Playing a rescheduled game from a earlier in the season, the Cerritos College football team racked up 430 total yards and recorded a 40-16 win over Southwestern College on Saturday. The Falcons (5-5) opened a 16-0 lead early in the second quarter and were aided by a blocked punt and blocked field goal attempt along the way for a strong overall performance.

On their second drive of the night, the Falcons went 84 yards on eight plays, with the big play being a 37-yard completion from freshman quarterback Cade McConnell (Los Alamitos HS) to sophomore wide receiver DeJour Smith (Long Beach Wilson HS/Saddleback College) on the second play of the drive. Faced with third-and-four at the Jaguars (3-7) 14-yard line, McConnell was able to scramble out of the pocket and split the defense into the end zone for a touchdown. They followed that with a 28-yard Moz Bojorquez (Mayfair HS) field goal on their next possession for a 9-0, as the extra point on the touchdown was missed.

As the first quarter ended, sophomore running back J'lon Manning (Bellflower HS) broke off a pair of runs for 35 yards, while he finished off the drive with a one-yard plunge just one minute into the second quarter. Although Southwestern responded with a touchdown, freshman Davon Booth (El Monte HS) made sure to get those points right back, as he broke up the middle and outran the defense for a 72-yard touchdown. The Falcons then converted a two-point play for a 24-7 advantage.

The Cerritos defense held the Jaguars to a three-and-out and allowed a field goal later in the quarter to take a 24-10 lead into halftime.

Midway through the third quarter, the defense came up big again, as freshman defensive lineman Keane Maae (Anaheim HS) dropped Southwestern quarterback Kahanu Davis for a loss on a sack. On the next play, sophomore Cameron Minor (Mayfair HS) broke up a pass, forcing a punt.

The Falcons benefitted by a Southwestern pass interference penalty on third down, which kept their ensuing drive going. It set the table for Booth to score his second touchdown of the night, this one from six yards out. On the next drive, the Jaguars hurt themselves with a pair of penalties, with freshmen Giovanni De Leon (Los Alamitos HS) and Angel Garcia (St. Paul HS) moving them further back with a tackle for loss. Backed up to their own 5-yard line and needing to punt, De Leon broke through the line and blocked a Mason Schneider punt, with the ball rolling through the back of the end zone for a safety.

Late in the fourth quarter, Cerritos went on another long scoring drive, as they needed 10 plays to go 47 yards for a touchdown. An 11-yard completion on third down by McConnell to Smith kept the drive going, with sophomore running back Shane Olden, Jr. (Downey HS) capping off the scoring with a two-yard run.

The defense was in the Jaguars backfield all night with nine tackles for loss, seven quarterback hurries and four sacks. The combination of sophomores Logan Applewhite (Cathedral HS) and Keith Conley, Jr. (Cathedral HS/El Camino College) combined for five hurries and two tackles for loss, with sophomore linebacker Michael-Allen Reddy (Los Alamitos HS) posting eight stops along with a sack. De Leon had seven tackles, while sophomore Bijon Harris (Bellflower HS) posted seven tackles and had an interception reversed due to a penalty. Minor, who blocked a field goal, finished with seven tackles.

Booth led the ground game with 87 yards on six carries, as four different players recorded rushing touchdowns. McConnell (8-for-19, 131 yards) and freshman Jordan Simpson (Gahr HS), who completed 4-of-9 passes for 66 yards, combined for 197 yards through the air. Smith pulled in four passes for 78 yards to lead the ariel attack.

Photos by Daryl Peterson