TODAY’S COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOOTBALL : OCC Tackle Throwing Weights Around

Greg Thurston of Orange Coast College has found the perfect distraction after his long hours on the football field. He throws things.

But Thurston is very particular about the objects he hurls. He doesn’t just pick up a rock and fling it across a field. Instead, the discus and shotput are the objects of choice. And he excels.

Thurston was a top-flight discus and shotput competitor at Edison High School before continuing with OCC’s track and field team last spring. He set the Orange Empire Conference record in the discus with a throw of 161 feet 2 inches in the conference meet in May.

While proud of his accomplishments, Thurston still talks of his field events as a “hobby” and sees them as an outlet for his need for achievement.

On the football field, Thurston is a sophomore offensive tackle for Orange Coast, which plays host to Southwestern at 7 tonight.

“In track, you like the team to do well, but it’s really an individual sport,” Thurston said. “In football, we have to work as a group on the line. If you’re not all together, nothing (good) will happen.”

Thurston arrived at Orange Coast from Edison, where he spent two years as a reserve before starting on the football team as a senior.

He was injured in a preseason scrimmage at OCC last year, but returned two games into the season and started the rest of the way. He was 6 feet 5 and 225 pounds last season. This season, he is 30 pounds heavier, thanks to a serious commitment to weightlifting.

OCC Coach Bill Workman considered moving him to guard to take advantage of his quickness. But part of the left tackle’s job is to prevent quarterbacks from getting hit from the blindside, and Thurston stayed at the position because Workman figured he would be too hard to replace.

“He is our best athlete along the line,” Workman said. “He is the whole package; he has good athletic ability and great, great character.”

Thurston, 19, plans to stay at OCC this spring to finish some academic work so he can move on to a four-year college. But he’s not sure that he will be back on the track team.

“I know I want to stick with football from here out,” he said. “I figure I can get a scholarship to play at least two more years. I’ll just wait and see what happens before I think about track. But I would like to do it. It’s fun.”

In other Mission Conference games:

El Camino (4-1, 2-1) at Fullerton (4-0, 3-0), 7 p.m.--Fullerton moved up to No. 2 in the national J.C. Grid-Wire poll, and El Camino, which was ranked first before a 24-14 loss to Riverside last week, fell to No. 8. The teams have combined for 374 points in their last six meetings, and this season shouldn’t be much different. Each team is averaging 435 yards a game. Fullerton leads the conference in rushing with 290 yards a game. El Camino averages 205 yards, led by Anthony Daigle, who leads the conference with 662 yards in 111 carries.

Golden West (4-0, 3-0) vs. Palomar (1-4, 0-3) at San Marcos HS, 1:30 p.m.--Golden West takes its outstanding defense south to take on the state’s best offense. Golden West, ranked No. 11 in the nation, is allowing 195 yards a game, second best in the state. Palomar’s no-huddle offense is averaging 494 yards a game. The statistic most in Golden West’s favor is interceptions. The Rustlers are tied with Pasadena for first in the conference with 10. Palomar’s Bret Salisbury has passed for 1,580 yards (139 for 228), but also leads the conference with 12 interceptions.

Southwestern (1-4, 0-3) at Orange Coast (3-1, 2-1), 7 p.m.--OCC’s defense ranks second behind Golden West’s, and is allowing 261 yards a game. More important, the Pirates have allowed just four touchdowns in four games, and only one rushing. Injuries have hurt OCC’s depth. The teams are nearly identical offensively. Southwestern averages 334 yards a game and OCC averages 329.

Pasadena (4-1, 2-1) vs. Rancho Santiago (2-2, 1-2) at Santa Ana Stadium, 7 p.m.--Rancho Santiago is trying to snap a two-game losing streak. Pasadena’s only loss was to Fullerton two weeks ago.

San Diego City (0-5, 0-3) at Saddleback (2-2, 2-1), 7 p.m.--Saddleback has won two in a row and is the favorite in this game. San Diego City is last in the conference in total offense and defense, averaging 189 yards a game on offense, and allowing an average of 389. Saddleback is averaging 328 yards a game in offense and allowing 279.