The Cerritos College football team racked up 611 yards of total offense and scored 28 first quarter points, as they posted a 55-26 win over visiting Orange Coast College on Saturday night. The Falcons (2-0) started the game by scoring on their first four possessions and five of their first six, as they jumped out to a 28-13 lead in the first quarter. Both teams used quick-strike offensive attacks, as they drove the ball downfield in quick fashion. In fact, every scoring drive in the game took less than five minutes, with eight of them taking 2:37 or less.
Freshman quarterback Jimmy Walker (Redlands HS) connected with sophomore wide receiver Justin Caines (La Habra HS) twice in the first quarter, while a pair of first quarter rushing touchdowns enabled the team to account for their 28 first quarter points. Sophomores Travis Newberry (Bellflower HS) and Joseph Donnell (McNair HS/Sacramento City College) rushed for first quarter touchdowns with the second one coming with 1:42 left in the first half.
The Falcons were the recipient of a fumble recovery in the end zone, when Orange Coast's Jimmie Roberts mishandled a punt and the ball rolled into the end zone. Sophomore Garren Jackson (Carson HS) was there to recover the ball for a touchdown, giving Cerritos a 42-20 lead. By the end of the third quarter, Walker (16-for-27, 270 yards) threw his third touchdown pass, connecting with sophomore Domonique Young (Long Beach Jordan HS) from 25 yards out. Freshman backup quarterback Alexander Cuevas (Culver City HS) stepped in and threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to freshman tight end Myles Davis (Lakewood HS) in the fourth quarter and also rushed for 33 yards on five carries.
The 611 yards were split up with 314 coming on the ground and 297 in the air. Young led the way with six receptions for 106 yards, with nine different players catching at least one pass. On the ground, sophomore Michael Garrison (Dominguez HS) accounted for 94 yards with Donnell (61 yards) and freshman Robert Gordon (Terrebonne, LA HS) posting 52 yards on six carries in the fourth quarter.
On the defensive side of the ball, sophomore linebacker Aaron Porter (La Habra HS/UCLA) led the way with eight stops with Erick Zarate (Long Beach Jordan HS) and Anthony Murray (Cherokee Trail, CO HS) each adding six tackles. The Falcons also played the game without their two starting cornerbacks, as both Jerry Smith (Mayfair HS) and Thadd Daniels (Lynwood HS) are out with injuries. Picking up the slack were Murray, Raymond Mosley (Gahr HS), Ulysses Pickett (Lakewood HS) and Tytus Simmons (Artesia HS).
In other news, Falcon head coach Frank Mazzotta and the other members of his 1964 Liberty Bowl championship team at the University of Utah were inducted into the college's Hallf of Fame. Also a member of that team was former Cerritos assistant coach Merlin Driggs, who spent over 20 years as a Falcon assistant coach.
Photos by Daryl Peterson
