PREP FOOTBALL : Sea View League : TD Return of Opening Kickoff Starts Newport Harbor to Victory

Senior running back Tommy Walker returned the opening kickoff 92 yards for a touchdown, and the Newport Harbor football team went on to a 17-0 Sea View League victory over visiting Estancia Friday in front of a homecoming crowd of 4,000.

“It was set up to go to the left, and as I was going up I saw a seam, and I cut back,” Walker said. He was not touched.

Newport Harbor (3-6, 2-2 in the league) was inconsistent offensively, but its defense forced 3 turnovers and kept Estancia (6-2-1, 1-2-1) from threatening to score.

Walker rushed for 119 yards in 21 carries, scored 2 touchdowns, intercepted a pass, returned punts and kickoffs and punted for Newport Harbor.

Walker’s second score came on a 2-yard run with 6 minutes 32 seconds remaining, capping a 70-yard drive in which he carried the ball on 11 of the 12 plays for 64 yards.

“We just tried to run power football,” said Jeff Brinkley, Newport Harbor’s coach. “It wasn’t exciting, but it was effective.”

Josh Kline kicked a 40-yard field goal that just cleared the crossbar with 6:52 remaining in the first half to give Newport Harbor a 10-0 lead.