Gauchos to defend against well-rounded Owl team
Belman grabbing snap vs Fullerton College (Michael Grennel)
This Saturday the Gauchos of Saddleback College(5-5) will take on the Owls of Citrus college (7-3) in a Beach Bowl clash.
Saddleback looks to bounce back after stumbling at home against Golden West College (9-1).
The Gauchos who possess the No. 1 quarterback in Tim Belman (402.9 ypg) will look to air it out against Citrus to wide-outs RJ Dedrick who stands second in the Southern Conference in receiving yards per game (85.5) & receiving touchdowns per game (8), and Eric Lauderdale who leads the conference in receiving touchdowns per game (9).
Leading the Gaucho defense will be safeties Doug Ruggles and Trevor Douglass who sit at third and seventh in the conference for tackles per game (7.6 & 7.1).
As for Citrus College, who enters the game with momentum after stomping LA Harbor 47-15, the Owls will be intent on leaving with the bowl win under their belt .
The Owls possess Larry Cutbirth, the freshman who’s behind center for the Owl offense. Cutbirth sits at No. 3 in passing yards per game (222.3) and No. 2 in passing touchdowns per game (27).
Backing Cutbirth is running back Emmanuel Pooler who is the third-ranked rusher in the Central Conference, averaging 81.1 yards per game on the ground and the second-ranked rushing scorer (9). Scott Calles will be intent on catching some passes Saturday night as he sits at fifth in the conference for receiving yards per game (67.3) and Brayton Newton No. 4 in receiving touchdowns per game (8) will be looked for in the red zone.
Linebacker Maurice Dupleasis will be making the calls for the Owls on defense as he ranks third in the conference in tackles per game (8.9) but is joined by Kenyatta Johnson and Jesus Vargas who sit at No. 1 and No. 3, respectively, in the conference for sacks (10 & 6.5).
The winner will be decided by the team who run smoother on all cylinders and has the most mental errors, Citrus wins this one 28-14.