GREENFIELD — Ending a 19-year postseason drought would normally warrant a massive celebration. Instead, emotions were kept in check.
There is potentially a much bigger prize that sits in front of King City, which is chasing the program’s first league football title since 1983.
“Our first goal is to win a league title, which comes before getting to the playoffs,” King City coach Mac Villaneuva said. “The boys were excited. But we have our eyes on a different prize right now.”
In a year of milestones, which includes Villanueva becoming the program’s all-time winningest coach, the Mustangs added another memory to their mantel Thursday, using four touchdowns from Carson Tidwell in a 28-0 win over Greenfield.
Depending on what occurs Saturday when Stevenson hosts Alvarez, King City could have no worse than a share of its first title in 42 years, or it will host the Pirates next Thursday for the Mission Division South title.
Either way, they’ve ensured themselves of one of the top two automatic playoff berths out of the Mission Division South, improving to 4-0 in league play.
The last time King City reached the playoffs in 2006, Villanueva was in his first season as an assistant coach for the program, which won six straight games to extend its season that year.
Owners of eight consecutive wins since a season-opening loss to North Salinas, the Mustangs are watching Tidwell put together a historic season, breaking his fifth school record of the year after rewriting the team’s single-season rushing record.
Entering the game with 1,413 yards, Tidwell chalked up 246 more on just 19 carries to break a five-decade-old record. Two weeks ago, he broke the all-time rushing record at King City, a mark that had stood for 42 years by Marc Scaroni.
Tidwell, who shattered the single-game county record two weeks ago with a 419-yard rushing effort, rewrote a 64-year-old King City record last week for career points, held by former Green Bay Packers running back Jim Mankins.
The junior tailback has 24 rushing touchdowns on the season — also a school record, with runs of 5, 79, 31 and 18 yards against the Bruins.
“He is breaking tackles, making defenders miss,” Villanueva said. “He’s elusive. When Carson gets into the open field, no one is going to catch him. If he hadn’t missed the Gonzales game, he would be chasing 2,000 yards.”
During their eight-game winning streak, the Mustangs have turned to a tenacious defense that has posted four shutouts, including back-to-back blankings of Pacific Grove and Greenfield.
Anchored by linebackers Rocky Villanueva and Nathan Vega and defensive end Benjamin Bolanos, the Mustangs have allowed just 41 points over their last eight games — 28 of which came in a 14-point win over Alvarez three weeks ago on the road.
“Our front line is the strong point of the defense,” Villanueva said. “And we’re starting to get healthy in the secondary. I knew we had a special group. They’re all juniors. My brother told me as seventh graders four years ago to check this group out.”
Tidwell, who has rushed for over 100 yards in seven straight games, has accounted for 893 yards and 12 touchdowns in his last three games for King City.
The 5-foot-9 tailback, who is averaging over eight yards each time he touches the ball, has followed an offensive line that includes seniors Armando Villasenor and center Emmanuel Garcia-Loa.
