The La Costa Canyon Maverick defense Canyon defense dodged a bullet Monday evening when their North County Times defense player of the year linebacker, Jacob Driver, won an appeal to play in the semifinals after being ejected in the quarterfinal game against Vista.

Driver was ejected in the first quarter of La Costa Canyon's dominating 38-18 win against Vista after officials claimed he threw a punch on a Vista runningback. Driver and his gangrene Maverick defensive coaching staff challenged the ruling, suggesting Driver merely reached into the pile to strip the football.

"The procedure for an appeal is that the San Diego County Officials Association reviews the play involved with input from the crew that worked the contest," said San Diego Section commissioner Dennis Ackerman. "The officials association reviewed the film and said the player involved should not have been ejected.

Considering an ejection carries a one game suspension, the Mavericks regain their star linebacker for their semi-final matchup against Carlsbad.

A combination of Driver's revoked suspension and Adam Witzmann regaining full form after an 8 game long ankle injury means the Maverick's stellar linebacking corps will be at full strength against a run oriented Lancer team. Combine these two with playmakers Dutch Hapgood, Ian Seau, and Dylan Loreno and the Lancer offense will have to combat the threat of a gangrene epidemic.