COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOOTBALL BOWL GAMES : Rancho Santiago Must Run; Fullerton Has Struggled of Late

Never has Rancho Santiago needed a stronger effort from its running game than today, when the Dons take on Los Angeles Valley in the Simple Green Orange County Bowl at Orange Coast College.

The 1:30 p.m. game matches run-oriented Rancho Santiago, the sixth-ranked team in the nation, against pass-happy Los Angeles Valley, the No. 16 team in the country. Both are 9-1.

The Dons won the Central Division of the Mission Conference and L.A. Valley was second in the Western State Conference.

Rancho Santiago averaged 236 yards per game on the ground and would like to improve on that mainly because of Valley quarterback Jim Arellanes. He is 220 of 357 for 3,483 yards, 25 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

Arellanes threw for a single-game state record 639 yards in a loss to Bakersfield.

“We hope to keep their quarterback sitting on the bench,” Rancho Santiago Coach Dave Ogas said. “Hopefully it’s an exciting game . . . for our offense and not theirs.”

Ernie Wilson is Rancho Santiago’s leading rusher, with 786 yards and 12 touchdowns. Ace Riggins added 462 yards. But if the Dons’ running game falters, they need not panic.

Rancho Santiago also has a talented quarterback in sophomore Simon Fuentes. He set a Rancho Santiago single-season record with 19 touchdown passes in completing 110 of 165 attempts for 1,755 yards. He was intercepted four times.

Rancho Santiago also had an impressive defensive unit.

The Dons were first in the 14-team Mission Conference, allowing 323 yards a game. One of the unit’s specialties is rushing the quarterback. The Dons recorded 43 sacks this season, including 11 by Kent Miller and 10 by Dustin Williams. Both are defensive ends.

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Fullerton (6-3-1) is hoping to play better in its bowl game than the Hornets did in their final two regular-season games. The Hornets, coached by Gene Murphy, play Hancock (7-3) in Santa Maria at 1 p.m. in the K-Swiss Bowl.

Fullerton was tied for first with Rancho Santiago when the teams met in the ninth game, but the Hornets were soundly beaten, 34-7. Fullerton then had to hang on for a 54-42 victory over Southwestern (0-9-1) in the final game.

“I look at this game as a reward,” Murphy said. “But it’s also a chance to end on a positive note. For a lot of our sophomores, this is their final game ever so we’d like to end with a victory.”

Fullerton’s post-season appearance also marks an impressive turnaround in the program. Fullerton was 1-9 in 1992, then went 3-7 in Murphy’s first season.

This season, quarterback Marc O’Brien led the offense that was seventh in the Mission Conference. Fullerton averaged 264 yards passing and 118 yards rushing a game.

The Hornets’ running game was sluggish much of the season with the exception of freshman Mike Jacot, who had 560 yards in 85 attempts.

The defense was near the top of the most of the season but struggled in the final two weeks, falling to fourth. Fullerton gave up 233 yards passing and 126 yards rushing a game.