Despite forcing three turnovers, the Panthers defense just couldn’t stay fresh against the fast-paced Modesto College Pirates offense Sept. 26, as the football team lost its third game of the season, 31-20.
Coming into the game, Modesto was ranked as a top-10 scoring offense in California, averaging 39 points per game. The fast-paced, hurry-up style offense that the Pirates run has the team averaging 427.8 yards per game, including 205.5 rushing yards per game which places them as a top-15 rushing team in the state.
The Panthers defense had its work cut out from the opening kickoff. Although they proved tough in the first half, limiting Modesto’s high-powered offense to only seven points, fatigue caught up as the Pirates kept running all night.
“[Modesto’s] pace obviously picked up [more] in the second half, than it did in the first half,” said head coach Dannie Walker. “That’s just something that you don’t see on film but until you actually get in the game.”
Modesto finished the night with 217 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. The Panthers defense forced three turnovers in key points in the game, but the offense just couldn’t execute.
The worst news of the night for the defense was injuries key players on the Panthers front seven sustained. Ryan Staas, the team leader in total tackles on the season with 42, left the game briefly with a shoulder injury, but was able to return. However, freshman linebacker Jacob Cremen injured his knee during the game and never returned.
The extent of the Cremen’s injury is not known, but Walker said that he was “a big piece to our defense,” so it would be a big blow if the team lost him for an extended period of time.
“When you play with that kind of effort for that long, sometimes you break down,” said Panthers defensive coordinator John Herlihy. “We’re young, and at times we just have to finish. But in terms of effort, we couldn’t ask those young men for much more.”
For more stats and information on City College football, visit sccpanthers.losrios.edu
