SANTA MARIA, CA – The Santa Barbara City College Football team lost a tough conference game at Allan Hancock on Saturday, 33-31.
Coming off a 45-20 loss to El Camino the previous week, the Vaqueros turned the page well, showing a lot of fight in what turned out to be a back-and-forth affair with huge swings of momentum.
"I was proud of the guys and how they fought back," head coach Craig Moropoulos said. "I can't be happy with a loss—happy? No, but we can be encouraged."
The gut check happened pretty instantly, as the Vaqueros received the opening kickoff and went three-and-out. Hancock then went for it on 4th-and-5, not just getting the first down, but scoring on a 38-yard rushing touchdown.
SBCC went three-and-out twice more, and Hancock would score on another long rushing touchdown to take a 14-0 lead by the end of the first quarter.
On their next drive, the Vaqueros did not get timid, but instead looked to find a spark, going for it on 4th-and-4 from the Hancock 38-yard-line. Will Doherty found Kayden Chan for a 20-yard-pass, and the drive continued to a 3rd-and-9 where the pair linked once again for a 13-yard-gain. After getting stuffed on 3rd-and-goal from the 1, the Vaqueros tried their luck for another 4th-down conversion, and Jake Foye caught Doherty's pass for a crucial touchdown and momentum swing, halving the deficit to 14-7.
Both teams traded short-lived series before Hancock scored on 17-yard touchdown pass on 3rd-and-13. It was now 20-7 Hancock with 56 seconds left in the half.
Once again, the Vaqueros did not shy away, instead staying aggressive and seeing an opportunity to steal some points before halftime. Will Doherty found Easton Clements for a 30-yard reception on the first play of the drive, and another 19-yard catch from Jake Foye brought the Vaqueros to Hancock's 11. After a timeout with 16 seconds remaining, Doherty continued to spread the ball around, this time finding Ryles Buckley for a touchdown. It was 20-14 Hancock at the break.
"We've got some wide receivers playing at a high level right now," Moropoulos said. "Easton Clements had some big plays for us."
Hancock received the kickoff after halftime, and seemed to be driving before Kerry Quashijah intercepted a pass at the SBCC 28. With a chance to take the lead, SBCC drove down the field and had seven goal-to-go plays—thanks to a defensive penalty on 4th-and-goal—but were forced to settle for a field goal. It was now a 20-17 ballgame midway through the third quarter.
A Hancock missed field goal gave SBCC another opportunity to take the lead, and they did just that. Will Doherty connected with Mitchell Northcutt this time for an 80-yard touchdown on the first play of the drive, giving SBCC a 24-20 advantage. That score would hold going into the fourth quarter.
Hancock now trailed for the first time all game, but they took their time on their next series, methodically running the ball down the field and eating up more than nine minutes off the clock. The 10th run play of a 14-play drive resulted in a touchdown, and SBCC trailed again, 27-24, midway through the fourth quarter.
"That's what they do," Moropoulos said of Hancock's run-heavy offense. "They have a great offensive line—they've always run the ball." Hancock finished the day with a whopping 334 yards on the ground.
The Vaqueros took even less time to score than on their last possession, returning the opening kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown. It was a gadget play that SBCC had been practicing since the preseason: one of the Vaqueros two deep returners catches the kickoff, bluffs a typical return by running about 10 yards upfield, and then throws back to the opposite-side returner. Terrance Biser-Coleman caught the initial kick, then threw back to Kayden Chan, who ran the remaining 89 yards with great blocking in front of him to regain the lead, 31-27. It was a perfect time to execute a play that the Vaqueros had kept in the chamber all season.
"Kayden is a big-time player. Every once in a while you've got to take a shot, take back momentum," Moropoulos said.
Unfortunately for the Vaqueros, the first two plays of Hancock's next drive were runs that combined for 60 yards, and a few plays later a touchdown gave them a 33-31 lead.
With three minutes left, the Vaqueros had the ball back, but Will Doherty threw an interception on the second play of the drive. However, it did not end up hurting the Vaqueros, as Hancock started at the SBCC 24 but did nothing with their possession. After only draining a minute and change off the clock, the Vaqueros had another shot to win the game.
The Vaqueros had a little more time than they did at the end of the first half, regaining possession at their own 24 with 1:17 remaining. A roughing the passer penalty and a 23-yard completion to Cameron Green on 3rd down marched the Vaqueros to Hancock's 32-yard-line. Three incomplete passes forced them to settle for a 49-yard field goal try with about 20 seconds left.
This was the only game the Vaqueros will play on natural grass, and the wind in Santa Maria was doing Brandon Bowers no favors. Bowers, the excellent punter for the Vaqueros, was forced into kicking duties for the first time all season. Always with a strong leg, his kick had the distance from 49 yards out, but missed wide right.
"I was proud of what Brandon did, out-of-the-blue having to kick on grass and with wind," Moropoulos said. Bowers was 4/4 in extra points and made a field goal in his first game kicking on the year.
Hancock took a knee to seal the 33-31 victory, but like Moropoulos said, there is a lot to be encouraged by the Vaqueros' performance. Mitchell Northcutt (80), Easton Clements (68), Kayden Chan (62), and Cameron Green (57) all had more than 50 receiving yards for the Vaqueros, while the other two players with receptions (Jake Foye and Ryles Buckley) each caught touchdowns.
Defensively, Frederick Hunter led the team in total tackles with 11, while Matt Croteau (10), Jack Myers (10), Tyrone McCoy (9), and Kerry Quashijah (8) followed suit.
Will Doherty eclipsed 300 yards passing for the first time in his career with 304, going 19 for 38 for the 3 touchdowns.
"That's the best he's played here," Moropoulos said. "He threw some dimes—I'm extremely encouraged [with his performance].
"I was very disappointed with the result," Moropoulos spoke wholly on the game, "but I was really encouraged by [the players'] demeanor after the game."
Now 3-5, the Vaqueros eye to win their last two games and get back to .500, according to Moropoulos.
"That's our goal right there," he concluded. "To get back to .500, in our first year at this level, you've got to feel pretty decent about that."
The Vaqueros end the season with two home conference games the next two Saturdays, first against Moorpark and then Bakersfield, each at 6:00 PM, at La Playa Field.
