Mission Viejo wipes out 13-point halftime deficit to beat Tesoro

Mission Viejo football Coach Bob Johnson wasn’t thinking about the Diablos’ 19-game winning streak against non-Pac-5 Division opponents.

He wasn’t concerned about the game being televised, nor was he worried about defending his six-game winning streak against Mission Viejo’s opponent Friday night in Tesoro.

“We just practice really hard,” Johnson said of how he prepares his team for high-stakes games. “We don’t change much; we’re ready to go.”

The Diablos didn’t look ready from the outset, but erased a 13-point halftime deficit to defeat Tesoro, 39-33, in a pivotal South Coast League game at Mission Viejo High.

The Diablos (8-0, 2-0) trailed Tesoro 23-10 at the start of the third quarter, but that’s when Mission quarterback Brock Johnson came alive.

After struggling in a first half where he completed just four of his nine pass attempts for 53 yards, Johnson went 10 of 14 in the second half, finishing with 261 yards and three touchdowns.

“Brock loves this team,” the elder Johnson said. “He has a lot of buddies and they’re a tight-knit group.”

One Brock’s best buddies on the night was running back Isaiah Miller who was responsible for the fifth and deciding lead change of the second half.

Miller scored on a four-yard run and two-point conversion gave the Diablos the six-point advantage they needed. Miller finished with 120 yards in 34 carries and two touchdowns.

Johnson’s confidence was clear before Friday’s kickoff as he offered that up in the way he often does.

“We’re pretty good,” he understated. “I don’t know how good we’ll be tonight, but we’re capable of anything.”

Mission Viejo had to overcome a stellar performance from Tesoro quarterback Devon Modster.

The University of Arizona-bound signal-caller completed 31 of his 52 passes for 407 yards and three touchdowns.

With the defeat, Tesoro dropped to 6-2 overall and 1-1 in South Coast League play.

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