Rams head to 'Punch Bowl' after gutty win
The Guardsman, Bonta Hill, November 20, 2008.

In a game that came down to the last play, the Rams defeated the Santa Rosa Junior College Bear Cubs in a thrilling victory to win their fourth straight game 23-21.

“Our offensive line matured and pass-blocked real well today. [Kevin] Vye did a nice job throwing the ball,” said Head Coach George Rush. “They had a high powered offense and they eked out 21 points. I’m very pleased with the way we played.”

Santa Rosa came into the game averaging 45 points per game and over 450 yards of total offense and started things off quickly as they took the opening kickoff 75 yards to go up 7-0 on a six-yard touchdown pass from Bear Cubs quarterback Adam Froman to receiver Matt Larson.

The Rams answered right back with Vye hitting tight end Melvin Blue for a juggling seven-yard touchdown, evening the score with Santa Rosa. Vye finished the game 12-19 for 124 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions.

“I’m starting to feel more comfortable with this offense,” said Vye. “We had a really good game plan today.”
The Rams took a 10-7 lead early in the second quarter with kicker Jens Alvernik’s 27-yard field goal. After a Bear Cubs’ fumble, five plays later Rams running back Andre Patterson scored from a yard out, giving the Rams a 16-7 lead. The Rams would go into halftime leading 16-14.

Skipping ahead to the fourth quarter, the Bear Cubs attempted a 37-yard field goal that was blocked by the Rams, with Devin Mays returning the ball to the Bear Cubs’ 21-yard line. Two plays later, Vye hit receiver Darius Bright in the back of the end zone for a 21-yard touchdown, bringing the Rams to 23-14 with 10 minutes left in the game. The Bear Cubs answered right back with a 1-yard quarterback sneak by Froman to make the score 23-21.

Cornerback D.J. Gomes made his fourth interception halting another Bear Cub drive, but with the offense stalling, Rams punter Alvernik made some great kicks to keep the Bear Cubs pinned deep in their own territory.

“Those interceptions were key points in the game, but I thought our special teams were absolutely outstanding,” Rush said.

The Bear Cubs took over on their own 4-yard line with 3 minutes remaining, and Froman made some huge plays that brought the Bear Cubs to the Rams five-yard line.

With 16 seconds to go, Santa Rosa completed a pass in the middle of the field but with the Rams swarming the Bear Cubs receiver at the 4-yardline, and Santa Rosa having no timeouts left, the clock ran out, sending the Rams rushing the field in celebration.

“We didn’t give up on each other,” said Mays. ” We were 1-2, defending national champs with our backs against the wall, but we took it one game at a time. “That’s what we did.”

The Rams will next host the Hawaiian Punch Bowl, facing off against San Joaquin Delta on Dec. 6 here at home in Rams Stadium.

Defense and special teams carry the Rams to victory in the rain
The Guardsman, Bonta Hill, November 5, 2008.

With rainy weather, poor field conditions and wind blowing through Rams stadium, the City College Rams gutted out a 14-7 win over the College of San Mateo Bulldogs on Nov. 1. The win was the Rams’ second in a row, and put them back on track for the conference championship (5-3, 1-1).

The Rams’ special teams came through with four blocked punts while the defense did the rest to keep the Bulldogs out of the end zone, which preserved the victory. Even with poor weather conditions, Rams’ Head Coach George Rush was pleased after the game with his team’s performance.

“I’ll be real honest, I don’t know when the last time somebody held that [San Mateo] offense without a score,” Rush said. “It’s been a tough year, but we got right back in the mix.”

In the first quarter, the Rams’ first touchdown came after their first blocked punt. Running back David Henderson took the hand-off from quarterback Kevin Vye and scampered around the right for a 14-yard touchdown.

Rams safety Jarrell Harrison, who had another strong game with an interception at the goal line, blocked the third punt allowing the offense to get the ball in a great position on the field, but the Rams’ failed to capitalize.

On the fourth down from the two-yard line, Rush elected to go for the field goal. Center Daniel Curtin snapped the ball over the kicker but after a game of hot potato with a slick ball Bulldogs linebacker Ratu Rabela finally got hold of it and took it all the way to the end-zone to briefly tie the game 7-7. Rush didn’t second guess himself about the decision to not go for the touchdown.

“In this weather, they may not score another point, and that may be the difference in the ball game,” Rush said. “Unfortunately we didn’t get it through the goal post.”

Corner back John Mark Henderson was able to pick up the loose ball on the fourth and final blocked punt with the help of the Rams’ defense. The Bulldogs then lined up in their offensive formation and tried to fool the Rams by attempting a quick kick, which was soundly blocked, and cornerback Henderson scooped up the loose ball giving the Rams the lead at 14-7.

In the second half, the Rams took away the Bulldogs’ running game and forced them to pass. The Bulldogs looked very uncomfortable passing and couldn’t get anything going to tie the game. The Rams were just having a fun day in the rain.

“It was real fun out there and it made the game even more intense,” said Rams’ corner back Devin Mays, who had an impressive interception in the end zone to thwart another Bulldog drive. “The front seven made it easier for the secondary to stop the pass.”

Beating the Bulldogs puts the Rams in a second place tie with Foothill College, whom they play this Saturday at Foothill.

“Special teams won this game for us,” said Vye. “Now we’re just going to come to practice, study up on Foothill and go from there. Hopefully we can get three in a row.”

Hopefully the weather will be better, but as the Rams proved against San Mateo, they can win in almost any circumstance.