Two-way star Jaxson Rex and the San Clemente High defense earned a shutout victory against Tustin High this past Friday, Aug. 21, winning their home opener, 17-0, at a packed Thalassa Stadium. The BYU commit scored both touchdowns for the Tritons, including a 95-yard pick-six that helped set the tone early.
The Tritons improved to 2-0 to begin the 2026 season, carrying momentum from their CIF-SS Division 2 title-game appearance last season. San Clemente opened the season by taking care of business in Hawaii, routing Kapa’a High, 23-8. After a quick turnaround, the Tritons avenged a 30-17 loss to the Tillers in their 2025 season opener following a strong week of practice.
Another view of Jaxson Rex on his 95-yard pick-six to start the Tritons on their way to victory on Friday, Aug. 21. The Tritons are off this week before resuming play on Sept. 4 at Chaparral High. Photo: Alan Gibby, for San Clemente Times
“We came out last year, first game, (and) we didn’t really know what to expect,” Rex said after their win over Tustin. “This year, we kind of knew what to expect, and we did our job.”
Tritons head coach Jaime Ortiz, who’s led the program since 2012, was worried about how his team would respond following the trip to Kauai, but he said his team had “probably one of the best weeks of practice we’ve had since I’ve been here.”
“The kids were dialed in on Monday,” Ortiz told the San Clemente Times after the game. “We had the opening of school on Tuesday (Aug. 18), and they were just focused. We’ve had a good week, and the way they played tonight is a reflection of that.”
Rex echoed those sentiments. “We had a great week of practice because everyone was just working. No one was slacking off,” he said. “They knew this team was competitive and they were good, so that’s why we all came together and brought it out.”
Junior linebacker Gunnor Bachhuber (51), shown pressuring Tustin’s quarterback, led a defense that shut down and shut out Tustin’s high-scoring offense in the Tritons’ home opener on Friday, Aug. 21. Bachhuber leads the Tritons with 14 tackles through two games. Photo: Alan Gibby, for San Clemente Times
The Tritons were prepared for the tough matchup, but an early miscue gave the ball to the Tillers when Tustin senior defensive lineman Jeremiah Williams, who’s also a BYU commit, stripped the ball away from senior running back Darion Ranuga.
Ranuga is filling in for Colin Granite, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in Kauai on his first carry that his family revealed was a ruptured patellar tendon and tibial avulsion fracture.
Following the turnover, senior cornerback Jack Dunbar intercepted Ayden Edwards’ pass in the end zone on 4th-and-goal from the 8-yard line. Moments later, junior quarterback Preston Beck was intercepted by senior safety Logan Allen.
With the Tillers threatening again deep in SC territory, Rex responded with a big-time play by jumping a route on an Edwards pass in the flat that was intended for Taven Epps. The pass was deflected, Rex grabbed it and was off to the races.
“I just saw it tip up — and I was gone,” Rex said, saying there “was a lot of traffic” at the line when he followed Epps rolling into space and “just jumped it” as the ball arrived. “It was wide open … I just saw green grass.”
Ninety-five yards later, Rex reached the end zone untouched on a pick-six for a 7-0 lead on which he was clocked at 21.3 mph according to SCHS’ GPS tracker date.
The Tritons never looked back. Junior kicker Ethan Miller added a 28-yard field goal just before halftime to give the Tritons a 10-0 advantage.
Tritons safety Jaxson Rex heads upfield on a 95-yard interception return for a touchdown that broke a scoreless tie and provided the impetus for San Clemente High’s 17-0 win over Tustin High during their home opener on Friday, Aug. 21. Photo: Alan Gibby, for San Clemente Times
To open the second half, Tustin mishandled the kickoff, allowing the rolling ball to remain live. The Tritons recovered inside the 10-yard line, and one play later, Rex took a handoff for a 6-yard rushing touchdown, extending San Clemente’s lead to 17-0 — the score that stood up.
“He was all over the place on both sides of the ball and played really, really well for us,” Ortiz said of Rex’s impact, pointing out that Rex is a four-year varsity player who earned all-county and all-CIF honors last season. “There’s a reason why BYU is on him,” Ortiz added.
Turns out, BYU will have to wait longer for Rex, as the SCHS senior learned last week that he’ll be beginning a two-year LDS mission in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in September before honoring his college commitment.
The Tritons held a talented Tustin squad scoreless despite the Tillers returning their key offensive contributors from a team that averaged 31 points per game last season. Rex described their matchup against the Tillers as “hard-nosed football.”
“There’s some stuff we gotta work on still, but I thought the kids played pretty well as a team,” Ortiz said about his team’s performance. “Defensively, we stepped up when we had to. We gotta do a better job controlling turnovers.”
The Tritons’ defense was the catalyst in their second victory, as the offense struggled to move the ball. Beck was held to 70 passing yards, while Ranuga found some success on the ground with 70 yards on 16 carries.
San Clemente’s offense turned the ball over four times: two interceptions and two fumbles. Ortiz was not pleased with those negative plays, saying they must “do a better job controlling the football.”
“Too many turnovers, and thankfully they didn’t hurt us tonight, but when you have three to four turnovers in a game, it’s hard to win,” he said. “I think our coaches and players know that, and that’s stuff we’ve got to work on over the bye week.”
Up Next for Tritons: San Clemente will enjoy a week off and return to action on Friday, Sept. 4, when they travel to Chaparral High in Temecula to face the Pumas, who lost their season opener, 55-17, against a tough Mission Viejo High. Ortiz said their upcoming matchup will “be a tough game.”
The Pumas return Eli Woodard, who had 1,070 receiving yards and 17 touchdowns last season. The University of Miami commit hauled in six passes for 115 yards and a touchdown from new sophomore quarterback Caden Sterba in Chaparral’s season opener.