JC Football: Vikings trounce Pirates

COSTA MESA — On a night when the Orange Coast College football program turned back the clock to honor its first national championship team of 50 years ago, the current edition of Pirates dialed down the intensity enough to encounter a humbling defeat.

Long Beach City College (1-2), which came in on a 14-game losing streak and had allowed 85 points in its first two losses this season, scored the game’s first 19 points and pounded its way to a 46-16 triumph at OCC.

OCC (1-2) appeared sluggish on both sides of the ball and committed the game’s only two turnovers, which the Vikings turned into touchdowns during a stretch in which they scored on four straight first-half possessions to build a 19-0 cushion.

OCC, which rallied from a 17-0 deficit to beat Pasadena, 27-23, in its home opener on Sept. 14, gave its rooters hope by marching 77 yards on seven plays to cut the deficit to 19-7 midway through the second quarter.

But the hosts managed just one more touchdown — an 11-play, 81-yard procession against the Vikings reserves with time winding down.

Long Beach’s 46 points were two more than the Pirates had allowed in their first two games combined, and the Vikings amassed 585 yards of total offense, to OCC’s 319.

Only 64 of OCC’s yards came on the ground, with most of those coming on the late touchdown drive.

Long Beach scored on the game’s final play, flicking salt in a wound that was clearly stinging some OCC players immediately after the game.

OCC freshman receiver D.J. McFadden, who produced 110 receiving yards on his three catches, including grabs of 61 and 37 yards, was clearly miffed after Coach Mike Taylor’s postgame address, taking the opportunity of the team’s final huddle to chastise the team for its sub-par showing.

“This was embarrassing,” McFadden shouted in the center of his teammates and coaches. “We need to practice harder and stop coming out lackadaisical [in games], or we’re going to get our [behinds] busted again.”

Taylor agreed that his team was embarrassed and also conceded it may have come out flat.

“We weren’t playing with the energy we need to play with,” said Taylor, who declined to place blame for the Pirates’ apparent lack of motivation.

“Players need to play better and coaches need to coach better,” Taylor said.

Zach Bateman, a freshman left tackle out of Estancia High, said it comes down to a matter of execution.

Twice OCC called timeouts to avoid delay-of-game penalties, and twice it failed to run a play (either calling timeout or being flagged for delay) the first play after receiving a kickoff.

Freshman Griff Aimes, a prep All-American last season at Corona del Mar High, made his first field-goal attempt in six tries this season, a 32-yarder that pulled OCC within 33-10 late in the third quarter.

Tala Teaupa, a freshman tailback out of Newport Harbor High, had a two-yard touchdown run for OCC’s first score.

OCC’s final touchdown came on a well-thrown 13-yard fade pass from Cameron Biedgoly to Darren Hambrick with 5:39 left.

Biedgoly completed five for 11 pass attempts for 60 yards after taking over for starter Jon Newsom early in the fourth quarter.

Newsom, who was sacked four times and missed receivers by several yards on both of his interceptions, finished nine for 21 for 194 yards.

Omaris Tolbert, who had just one carry in the first three quarters, led OCC rushers with 36 yards on four attempts. Starting tailback Lorenzo Williams had 35 yards on nine attempts.

Surviving members of OCC’s 1963 football team that went 10-0 and won the Junior Rose Bowl, were recognized at halftime.

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Long Beach 46, Orange Coast 16

SCORE BY QUARTERS

LBCC 9 – 17 – 7 – 13 – 46

OCC 0 – 7 –3 – 6 – 16

FIRST QUARTER

LB – Parr 10 pass from Potter (pass failed), 7:56.

LB – Mengel 23 FG, 3:56.

SECOND QUARTER

LB – Mengel 22 FG, 12:05.

LB – Potter 2 run (Mengel kick), 10:29.

OCC – Teaupa 2 run (Aimes kick), 7:19.

LB – Hampton 17 pass from Potter (Mengel kick), 0:45.

THIRD QUARTER

LB – Hampton 39 pass from Potter (Mengel kick), 9:43.

OCC – Aimes 32 FG, 2:13.

FOURTH QUARTER

LB – Dixon 22 run (Mengel kick), 11:23.

OCC – Hambrick 13 pass from Biedgoly (pass failed), 5:39.

LB – Lakey 1 run (no attempt), 0:00.

INDIVIDUAL RUSHING

LB – Panteau, 19-88.

OCC – Tolbert, 4-36; Williams, 9-36.

INDIVIDUAL PASSING

LB – Potter, 20-31-0, 265, 3 TDs.

OCC – Newsom, 9-21-2, 195.

INDIVIDUAL RECEIVING

LB – Hampton , 7-132, 1 TD.

OCC – McFadden, 3-110.