Bishop O’Dowd’s Lamar Ellis returns to the sideline after scoring a first-quarter touchdown in the Dragons’ 59-21 victory over Fortuna in the North Coast Section Division VI championship game on Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025 at Moreau Catholic High School in Hayward. (Darren Sabedra/Bay Area News Group).
When Bishop O’Dowd played in its only previous football regional, the Dragons won on their home field in Oakland nine years ago.
Much different this time around.
O’Dowd traveled nearly three hours for its CIF 5-AA NorCal title game against Chico on Friday night and had to scrap and claw with everything it had.
When the Dragons swarmed quarterback John Bernardez for a fourth-down sack in the final 90 seconds, they could finally exhale – and celebrate.
O’Dowd won the regional championship 23-20 behind more electricity from junior running back Lamar Ellis and a special-teams unit that had two blocks (field goal, extra point) and returned a kickoff for a go-ahead touchdown. The defense added a fumble recovery at the 1-yard line in the second half that kept O’Dowd in the lead.
The Dragons captured the same classification that their 2016 team won.
Now they will try to match that team again next week when they seek the program’s second state championship.
O’Dowd (10-4) will play Christian-El Cajon for the title in Southern California.
Ellis, coming off a five-touchdown game in the North Coast Section Division VI final against Fortuna last week, scored two TDs on Friday.
His 17-yard run gave O’Dowd a 6-0 lead in the opening quarter, a touchdown set up by a deep pass from Christian Cermenelli-Johnson to Jess Brown. The PAT was blocked.
Chico (11-3) answered with a touchdown pass to Jake Detmer and a successful PAT that made it 7-6.
O’Dowd appeared to reclaim the advantage when fullback OC Lehner plowed in from the 1. But the Dragons called timeout before the snap. When play resumed, Ellis ran into a wall at the line of scrimmage, keeping Chico in front.
The home team then drove the length of the field before stalling at the 11. O’Dowd blocked the 28-yard field-goal attempt as the score remained 7-6 until the final snap of the half.
Zach Brien’s 24-yard field goal as time expired gave the visitors a 9-7 lead at the midway point.
Chico drove 80 yards for a go-ahead touchdown on its first series of the second half, a drive that ended with Bernardez scoring from 10 yards out on third down.
The quarterback fumbled as he crossed the goal line, but the officials signaled a touchdown that made it 14-9.
The lead lasted only seconds.
Trevor Erickson took the ensuing kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown that put O’Dowd back in front 16-14.
Chico threatened to retake the advantage early in the fourth quarter but fumbled at the 1-yard line.
Ellis followed with one of the plays of the night, a jaw-dropping run that began with a handoff to the left side. He followed his blockers, found daylight down the sideline, then weaved through defenders for a touchdown that stretched the margin to 23-14.
Bernardez’s 7-yard keeper on third down pulled Chico to within 23-20 with 5:13 left. The PAT was blocked.
Chico got the ball back at its 19 after a fourth-down stop with just over two minutes to go.
But with a trip to a state final on the line, O’Dowd’s defense rose to the occasion, ending Chico’s hopes with a fourth-down sack.
Originally published at Darren Sabedra