Record six touchdowns by Brandon Figueroa lifts Irvine past Canyon in wild Iota League game

Irvine’s Brandon Figueroa (middle) with the offensive linemen who protected him along with offensive line coach Dave Done. Even though his plays were on offense, Figueroa was awarded the turnover belt. (PHOTOS: Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone).

Irvine High School senior running back Brandon “Figgy” Figueroa has had many outstanding games playing for the Vaqueros.

But Thursday’s effort, in which he scored six touchdowns and set a school record in scoring for a game in the Vaqueros’ 57-24 Iota League victory over Canyon at Irvine Stadium, sits at the top.

Figueroa had four rushing touchdowns and had kickoff returns of 92 and 98 yards for touchdowns to lead the Vaqueros, who trailed late in the second quarter before notching their second straight league win. He wound up rushing unofficially for 342 yards on 19 carries, not far from the school record of 374 yards in a game by Davonte Young in 2009.

With six TDS for 36 points, Figueroa broke the previous Irvine scoring record of 30 held by Cameron Goods in 2021 when Figueroa was a freshman.

“My line made it all easy, they helped me out,” Figueroa said. “The line and the blocking was just incredible. You could drive a semi-truck through those holes. It was just an amazing experience.”

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Figueroa said his previous rushing high was around 150 yards.

“This is like double, it’s a personal record for sure,” he said. “This might be the greatest night of my life.”

It was also the first time Figueroa had a kickoff return for a TD.

“It’s my first two,” he said.

Irvine Coach Tom Ricci said Figueroa is very much like Goods.

“Cameron had the record previously,” Ricci said. “He’s (Figueroa) a very similar runner to Cam. He’s got that burst, and that extra gear that he puts on once he gets through the line and he moves. His all-purpose (yards) is ridiculous.”

Figueroa’s first kickoff return was 92 yards in the second quarter, putting the Vaqueros ahead 16-14.

Irvine (5-2, 2-0) held a 22-17 halftime lead and got a big lift when Figueroa returned the opening kickoff of the second half 98 yards for a score to push the Vaqueros ahead 29-17.

The Vaqueros kept rolling after that. Quarterback Khoa Bui connected with Deacon Moss on a 34-yard TD pass to give Irvine a 36-17 lead.

Figueroa struck again with TD runs of 64 and 95 yards and just for good measure, scored on a 35-yard TD run with about five minutes remaining to break the record and give Irvine a 57-17 lead.

“When I broke the record, all the linemen came up to me and they were so happy for me,” Figueroa said. “That felt like an amazing experience because they really wanted the record just as much as me for me and I’m so grateful for them. They are the best line I could ever ask for.”

Irvine also got solid play from Bui, the quarterback, who passed for 95 yards. Moss hauled in four catches for 61 yards and the Vaquero defense held tough against Canyon’s talented quarterback Alexander Lundsberg, who passed for 321 yards and three touchdowns.

Irvine had interceptions by Moss and Chad Russom to thwart drives by Canyon (2-5, 0-2).

“That was our goal all week,” Ricci said. “We came into this game and we were, ‘if we can bend but don’t break,’ that we could take this team down. We knew they had a great QB and a great coaching staff. Our goal was to make them turnover on downs and we did a great job of that.”

Moss also had a 23-yard field goal that gave Irvine an early lead and hauled in a 6-yard TD pass from Bui in the second quarter that gave Irvine a 10-7 lead.

Canyon’s top receiver was Kellen Rommelfanger who had 11 catches for 153 yards and a TD.

Dylan Prochnow and Noah McClary also hauled in touchdown catches for Canyon. Blake Hartfelder had a 37-yard field goal for the Comanches.

Irvine unveiled a new banner proclaiming the facility Terry Henigan Field. The banner was displayed at the top of the press box as a tribute to the legendary late Vaquero football coach.

The home of the Vaqueros is officially named Irvine Stadium. It’s also home for the Northwood football team.

—Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com