CCSF 28, Laney College 10
Sunday, September 28, 2008. SF Gate.com, Staff Services
Linebacker Josh Tatum led a stingy defense at San Francisco as the Rams (2-2) broke in a new starting quarterback, John Bounantony, who had a 65-yard touchdown pass and no interceptions.
Sierra 27, CCSF 17
Sunday, September 21, 2008. SF Gate.com
City College of San Francisco lost its second game of the season. The last time it finished a season with as many as two losses was 1995.
The visiting Rams, ranked ninth in the state after opening the season at No. 1, outgained No. 5 Sierra 308 yards to 261, but also made more mistakes.
The first error came on the opening kickoff when David Henderson, the former Lincoln star, fumbled on the kick return, near the goal line. After Sierra (3-0) scored a touchdown, Nate Harrison drew CCSF (1-2) even by returning the next kickoff 81 yards.
Henderson finished with 108 yards on 11 carries. Seventy-four of the yards came on one run.
Up 17-14 at the half, Sierra controlled the ball to hold off the Rams. For the game, Sierra's Lamon Muldrow ran 46 times for 158 yards and three touchdowns.
The game was a rematch of last season's NorCal championship, won by CCSF. The Rams next play Saturday at home against Laney at 1 p.m.
Fresno City KO's state's No. 1 Team
Sunday, September 14, 2008. The Fresno Bee, Jeff Davis
"To me, we've been the No. 1 football team," the freshman defensive lineman said. "All we had to do was prove it."
The Rams, one week after knocking off second-ranked Bakersfield, topped itself against the state's No. 1 team.
Kenny Hedrington rushed for 67 yards and scored the go-ahead touchdown, and Booker made three gigantic defensive plays in the final 20 seconds to preserve a 24-17 upset over City College of San Francisco Saturday at Ratcliffe Stadium.
San Francisco got the ball with 2 minutes, 45 seconds left and drove to the Fresno City 11. After a penalty for an ineligible receiver downfield pushed the ball back to the 16, Booker rose nearly out of his cleats and knocked down a Chris Forni pass on first down.
On the next play, Fresno City's line put pressure on Forni and Booker chased him out of bounds at the 17. Then on third down with 10 seconds left, Forni fumbled the snap from center and Booker fell on the ball at the 20 to end the suspense.
"I messed up early with an offsides penalty, so I had to make up for it," said Booker, who has "Heart of a Champion" tattooed on his left breast.
This was a battle of the top two teams in Northern California. However, CCSF came in as the No. 1 team in all the land. But Fresno City, ranked fifth in the state, never flinched.
Freshman linebacker Chester Woolen intercepted two Forni passes, returning the second one 50 yards for a touchdown.
Freshman quarterback Emmanuel Lewis, the former Tulare High great, was harassed by CCSF all night. He was intercepted twice, but kept on flinging for 134 yards and a 25-yard touchdown to John Romeus.
And Paul Rodriguez converted all his PATs and added a 35-yard field goal.
"The defense played fabulous and we had great plays all over the field," Rams coach Tony Caviglia said. "Our team chemistry is really good right now. But all we are is 2-0 and we're not even bowl eligible yet and haven't won a conference championship.
"And as far as I'm concerned, we haven't arrived as a team yet."
San Francisco (1-1) was in this same situation last year after Fresno City beat George Rush's team in the third game of the season. That was CCSF's only loss in a state championship campaign, Forni was quick to point that out after Saturday's game.
"We knew they had good athletes just like us," Forni said. "We hurt ourselves with turnovers and penalties."
The hometown Rams got the big break they needed after San Francisco tied the score at 17-17 with a field goal early in the fourth quarter. CCSF was penalized 15 yards on the kickoff for a personal foul.
Fresno City's Rakim Dawkins fielded the short kick and returned it 46 yards to the San Francisco 29. Four plays later, Hedrington cut through a hole in the left side and made it untouched to the end zone for the deciding points.
Norcal: Sacramento State fall on last play
Sunday, September 7, 2008. San Francisco Chronicle, Staff Services
CCSF 44, Cabrillo 2: The Rams outgained visiting Cabrillo-Aptos 514 yards to 204, getting big contributions from a pair of freshmen.
Lincoln High-graduate David Henderson, The Chronicle's Metro Area Player of the Year last season, scored on the first touch of his junior college career, reversing field on a screen pass that covered 96 yards in the second quarter.
Starting at quarterback after Jeremiah Masoli's unexpected departure play at Oregon, Chris Forni (Casa Grande) threw touchdowns to five different receivers, amassing 330 yards on 19-of-26 passing.
Rams going for another national title
Saturday, September 6, 2008. San Francisco Chronicle, Jake Curtis
The problem with being the best junior college football program in the country is that there's little room for improvement.
Last season, City College of San Francisco was named JC Grid-Wire's national champion for the fifth time in the past nine seasons, and the Rams are ranked No. 1 in JC Grid-Wire's preseason national rankings for 2008, just ahead of Butler (Kan.) Community College.
Anything less than a California state championship - which often results in being voted the national champ - is considered an off year for George Rush, who enters his 32nd season as the Rams' head coach. In fact, every loss is big news since the Rams have lost more than one game only three times in the past 12 seasons.
The only way to better last year's 11-1 season is to go unbeaten, and that is always a possibility at CCSF, even though it unexpectedly lost starting quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, who signed with Oregon in May following his freshman season at CCSF.
The Rams might have added the final piece just this week when place-kicker Jenz Alvernik showed up from Sweden. He had played amateur football in Sweden, and Rush said he saw Alvernik boot a 63-yard field goal on tape, prompting Alvernik's cross-oceanic flight to San Francisco a few days ago.
With five teams in the top 25 on the Rams' schedule, they need talent at nearly every position, and they might have it.
"Last year's team was not the most talented I've had," Rush said, "but it had incredible chemistry. This team is more talented, but has not developed that chemistry yet.
"We're extremely fast on both sides of the ball. At running back, wide receiver and in the secondary, we're as fast as any team we've ever had."
The Rams earned the No. 1 ranking despite having a starting quarterback who was penciled in to be the backup. Chris Forni, a graduate of Casa Grande High School in Petaluma, and Masoli were both freshmen last season. With Masoli expected back after being named MVP of the Rams' 31-28 victory over Mount San Antonio in the state title game, CCSF coaches broached the possibility of transferring to Forni. Forni said he would stay put, earning the coaches' respect, and the decision paid off when Masoli was a late signee by Oregon.
The starting tailback probably will be Andre Patterson, who had 115 yards in last year's title game, all in the second half, after starter Austin Curran, now at Portland State, went down with a concussion.
Freshman David Henderson, who was The Chronicle's Metro Area Player of the Year last season after rushing for 2,310 yards as a senior at Lincoln High School, should get plenty of playing time at tailback, too.
The young offensive line is anchored by sophomore Dwayne Barton.
Sophomore defensive lineman Gabriel Hampton, an alumnus of Armijo High in Fairfield, has already committed to Tennessee, and former McClymonds High linebacker Josh Tatum spent a season at USC before coming to CCSF last season.
Jarrell Harrison, who originally signed with UNLV out of high school, and Eric Moore, from South San Francisco High School, form a strong safety tandem.
Week 1 in Nutshell: Let's not get hasty
Monday, September 1, 2008. San Francisco Chronicle, Jake Curtis
Greatest Achievements of Opening Weekend:
Jeremiah Masoli , Oregon QB: After leading City College of San Francisco to the community college state title last season, Masoli was the Ducks' No. 3 quarterback 10 days ago. But Nate Costa was lost for the season with a knee injury, and Justin Roper left Saturday's game against Washington with a concussion in the second quarter with the Ducks leading 14-10. Masoli threw two touchdown passes to help the Ducks pull away to a 44-10 win. Roper is expected back for the Ducks' next game against Utah.
Reserve QB from CCSF sparks Oregon
Sunday, August 31, 2008. Associated Press
Jeremiah Masoli stepped in for Justin Roper and threw for 126 yards and two touchdowns, helping No. 21 Oregon to a 44-10 victory over Pac-10 Conference rival Washington in Eugene, Ore.
Roper started for the Ducks and completed 7 of 11 passes for 114 yards and a touchdown. But he was replaced in the second quarter by Masoli, a junior college transfer from City College of San Francisco, and did not return. It was not immediately clear if he was injured.
Coach Mike Bellotti said Roper had a concussion, but it was not clear how the injury occurred.
Masoli was 9-of-16 for 137 yards and two touchdowns - to Jaison Williams, who dashed nearly untouched down the sideline for a 48-yard touchdown reception to make it 30-10 and to Jeff Maehl with a 25-yard scoring pass in the final quarter.
Washington's dual-threat quarterback Jake Locker completed 12 of 28 passes for 103 yards and also ran for 57 yards.
Roper was named Oregon's starting quarterback earlier in the week after sophomore Nate Costa was injured in practice and had season-ending surgery on his left knee.
Masoli led CCSF to the junior college national championship last season while throwing for 3,592 yards and 30 touchdowns.
Ex-CCSF player to join Vols
Saturday, August 30, 2008. Associated Press
Former City College of San Francisco linebacker
Gerald Williams has been cleared by the Southeastern Conference to suit up
for Tennessee this season.
The 6-foot-4, 240-pounder from Lauderdale Lakes, Fla., will travel with
the team to play at UCLA on Monday, though Volunteers coach Phillip Fulmer
said he may not see much playing time in the game aside from some special
teams assignments.
Williams signed with the Vols in 2005, but was denied eligibility by the
NCAA just before the season began after problems with some of his high
school credits.
He played at Hargrave Military Academy prep school during the 2006 season
and CCSF last season, helping lead the Rams to the state community-college
championship.
Williams was already cleared by the NCAA and enrolled at Tennessee. SEC
rules require extra credits, and Williams had to prove that a math course
he recently took met those requirements.
Ohio State rewards Tressel: Ohio State coach Jim Tressel has agreed to
contract revisions that will make him the highest-paid football coach in
the Big Ten.
Tressel's compensation beginning in February will be $3.5 million, a $1
million increase, the school said Friday. Tressel will receive annual
increases of 3 percent to 4 percent. He has a 73-16 record at Ohio State
and is under contract until 2013.
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