Forty-five minutes before Lincoln High School kicked off its home opener Friday night against Long Beach Poly, there was a ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating the Hornets’ new turf field.
Cutting the ribbon was Hornets alum and Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Terrell Davis.
Davis heard the tale of the 2024 Lincoln football team, that not only didn’t play any home games but took buses every day to four different sites to practice. The old turf was so tattered and torn that concrete was visible beneath some rips. Administrators deemed the field unplayable.
Despite being a team without a home, Lincoln finished 12-2, won the San Diego Section Open Division title and the Division 1-AA state championship.
“I am floored by their success but not shocked,” said Davis. “That’s what a lot of us had to go through. I played on a raggedy, dirt field that was all beat up. My message to them is you take what is a perceived disadvantage and turn that into your advantage.
“Look at my journey. This is where I grew up. This is my neighborhood. This is where I was manufactured, right on this soil.”
Lincoln players were ecstatic about playing their first game on campus since 2023.
“Playing at home is just different than playing anywhere else,” said outside linebacker Prince Tavizon, a 6-foot-3, 230-pound Oregon commit. “From the crowd, from the announcer, from everything. It’s an honor to play where all the greatest players, like Marcus Allen, came from. It’s just a legendary field.”
#### To the house
Lincoln broke in the new turf in impressive fashion. Running back Junior Curtis bobbled the opening kickoff, scooped it up at the 14, veered left, avoided would-be tacklers, hit the sideline and sped his way 86 yards to a touchdown.
Elapsed time: 14 seconds
#### Give him No. 3
Tavizon was not a happy camper two hours before kickoff. His favorite number is three. He wore No. 33 last season, switched to No. 3 this year and wore the number with pride in last week’s 57-29 win at Honolulu Punahou.
But Lincoln switched from road white to home green jerseys Friday, and No. 3 was nowhere to be found.
Said an assistant coach: “Somebody’s got a souvenir at home.”
“I’m bummed,” said Tavizon, who settled for 11. “I got a lot of love for that number.”
#### Jackrabbits flattened
The game started 30 minutes late because the bus carrying Long Beach Poly’s offensive players suffered a flat tire. The Jackrabbits spent hours broken down in Mission Viejo. The bus left school and 11:30 a.m. and didn’t reach Lincoln until 6 p.m.
It wasn’t an easy travel day for the Jackrabbits. The bus carrying the defensive players was stopped by the CHP because of a missing license plate.
The game wasn’t much better. Lincoln led 29-0 late in the first quarter.
#### Cliff jumpers
Last week in Hawaii, nine offensive linemen visited the North Shore and jumped off a 20-foot cliff. Despite being afraid of heights, 283-pound offensive tackle Jesus Garcia (UNLV commit) took the dive.
“If one person jumped,” said Garcia, “we all had to jump.” Asked what the sensation was like, Garcia said, “It felt like going down a rollercoaster.”
#### By the numbers
**25 –** Lincoln alums who have played in the NFL and AFL, according to profootballreference.com.
**61 –** Number of Long Beach Poly alums who have played in the NFL and AFL, second most of any high school.
**68 –** Number of Fort Union Military Academy alums who have played in the NFL and AFL, the most of any school. The school’s most famous football alum: running back and Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George.
**79 –** Estimated hours Lincoln’s football team spent on buses last season. “That was a special group of kids,” said Lincoln offensive coordinator Jason Carter. “I don’t think they got acknowledged at all for what they did.”
#### Food review
We wanted to sample the barbecue that plays to rave reviews at Lincoln. But deadline loomed and the line was long. Opted for nachos and cheese. Crispy and yummy. Three belches on the U-T five-belch scale.