-5, 2-2 Sunset) to clinch a share of the Sunset League championship.

The player behind the offense was running back Colbin Garrison, who accounted for all the Tiger touchdowns on Friday night.

“(The offensive line) definitely had some huge blocks tonight, and that’s the only reason I’m allowed to make those big runs,” Garrison said.

Garrison had been sidelined for three weeks earlier this season with a strained hamstring. The injury came after he broke SLO’s single-game rushing record with 364 yards against Morro Bay, surpassing the previous mark of 353.

Garrison said being sidelined tested him in a different way, forcing him to lead from the sideline and support teammates who weren’t seeing the field as much.

Coach Pat Johnston acknowledged that his absence came at a critical point in league play.

“When you don’t have the best football player in the county on the field for you, that affects how you are able to perform,” Johnston said. “We’re certainly better with him on the field.”

One of the games Garrison missed was against Righetti, a matchup SLO ultimately lost. A win there would have shifted the look of the Sunset League standings heading into Friday night.

With Garrison back, SLO leaned on the ground game to set the pace.

The Tigers opened up a 14-0 lead in the first quarter, both touchdowns coming from Garrison. But Atascadero eventually caught on, crowding the line of scrimmage and forcing SLO’s offense to work harder for yards as the night went on.

In the second quarter, SLO couldn’t get back on the board. Atascadero answered with an 86-yard run from Damon Mitchell, shifting the momentum toward the Greyhounds. That play set up Atascadero’s offense, and the Hounds finished the drive with a rushing touchdown to close the gap.

The Greyhounds tied the game at 14 in the third quarter while SLO struggled to generate any offensive momentum. Garrison saw fewer touches during that stretch, and the Tigers couldn’t break out of the slump.

Come playoff time, it will be crucial for SLO to adjust when teams key in on Garrison as the offense’s centerpiece, just as Atascadero did. Johnston said the team has ways to counter that, and Garrison said it comes down to “trusting that everybody is going to do their job.”

A rushing touchdown to end the third quarter gave SLO back its lead, and another rushing touchdown, followed by a two-point conversion, ultimately sealed the win for the Tigers in the fourth quarter.

Heading into the playoffs, Johnston said “playing mistake-free” is the biggest focus for the Tigers after mishandled snaps and penalties hurt momentum against Atascadero.

“We’re always trying to be the better version of ourselves than we were previously,” Johnston said. “And we just want to play as mistake-free as we can,” he added.

Templeton 29, Cabrillo 23

Templeton (10-0, 4-0 Ocean) finished off its best regular season in 20 years with a road win to secure an Ocean League title in the regular season finale.

The Eagles used a balanced attack to gain the advantage and build a 21-10 halftime lead before holding on for the league championship-deciding victory over the Braves (7-2, 2-2 Ocean).

Star senior running back Tyler Cunningham tallied three rushing touchdowns, putting up 166 yards on the ground, averaging nearly eight yards per carry.

Quarterback Colter Tannehill threw for 148 yards and a touchdown, connecting with Colby Sims on the scoring strike. Sims recorded 101 yards receiving on six catches.

Garret Davis tallied 16 tackles for the Eagles, and Hayz Camarena added 10 tackles. Weston Patch, Wyatt Botts and Nick Capaci each had a sack apiece.

The last time Templeton went undefeated in its regular season was 2005.

Arroyo Grande 42, Mission Prep 0

Arroyo Grande (6-4, 4-0 Mountain League) earned a league title championship with a shutout win over Mission Prep (3-7, 0-4)

The Eagles spread the scoring among Caleb Clark, Miles Thompson and Carter Jones, who each recorded a rushing touchdown. Zack Tayman tallied two rushing scores. Clark busted loose for an 80-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.

Adding to his team-leading stats in rushing, Tayman has 1,216 total yards and 17 touchdowns on the season.

Clark, a senior who’s committed to play football at Idaho next season, leads the team with 18 all-purpose touchdowns.

Arroyo Grande’s Jacob Kreowski completed 3-for-4 passes for 88 yards and a touchdown to Clark. Copeland Hartford and Marcus Dunne each recorded an interception, and Andrew Moreno led Arroyo Grande with nine tackles.

Paso Robles 34, Lompoc 33

After clinching its first playoff berth since 2022 last week, Paso Robles (4-6, 2-2 Mountain) closed out the regular season with a dramatic double-overtime victory at Lompoc.

This season marks a step forward for the program compared to recent years. The Bearcats had managed just two wins in each of the past two seasons, but this fall they’ve doubled that total.

Tied at 20 apiece at the end of regulation, the Bearcats and Braves headed into overtime.

Lompoc scored first, forcing Paso Robles to play from behind, but the Bearcats answered to send the game to a second overtime. Paso struck again in double overtime to take a 34-33 lead, leaving the Braves with one final possession.

Lompoc drove inside the red zone and faced a fourth-and-5 from the 7-yard line. That’s when sophomore Leevi Stanko came up with the play of the night, stopping the Braves short of the sticks to seal the win for Paso Robles.

“That was a good team effort from all 11 guys on our defense,” coach Matt Carroll said.

Carroll said the Bearcats’ stretch of three tough games in the middle of the season was intentional, something he believed would prepare them for moments like Friday night. Now, with back-to-back wins heading into the postseason, he said that stretch has done exactly that.

“That’s what it’s about going into the playoffs,” he added. “We’re right when we want to be.”

Nipomo 49, Morro Bay 34

Nipomo (6-4, 3-2 Ocean) came out on top against Morro Bay (3-7, 1-3 Ocean) after entering the fourth quarter tied at 28, a situation that felt familiar for the Pirates after their late-game battle just a week earlier against Atascadero. But once again, the final frame swung the other way.

The Titans struck first in the fourth, as Evan Doll hauled in a touchdown to break the tie. Nick Evans then pushed the lead further with a rushing score, giving Nipomo control of the momentum and the clock.

Morro Bay fought to stay in it, responding with a touchdown pass to Efrain Hernandez to cut the deficit. But the Titans answered once more, finding Doll again in the end zone to put the game out of reach for good.

For Morro Bay, it marked the second week in a row that the fourth quarter was tied, and the second time the Pirates watched it slip away late, a trend they’ll need to address with the postseason approaching.