California: No. 13 Pittsburg rides legs of sophomore Elijah Bow, beats McClymonds 39-21

PITTSBURG, Calif. — The smorgasbord of receiving options for 5-star quarterback Jaden Rashada is plentiful if not flavorsome. 

Consider the menu. 

• Rashid Williams is a 6-foot-2, 190-pound four-star who has been tagged "the vacuum," for the way he sucks in every football within a ridiculously large wingspan. And beyond. He's headed to Washington. 

• Zachary Card is a 5-10, 175-pound burner, the sixth-fastest sprinter in California who has broken 10.50 seconds in the 100 meters. He also breaks ball carriers and receivers in his path as a tenacious defensive back. He's committed to Oregon State. 

• Khai Taylor is a 6-2, 175-pounder blessed with great genes — his grandad Lionel and dad played in the NFL — length, hands and speed. Taylor is smooth, elusive and polished. He's Nevada bound. 

• Keynan Higgins is a 6-5, 190-pound specimen, a deep threat, long, fluid and fast. Some think his ceiling is the highest. He has offers from Pittsburgh, Fresno State and Arizona State, among others. 

• Jadyn Hudson is a 6-2, 180-pound sophomore rock, the No. 1 California recruit (18th nationally) from the Class of 2025. Explosive, strong, fast and fearless. 

• Budha Boyd Jr. is a 6-foot, 180-pounder with great, raw athleticism and instinct, a gamer, a competitor, who like Card, Taylor and Hudson also excels on the defensive side of the ball. He's got a Southern Oregon offer but bigger schools are noting game.

With all the options — and Rashada balances all expertly — on Friday his No. 1 man was a sophomore running back with fresh legs, quick feet and a tenacious spirit.

To keep defenses honest and defensive lines from not bringing the kitchen sink, Rashada and the Pirates went to the run with 5-foot-9, 190-pound Elijah Bow, who carried the ball 33 times for 185 yards and a touchdown. 

It helped net a 39-21 win over four-time state small-school champion and Oakland power McClymonds.

The victory upped Pittsburg's record to 4-1 while McClymonds dropped to 3-1. 

The host Pirates, coming off a frustrating 23-15 loss to Sac-Joaquin Section's No. 1 team Folsom, are the No. 13 team in the SBLive California Power 25 football rankings. 

The Pirates have had trouble protecting the Miami-bound Rashada and he was sacked six more times on Friday. But he managed to complete 16 of 23 for 227 yards and three touchdowns, two to Taylor. 

"It wasn't a work of art, but we were able to put some drives together," Pittsburg coach Vic Galli said. "We committed to the run and Elijah had a heck of a game." 

Galli has been high on Bow throughout the offseason, especially after first-team All-Bay Valley Athletic League back Charles Brown transferred to Antioch. 

"You're going to know who Elijah Bow is very quickly," Galli said before the season. 

He probably wasn't expecting to work him that hard this quick, but it's a necessarily adjustment while trying to keep Rashada healthy and upright. 

"We're getting there," Galli said. "But we got to put all three phases of the games together." 

It helped to have a big game from Boyd, who had a 44-yard catch-and-run for touchdown in the third quarter and a fumble recovery midway through the fourth when McClymonds was going in for a potential tying touchdown. 

The Pirates overcame two more Rashada interceptions — he had four against Folsom — another special teams' mishap and 165 yards rushing and two touchdowns by speedy Jaivian Thomas for McClymonds. 

"We faced adversity and did what we needed to do," Boyd said. 

After Boyd's fumble recovery midway through the fourth quarter, the Pirates put it away driving 65 yards finished off with a 4-yard TD run by Cameron Clanton with 4:13 left, giving the Pirates a 36-21 lead. 

A late McClymonds fumble and chip shot field goal gave the Pirates the 18-point win. 

"I think we can all agree the game was much closer than that," said McClymonds coach Michael Peters. "We had our chances and we made a lot of mistakes. But ultimately we competed against a very, very high level team and that's all we really wanted to accomplish out here. I thought we showed well."

Following a 60-yard punt return touchdown by Redmani Albert gave McClymonds a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter, Rashada responded, driving the Pirates 80 plays in 7 plays, capped by a beautiful 11-yard toss in the back right of the end zone to Taylor that tied it 7-7 with 6:41 left in the first quarter. 

"(Rashada) put it on the right spot just at the right time," Taylor said. "Our timing is good and our offensive line is good."

Bow gave Pittsburg the lead for good with 11:21 left in the second quarter on a 1-yard TD. A two-point conversion pass off a bad kick snap, made it 15-7. 

Thomas cut that lead to 15-14 with a 63-yard touchdown burst, but Taylor turned a 3rd-and-24 situation with a 35-yard touchdown on a wide receiver screen. He got a huge block from Williams, wiping out two defenders, and Taylor juked another at the 10 before scooting into the end zone.

That gave the Pirates a 22-14 lead heading into intermission. 

"It was good team blocking," Taylor said with a wide grin. 

McClymonds' safety Tony Hamilton gave his team back all the momentum with two interceptions of Rashada in the first five minutes of the third quarter. 

The first Thomas turned into a 2-yard touchdown to cut the lead to 22-21. But after the second pick, Pittsburg's defense stiffened. 

That's when Boyd went to work, making a leaping grab at the Pittsburg sideline on a receiver screen, then outracing everyone to the goal line from 44 yards out. That gave the Pirates a 29-21 lead with 4:39 left in the third. 

"The ball was a little high and I had to jump to get it," Boyd said. "I did what I had to do to get it and make the play, then I just saw daylight. (Higgins) blocked for me and I just ran up the field." 

There was no score from there until Boyd's fumble recovery and the Pirates' scoring drive midway through the fourth to put Pittsburg in command. 

Both teams were coming off a bye.

Pittsburg's last game was a tough home loss to Folsom, which blocked a punt and field goal, leading directly to 14 points. Pittsburg outgained Folsom 427-262 but came up short. 

Video: Listen to interviews from Pittsburg coach Vic Galli and two-way senior standouts Khai Taylor and Budha Boyd Jr. 

McClymonds was coming off a pair of lopsided wins against overmatched opponents, defeating De Anza-Richmond and Tamalpais-Mill Valley by a combined 101-7 count. The Warriors opened with a tough 24-21 overtime win over Bellarmine-San Jose. 

The small school power has won four state titles, largely cakewalking over all opponents in its once-proud Oakland Athletic League. The Warriors have won 82 straight games over OAL opponents, the last loss coming into Oakland Tech 28-0 in the 2009 league playoffs. 

The scores have got more and more lopsided over the years, topped off by the last three seasons when they've piled up 1,013 points in 18 games while giving up 40. 

They have one more test, next week hosting unbeaten San Ramon Valley-Danville, which entered Friday 4-0 and No. 4 in the SBLive North Coast Section Fab 15 rankings.

This was only the second time the teams have faced off since 2004, the other was in 2010, also at Pittsburg, a 26-21 McClymonds victory. 

Check back for updates on this game later. 

Email SBLive senior editor Mitch Stephens at mitch@scorebooklive.com or follow him on Twitter at @MitchBookLive 

All photos by Eric Taylor