Glendale Community College football looks to break losing slide
Whether he’s sitting atop the press box or on the sideline, Glendale Community College football Coach John Rome can’t hide his frustration.
For the past several games, Rome has watched the Vaqueros perform in the first half off the field before returning to the field for the second half. No matter the view, Rome and the Vaqueros remain in search of their first victory.
Glendale will look to avoid losing its seventh straight game for the first time since 2011 when it meets Pasadena City College in an American Metro Conference contest on Saturday at Sartoris Field.
“We just keep making mistake after mistake,” Rome said. “We had something like seven or eight illegal procedure penalties in our last game and these are things that can’t really happen.
“We make way too many mistakes and that’s where the frustration comes into play. We have breakdowns on special teams and we can’t get our offense going. We’ve played better in three of our last four games, but we have to find a way to cut down on the mistakes.”
Glendale (0-6, 0-2 in conference) suffered a 24-17 loss at Santa Ana on Saturday. The Vaqueros fumbled a kickoff and had a field-goal attempt blocked, adding to more vexation.
Glendale held a 17-14 lead in the third quarter before Santa Ana finished off its victory with 10 unanswered points. Receiver Ronald Carter-Smith caught five passes for 49 yards for Glendale, which got 71 yards rushing in seven carries from running back Torrence Brumfield.
Glendale quarterback David Arriaga tossed a a six-yard touchdown pass to Anthony McGinnis. Arriaga completed 17 of 29 passes for 145 yards. He had one touchdown and an interception.
“We did too many things that caused us to self destruct,” Rome said. “At some point, the light has to turn on.”
Arriaga, a sophomore, has completed 57 of 126 passes for 563 yards. He’s thrown for five touchdowns and five interceptions.
On the bright side, Glendale received two interceptions from defensive back Keyon Hardin. Linebacker Sylvester Robinson finished with a team-leading seven tackles for the Vaqueros.
Pasadena (3-3, 1-1) had a bye last week. The Lancers last played Oct. 8, when they fell, 34-27, to West L.A. in a conference contest. Quarterback
Jesse Hanckel has completed 91 of 185 passes for 1,152 yards, six touchdowns and nine interceptions for PCC.
Glendale and Pasadena will meet for the first time since Sept. 4, 2010, when Pasadena registered a 41-20 victory. The Vaqueros and Lancers will participate for the first time in a conference game since 2009. Pasadena posted a 38-22 National Northern Conference win.
