On Friday night, Roseville’s football team improved to 3-3, snapping their previous 3 game losing streak in a 58-34 win over River Valley. Led by Brandon Graydon and Ricky Bastianelli, Roseville ran the ball a total of 40 times for 321 combined rushing yards, never giving River Valley’s defense a breather.

Brandon Graydon’s 6 touchdowns broke the record for most touchdowns in a single game in school history, which was held previously by Roseville alumni Ben Barba. 

Roseville’s win over River Valley could not have come at any better of a time. The Tigers had no momentum going into the week as they had taken 3 straight brutal losses. Them killing River Valley can get the team some momentum in time for a late season playoff push.

Steve Montoya, of MaxPreps is projecting Roseville to slip their way into the playoffs as the 12th, and last seed in the Division 3 Bracket. Roseville has got to win at least 2 of their final 4 games if they want a shot at the playoffs.

Roseville’s next 4 games are home games against Stagg, Yuba City and Bella Vista, followed by an away game against Inderkum to finish the season. Stagg, Yuba and Inderkum are talented teams who will be tough challenges for the Tigers. Roseville has to win 1 to 2 of those games in order to have a legitimate shot at being in the playoffs. Bella Vista is a must-win game as well, as the Broncos have a very weak team.

Roseville’s run game has been their key to success in their dominations over Oakmont, Rio Linda and River Valley. But in their losses to Lincoln, Woodcreek and Antelope, Roseville’s run game has been slow, and the passing game has not been able to pick up the slack. 

Through 6 games, Roseville’s passing game hasn’t even eclipsed 750 yards. When teams game plan for the Tigers, it’s pretty obvious that they want to force the Roseville offense into passing situations. The Tigers should expect nothing less from Stagg this week, or any of the other teams they play after Stagg.

Roseville’s passing game has become a liability. It seems like teams are never fooled at all by their play action rollouts, and they just don’t utilize the size of their wide receivers and tight ends enough. Liam Crow, Nick Macaluso and Ethan Okelberry are all capable of making contested catches due to their size, but it seems like the offense wants them making catches on crossing routes and corner routes. They should be running hitches and fades, and Ryan Graydon should be throwing the ball up high so they can make the catches over defenders that they are capable of. If Roseville can utilize their size at the receiver and tight end positions, and pair that with the dynamic playmaking ability of their backfield, the passing game can get on track.

The Tigers have had their fair share of ups, and their fair share of downs this season. Right now they sit at a cool 3-3 record, with a real shot at the playoffs. In 2019 the Tigers went 6-4, which earned them a playoff spot. If they win 2 to 3 out of their final 4 games, Roseville may see the playoffs again this year.