Lincoln celebrates after winning against Gridley during the CIF NorCal championship game at Lincoln High School in San Jose, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 5, 2025. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
SAN JOSE — Sixteen seconds changed the course of Lincoln-San Jose’s season.
The Lions were staring defeat in the face in their 28-20 CIF Northern California 6-AA regional championship win against Gridley, trailing by a touchdown late.
Then Michael Whitelaw crossed up his defender on a double move, running free for a 64-yard touchdown catch from Lucas Papoulias.
Then Lincoln forced a fumble on the ensuing kickoff.
Then Kyan Phillips, battling through a bruised knee, stumbled 17 yards through ankle tackle attempts from multiple Gridley defenders for another score.
Like Phillips, Lincoln simply refused to go down. And after Lincoln took a 28-20 lead on Phillips’ TD with four minutes to go, the Lions’ defense got a fourth-down stop on their own 40-yard line with 1:33 left.
It was so close the officials had to measure. The verdict?
Lions ball.
Then Phillips put Gridley’s season on ice with back-to-back runs, gaining one final first down to salt the game away.
“We’re going to LA, baby,” several Lions shouted amid the celebration.
Lincoln will play Valley Center for the 6-AA state title next weekend in Southern California.
The NorCal championship win was the first of Lincoln coach Kevin Collins’ 33-year coaching career at the San Jose school, and it came one week after the Lions won their first Central Coast Section title across town at San Jose City College.
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Originally published at Christian Babcock