College of the Siskiyous - Football

Stout defense not quite enough for Eagles
By Steve Gerace

Some things have changed for the College of the Siskiyous football team, but Saturday's 13-11 season-opening loss to Yuba was painfully similar to last year's season-opener against Yuba. In front of a large crowd at Herschel Meredith Stadium in Weed, the Eagles unveiled their new uniforms and new 25 second clocks Saturday, while new head coach Eric Young paced the sidelines during a battle of defenses. Trailing for most of the game, Siskiyous finally took the lead with just over 6 minutes to play in the final period on a 10-yard touchdown pass from Lance Weckerle to wide receiver Chaz Thompson. The defense, as it had all game, stuffed Yuba's next series, but the offense, as was the case most of the game, went nowhere. When the Eagles tried to punt, the snap from center was low and a Yuba player burst through the middle of the line to block it. That set up Yuba's game winning 36 yard field goal with 29 seconds remaining. A year ago, Siskiyous opened the season with a loss at Yuba, during which the winning score came on the final play of the game at the end of a 99 yard drive. "We have got to stop doing that against Yuba," said Young, who was the defensive line coach last year. The loss hurt, but Eagle fans had a lot to cheer about, especially when the defense was on the field. Siskiyous' defensive front was in Yuba's backfield as often as Yuba's quarterback, and sophomore defensive back Scotty Yerges of Medford, OR, got his hands on the ball five times, including two pass interceptions and a fumble recovery. Sophomore defensive lineman Larry Raynes (No. 99), a transfer from Eastern Washington University, led the charge with returning all-conference pick Daniel Burnett (No. 91) and Edison Robertson (No. 90), a sophomore who missed most of last season with a broken leg. Burnett and Robertson were both credited with two quarterback sacks and numerous tackles. Yuba had little success blocking Raynes. Also contributing quarterback sacks were linebacking identical twin brothers Jared and Zach Kuhl, who lined up on opposite sides of swarming middle linebacker Andy Forney. When they had the ball, the Eagles were relying on four freshman offensive linemen. That's a part of their game that Young says will get better as the season progresses. "We couldn't run the ball," Young said. "But we will be able to do that in future weeks." Sophomore running back Alex Gaston left the game early with an injury, and Akeem Anthony and Andres Reed found few holes when they were handed the ball. Weckerle, a sophomore from Yreka, got better later in the game, finishing with 14 completions on 27 attempts for 152 yards, including one touchdown and one interception. His main target was Thompson, a freshman from Texas City, TX, who caught 8 passes for 99 yards and the Eagles' only TD. "He blocked real well, too," Young said of the 6-foot-1, 180 pound wide receiver. A 34 yard pass from Weckerle to Thompson, with penalty yards added on for roughing the passer, set up the 10-yard scoring pass. That gave the Eagles an 11-10 lead, so they went for a two-point conversion to try to increase the lead to three points. Weckerle threw toward fullback Adam Groppi at the goal line, but Groppi was hit from behind before the ball arrived and it fell incomplete. Young said he wanted a pass interference call on the play, but the officials didn't see it that way. Young also pointed to some missed opportunities early in the game, including a first-half Eagle drive that ended on downs at the one yard line. Siskiyous got a safety on Yuba's subsequent series, but trailed 10-2 until Corey O'Neill's field goal with 3 seconds to play in the first half made it 10-5. Groppi, who caught one pass to extend an Eagle drive, was one of three south Siskiyou high school graduates who saw considerable playing time for the Eagles. Jay Teague of Mount Shasta was the starting center, and Travis Amesbury of Mount Shasta played on special teams and at outside linebacker. The Eagles go on the road now for three weeks, including Delta in Stockton this Saturday, Butte in Oroville September 17th and Laney in Oakland September 23rd. "We're going to be a good football team," said Young. "Our young guys have to grow up in a hurry. We've got to fix some little mistakes. I still feel we'll compete for the conference title."


	Stout defense not quite enough for Eagles By Steve Gerace Some things have changed for the College of the Siskiyous football team, but Saturday's 13-11 season-opening loss to Yuba was painfully similar to last year's season-opener against Yuba. In front of a large crowd at Herschel Meredith Stadium in Weed, the Eagles unveiled their new uniforms and new 25 second clocks Saturday, while new head coach Eric Young paced the sidelines during a battle of defenses. Trailing for most of the game, Siskiyous finally took the lead with just over 6 minutes to play in the final period on a 10-yard touchdown pass from Lance Weckerle to wide receiver Chaz Thompson. The defense, as it had all game, stuffed Yuba's next series, but the offense, as was the case most of the game, went nowhere. When the Eagles tried to punt, the snap from center was low and a Yuba player burst through the middle of the line to block it. That set up Yuba's game winning 36 yard field goal with 29 seconds remaining. A year ago, Siskiyous opened the season with a loss at Yuba, during which the winning score came on the final play of the game at the end of a 99 yard drive. "We have got to stop doing that against Yuba," said Young, who was the defensive line coach last year. The loss hurt, but Eagle fans had a lot to cheer about, especially when the defense was on the field. Siskiyous' defensive front was in Yuba's backfield as often as Yuba's quarterback, and sophomore defensive back Scotty Yerges of Medford, OR, got his hands on the ball five times, including two pass interceptions and a fumble recovery. Sophomore defensive lineman Larry Raynes (No. 99), a transfer from Eastern Washington University, led the charge with returning all-conference pick Daniel Burnett (No. 91) and Edison Robertson (No. 90), a sophomore who missed most of last season with a broken leg. Burnett and Robertson were both credited with two quarterback sacks and numerous tackles. Yuba had little success blocking Raynes. Also contributing quarterback sacks were linebacking identical twin brothers Jared and Zach Kuhl, who lined up on opposite sides of swarming middle linebacker Andy Forney. When they had the ball, the Eagles were relying on four freshman offensive linemen. That's a part of their game that Young says will get better as the season progresses. "We couldn't run the ball," Young said. "But we will be able to do that in future weeks." Sophomore running back Alex Gaston left the game early with an injury, and Akeem Anthony and Andres Reed found few holes when they were handed the ball. Weckerle, a sophomore from Yreka, got better later in the game, finishing with 14 completions on 27 attempts for 152 yards, including one touchdown and one interception. His main target was Thompson, a freshman from Texas City, TX, who caught 8 passes for 99 yards and the Eagles' only TD. "He blocked real well, too," Young said of the 6-foot-1, 180 pound wide receiver. A 34 yard pass from Weckerle to Thompson, with penalty yards added on for roughing the passer, set up the 10-yard scoring pass. That gave the Eagles an 11-10 lead, so they went for a two-point conversion to try to increase the lead to three points. Weckerle threw toward fullback Adam Groppi at the goal line, but Groppi was hit from behind before the ball arrived and it fell incomplete. Young said he wanted a pass interference call on the play, but the officials didn't see it that way. Young also pointed to some missed opportunities early in the game, including a first-half Eagle drive that ended on downs at the one yard line. Siskiyous got a safety on Yuba's subsequent series, but trailed 10-2 until Corey O'Neill's field goal with 3 seconds to play in the first half made it 10-5. Groppi, who caught one pass to extend an Eagle drive, was one of three south Siskiyou high school graduates who saw considerable playing time for the Eagles. Jay Teague of Mount Shasta was the starting center, and Travis Amesbury of Mount Shasta played on special teams and at outside linebacker. The Eagles go on the road now for three weeks, including Delta in Stockton this Saturday, Butte in Oroville September 17th and Laney in Oakland September 23rd. "We're going to be a good football team," said Young. "Our young guys have to grow up in a hurry. We've got to fix some little mistakes. I still feel we'll compete for the conference title."




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