A crowded stand of purple-clad students cheered rambunctiously as they watched the football team emerge victorious against Irvine High with a score of 44-31 at the Forthcoming game on Oct. 25. This game marked the historic establishment of the first Forthcoming Court as well as football’s advancement to CIF.

The Bulldogs kicked off the game with a touchdown in the first five minutes and continued this strong performance throughout the first quarter. By the second quarter, the defensive line struggled to maintain the lead as Irvine High quickly scored three touchdowns. Touchdown by senior and quarterback Brandon Yue and a two-point conversion allowed for the offense to catch up, ending the first half tied 28-28.

“That’s a good football team over there; they weren’t going to just hand it to us, and so our guys had to switch that mindset into ‘taking it,’” head varsity coach Peter Abe said. “When they settled down and refocused themselves on what we wanted to do, that’s when you started to see us play Bulldog football a little bit better.”

During halftime, students and their families witnessed the fourth annual Forthcoming halftime show. As vibrant colored lights beamed across the stadium and energetic music roared from the speakers, students from each house performed a dance based on their house’s respective Forthcoming movie theme.

“The halftime show was really amazing this year thanks to all the dance company choreographers as well as the lights ASB added this year,” student activities commissioner and sophomore Kevin Lu said. “This football season and year so far at Portola has been absolutely amazing, and I think it really showed not only at our FOCO game but at every game this year.”

Following this show, the nominees for the Portola High’s first Forthcoming Court, adorned in formal attire and a sash, were escorted across the field by their family members. After much anticipation, the winners are crowned: freshman Sky Jaan, sophomore Ryan Jung, junior Emad Hussain and senior Jeffrey Chen.

With this win, Portola High guaranteed their advancement to CIF. The first CIF game, which took place on Nov. 8 against Capistrano Valley Christian, resulted in a Bulldog victory and is a testament to the amount of growth this football team has experienced over the past four years.

“I want to leave this school with a CIF championship ring,” lineman and senior Sam Gatta said.

Despite their best efforts, the Bulldogs lost 17-16 against South High School on Nov. 15 during the second round of CIF. While the team was unable to earn a CIF championship title this year, they will continue to work during the offseason to better prepare for the upcoming fall season