High School

California quarterback makes video game play, runs backwards 25 yards to gain 25 yards (video)

Washington State commit Steele Pizzella looked like he was playing a video game Friday night.

Tarek Fattal

Notre Dame's Steele Pizzella provided a wild highlight in Friday night's game against Simi Valley.
Notre Dame's Steele Pizzella provided a wild highlight in Friday night's game against Simi Valley. / Greg Fiore

Notre Dame Sherman Oaks quarterback Steele Pizzella looked like he was playing a video game Friday night against Simi Valley High in the opening round of the CIF Southern Section Division 3 playoffs.

The Washington State commit has a game that resembles Johnny Manziel, dashing and dodging defenders with fast-twitch moves with his relatively small frame of roughly 6-feet. The senior quarterback dazzled with his arm last week, launching a pass 50 yards down field for a 75-yard touchdown pass.

But this week, he dazzled with his legs in a mind-boggling play that is worth multiple looks.

Pizzella drops back to pass and is welcomed with immediate pressure that prompts him to elude defenders while running backwards. The ball is snapped on Simi Valley's 40-yard line before Pizzella runs back to Notre Dame's own 35-yard line -- 25 yards behind the line of scrimmage.

He then finds the right sideline and shows off his speed to gain 25 yards (including the first down). Pizzella probably runs a total of 60 yards to gain 25, getting tackled on Simi Valley's 15-yard line.

Pizzella is a 3-star rated QB, according to 247Sports. He also had offers to UConn, Colorado State and Florida Atlantic.

He's listed at 6-feet, 175 pounds. He's thrown for 2,225 yards and 25 TDs this season. He's a three-year starter in high school. After playing his sophomore year at Simi Valley, he transferred to Notre Dame where he was a started his junior and senior season for new coach Evan Yabu.

Pizzella has also rushed for 853 yards and seven TDs.

Yabu is in his second year as the head coach at Notre Dame after taking Thousand Oaks High to a 10-0 season in 2022.

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Published
Tarek Fattal, SBLive Sports
TAREK FATTAL

Tarek Fattal has been covering high school sports since 2015 in Southern California and primarily in Los Angeles, covering notable athletes such as Bronny James, Kayvon Thibodeaux and Alyssa Thompson. He was with the LA Daily News for eight years, which included being the beat reporter for the UCLA men's basketball team. Tarek can be seen on TV regularly on CBS/KCAL as a sports analyst with Jim Hill.

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