Palomar’s Program Nears Its Zenith

When Tom Craft arrived at Palomar College, the first thing he noticed was how quiet things were.

And that seemed strange, considering he was standing in middle of a grassy football field. Craft, who had been named coach, had to think of a way to create a little excitement.

Atmosphere wasn’t his only problem. Palomar football had been in existence for 39 years. Not once had the Comets won a league championship, and there was not much of a history of success.

Palomar had finished 1-8, 2-8 and 2-8 the three previous seasons. And here, looking for a solution, was Craft, 29, a former San Diego State assistant with no head coaching experience.

It appeared that Craft would have to look through the Palomar Observatory telescope to find one.

“Of all the football coaches that had been at Palomar, no one had a .500 record,” Craft said. “Why, I don’t know.

“When I took over the program, they had won one conference game in three years. They were not a very good football team or program.”

More than eight years have zipped by, and what has happened? The Comets have an offense that strikes like lightning, a defense that makes thunder and a football team that will play for the state community college championship Saturday.

Palomar, ranked No. 2 in California, will face No. 1 Chabot College of Hayward in the Elks Bowl in Merced. Nationally, however, Palomar is ranked fourth and Chabot fifth by J.C. Grid-Wire. Both teams are 9-1.

“For our players, this a once-in-a-lifetime game,” Craft said. “This might be our best team in 47 years. This is our best record.”

Craft will get no argument about the record, nor about the fact that he has led the Comets through a dramatic turnaround. The strange fact is, the process was simple. Craft, now 38, had the foresight to believe the Comets eventually would be winners if he created a certain personality for his teams and did not stray from it.

First, he wanted to break the deafening quiet that prevailed over this football field for so many years. His first project was to make the Comets a passing team that would score a lot of points.

That they did, although the opposition often scored more. Craft’s teams went 4-6, 4-6, 6-4, 5-4-1 his first four seasons. That was instant success for Palomar.

Craft beat the bushes of North County, even pitching the virtues of junior college to the hottest of Division I recruits. Eventually, it paid off.

Four quarterbacks from county high schools first attended Division I schools before coming home to pass for Palomar. Orange Glen’s Duffy Daugherty started his collegiate career at New Mexico State, Fallbrook’s Scott Barrick at SDSU, Orange Glen’s Brett Salisbury at Brigham Young. Each also wound up leading the nation in yardage their sophomore years at Palomar.

Daugherty had 3,006 yards and moved on to Idaho State, Barrick 3,225 and headed to Stephen F. Austin and Salisbury 3,328 and advanced to Oregon.

Now the man is San Pasqual product Andy Loveland, who first attended Colorado State and now leads the state in passing yardage with 3,227.

“When I got here, there really wasn’t a philosophy,” Craft said. “Were we a passing offense or were we a running attack? The defense was trying to do so many things it didn’t do anything very well.

“The biggest thing I thought when I took the program over was for us to do something well. To get the kind of kids I could draw, I had to do things that were unique. I wanted to build it around offense. That’s how our no-huddle offense evolved.”

The Comets have been soaring on offense. They currently rank second in the state to City College of San Francisco with 495 yards per game.

Receivers Jerry Garrett from Oceanside (state-high 82 receptions, 1,303 yards) and Myron Wise from Washington (62 for 1,037) became only the second tandem in state history to each eclipse 1,000 yards. The others were Chris Chiarappa and Erik Hansen of Palomar College.

“We’ve been making a living at the quarterback position lately,” Craft said.

Craft’s Comet offense was this year refined into a no-huddle aerial attack, often with no running back. Yet opposing defenses often over-play the pass, and Palomar averages 158 yards a game rushing.

By the fifth, sixth and seventh seasons under Craft, Palomar was run-and-shooting its way to successive 7-4, 7-4 and 9-1 marks and racking up back-to-back victories in the Hall Of Fame Bowl at Southwestern College.

Palomar got its first title in 45 years in 1989 and has not let go since. This year’s Mission Conference championship is the Comets’ third in a row. But to bring Palomar to a chance at a state championship, Craft had to build a defense. And that he did, again by rummaging through the brush along Highway 78.

Palomar picked up linemen Mino Faletoi (Oceanside), Peau Atoe (El Camino) and Donnie Aliipule (Rancho Buena Vista), linebacker Andy Buh (Orange Glen) and free safety Kenny Johnson (RBV). Linebacker Al Aliipule (RBV) came out after leaving USC. But the Comets hit the jackpot when they got former Parade Magazine All-American lineman Tomasi Amituanai (RBV) after he left Colorado.

“I think that said something for our image,” Craft said. “When we got Tomasi, I think it created some interest and some guys came out. In high school, they were all pretty good. Together, they’re very good.”

Amituanai and Garrett were named first-team All-American by J.C. Grid-Wire. Al Aliipule, Wise and Loveland received honorable mention.

Palomar, with its fast-break offense and a defense second in the state against the run at 59.2 yards per game, is quietly confident it can beat Golden Gate Conference champion Chabot, with its run-oriented Delaware Wing-T attack.

Said Loveland, “I think the stadium seats about 8,000, and 7,900 will be rooting for them. But we can’t wait to get up there. We’re real up. We’re focused.”

That’s good, because Craft has a sense of urgency in his tone when he talks about this game. Talking to Division I recruiters, Craft said they report that San Diego County talent is slowly shifting from the north back to the city.

“We’re talking about a team now that’s got a chance to win a state and national title,” he said. “What’s going to happen after that?”

If Palomar wins Saturday, he shouldn’t have to worry.