TONIGHT’S COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOOTBALL : Pain Is Worth the Gain for Orange Coast’s Craig

As receivers go, Mark Craig is pretty close to a perfect target.

Craig, a 6-foot-6 wideout for Orange Coast College, is a quarterback’s dream--sure-handed and easy to find, even in a crowd.

Unfortunately for Craig’s back, ribs and the rest of his body, defensive players don’t have much trouble locating him either.

This makes for some painful experiences, but Craig has a simple philosophy.

“A long time ago, a coach told me that I was going to get hit anyway, so you might as well catch the ball,” he said. “The defensive back may get in a good stick, but if I catch it, the chains move and that’s what’s important.”

OCC plays hosts to Fullerton at 7 tonight in a Mission Conference Central Division game.

Craig, a sophomore, leads Orange County receivers with 33 catches. He is averaging 15.5 yards a reception and has two touchdowns.

He also started last season, but had only 25 catches for 368 yards and three touchdowns in 10 games. The Pirates struggled to find a consistent quarterback for much of the season.

A football and basketball star at Newport Harbor High School, Craig started his college football career at Cal State Long Beach, but that didn’t last long.

He went to Long Beach in the fall of 1987, but left after a few weeks, mainly because the staff wanted him to put on weight and become a tight end, he said.

“I just woke up one morning and said to myself that I had to get out of here (Long Beach),” Craig said. “They wanted me to try and block 280-pound linemen. There’s no way I could move them. I weighed like 200 pounds.”

Craig, who has raised his weight to 212 pounds, transferred to OCC, but was four days too late to be eligible to play football.

He had to sit out while OCC set several offensive records and finished with an 8-2 record.

“It killed me to watch,” he said. “I missed it so much I hated coming to games, but I did. I learned a lot from watching, especially (from watching) Junior Tagaloa.”

Tagaloa was a sophomore receiver in 1987 who had a single-season record 62 receptions. His catches were good for 1,190 yards and 17 touchdowns. Tagaloa, who now plays at California, also set the career reception record at 119.

Craig has borrowed a few things from Tagaloa--the shoulder pads he wore at OCC, and his determination.

“He was the most fearless receiver I’ve seen,” Craig said. “He worried about the ball first and his body second. That’s the attitude I try and take on the field with me.”

Good thing too, because there’s no question Craig will get hit.

In tonight’s Mission Conference Central Division games:

Fullerton (4-2, 3-2, 1-0) at Orange Coast (5-1, 4-1, 1-0), 7 p.m.--OCC has won four in a row. The Pirates are ranked fifth in Southern California and 12th in the J.C. Grid-Wire national poll.

Despite losing tailback Mike Vaez for the season with a knee injury two weeks ago, OCC has maintained a balanced offensive attack. The Pirates are averaging 196 yards rushing and 205 yards passing a game.

Fullerton leads the series, 23-13-1, and has won the past three games by a combined score of 124-12. But only one of the those victories, last season’s 37-3 drubbing, came against current OCC Coach Bill Workman.

There is a chance either team could get caught looking ahead to next week. Fullerton is the homecoming opponent for long-time rival Rancho Santiago while OCC travels to play at undefeated Riverside.

Riverside (6-0, 5-0, 1-0) at Saddleback (1-5, 1-4, 0-1), 7 p.m.--If nothing else, Saddleback has history and an improving offense on its side for the upset bid. Saddleback holds a 17-2 career advantage over Riverside, including a 28-0 victory last season. The Gauchos have settled on Jeff Bailey as their starting quarterback, and he passed for a season-high 267 yards in last week’s 27-14 loss to OCC.

Despite five losses, Saddleback’s defense has allowed only 14 touchdowns, the second-lowest total in the conference behind Rancho Santiago, which has allowed 13.

Riverside is ranked second in Southern California and fifth in the nation. The Tigers have the second best rushing attack in the conference, averaging 242.6 yards a game.