And this was only the season opener! Mater Dei and Carson staged what can be described as an instant classic. The Monarchs trailed, 34-20, in the second half (and I thought it was over).

The Monarchs then staged a rally to tie the score at 34-34 with 10:38 to go in the fourth to send the game into overtime.

My Star(s) of the Game: The new faces in the Mater Dei receiving corp. You have to give the new guys credit for sticking in the game and coming up with big catches down the stretch. Case in point: Derek Campbell's leaping catch in the corner of the end zone to seal the victory.

The Unsung hero: Me. For walking the sidelines for the entire game. I think I'm in midseason form. Or Matt Barkley. He overcame a couple of bad decisions (he threw four interceptions) but as Coach Brue Rollinson said:  "He's Barkley. I thought he did a tremendous job."

That's with an "A" and not an "E": That goes to Steve Fryer. He repeatedly spelled my name Damien during his live blog. For all those who care, my name is spelled Damian. You put a guy on TV and he forgets about the little people.

I knew it was over when: Carson's kicker Juan Sanchez finally made a field goal in the third overtime. Sure, it gave the Colts a 43-40 lead, but it also gave Matt Barkley and Mater Dei the ball with a chance to win.

Why did you do that: Has to go to the Carson coaching staff. Morrell Presley is your star, so why did he only get the ball four times??? It wasn't like Mater Dei had Champ Bailey covering him.

Did you know? That in overtime of L.A. City Section games the ball is placed at the 10-yard line. As a veteran of many City section games, I didn't know that. (By the way, please change that rule).

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