With only two receivers and one tight end returning on offense from last year, the Cerritos College football team had to look to a whole new group of players for their offense. In fact, the leading returning rusher in the Falcons season-opening game against Saddleback College on Saturday night was Drake Griffin, and he wore a Gauchos uniform. Cerritos was able to open up a 27-10 lead with 6:43 left in the game and eventually held on for a 27-24 win. They will now host Orange Coast College at 7:00 p.m. next Saturday at Falcon Stadium.

The offense sputtered at times for Cerritos, but they were still able to string together scoring drives for 13-10 halftime lead. But in the second half, the Falcons took their first drive 54 yards on 11 plays for a 20-10 lead, as sophomore running back DeVonte Carter (Dominguez HS) punched the ball in from a yard out. The big play on the drive was a 16-yard completion from freshman quarterback Jimmy Walker (Redlands HS) to sophomore wide receiver Domonique Young (Long Beach Jordan HS) for 16 yards on a third-and-14 play. Freshman running back Travis Newberry (Bellflower HS) broke off a 20-yard run to get the Falcons inside the Gaucho 10-yard line, which set the table for Carter.

The defense was able to hold off the no-huddle, quick-strike offense of Saddleback and forced a punt late in the third quarter. A ground attack was effective for the Falcons, who ran the ball 12 of their 15 plays on a 55-yard scoring drive early in the third quarter that took 7:16 off the clock and opened up a 27-10 advantage. During the drive, no play went for more than 10 yards, as Cerritos continued to move the chains. They converted three third down situations, the final one being a three-yard touchdown pass from Walker (12-for-29, 134 yards) to sophomore wide receiver Justin Caines (La Habra HS).

However, Saddleback was able to come right back and needed just 1:57 to get to within 27-17 and then made the game interesting when Cerritos couldn't convert a first down after an onside kick. After a punt, the Gauchos drove downfield and scored again with :56 seconds left to make it a 27-24 game. The Falcons covered up on the second onside kick and ran out the clock.

Offensively, sophomore Michael Garrison (Dominguez HS) led the way with 85 yards on the ground, while Newberry finished with 67 yards. The team racked up 199 rushing yards, while the defense surrendered only seven yards on 23 carries. But the damage was done through the air, with the Gauchos throwing for 401 yards, compared to just 134 for the Falcons.

Sophomore linebacker Aaron Porter (La Habra HS/UCLA) posted a team-high eight tackles and also recorded three tackles for loss, while sophomore defensive end Alex Jones (Maple Heights, OH HS/Eastern Michigan University) was all over the field and added seven tackles, three tackles for loss and three quarterback hurries. As a team Cerritos posted 10 tackles for loss and five sacks.

Photos by Daryl Peterson