Football preview: Survival of the fittest

Tony Altobelli

COSTA MESA - The Orange Coast College football team might compare

this upcoming season to the popular television show “Survivor.”

The only problem is that there is no escape off this island until

after Nov. 18 if not longer.

“We’ve got seven teams on our schedule that are ranked in the top-20

in the state,” second-year Coach Mike Taylor said. “Our freshmen are

going to have to learn quickly and our returners are going to have to

step up as leaders on our team.”

The Pirates are coming off a 4-6 season and after two seasons in the

Mission Conference Northern Division, Taylor takes his crew back to the

Central Division, where they competed from 1984-1997.

“I think it’s better for our program and for the fan interest to be

playing the schools closer to our area last,” Taylor said. “Teams like

Fullerton, Santa Ana, Golden West and Saddleback are great rivalries and

playing them again at the end of the season will keep not only the fans

more interested, but the players and coaching staff as well.”

The Pirates have only nine starters returning from last year’s squad,

including only three on the offensive end.

“It’s important for our offense to learn quickly,” Taylor said.

“There’s a lot of new faces and we all have to be on the same page right

from the opening game.”

The Bucs’ returning three are outside guard Anthony Knutson, wide

receiver Justin Dale and tight end Ben Fredrickson.

Knutson, a second-team All-Mission Conference selection, was one of

the main reasons the Pirates ranked No. 2 in passing offense.

Dale was used last year as a fourth option to OCC’s high-powered

offense, while Fredrickson caught 30 passes for 415 yards and five

touchdowns last season.

Unlike last season’s luxury of loads of options and a standout

quarterback in Jared Flint, OCC will try to simplify things by using a

balance of running and passing in an attempt to strong time management.

“Offensively, we would like to control the ball more,” Taylor said.

“We would really like to run the ball and we have some guys that can do

that. We’ll sometimes offer a three-back package, while other times we

might not have any backs in the backfield.

“As far as our quarterbacks go, I don’t think we’re going to see

another season like Jared Flint put up last year. That doesn’t happen

very often,” Taylor continued. “We’ve got a couple of guys that can throw

for us and as long as they have time to throw, they can get the job

done.”

Taylor’s quarterbacks will be redshirt sophomore Justin Simons, along

with last year’s backup QB Eddie Johnson (Newport Harbor High).

Leading the running brigade will be James Dawkins, who was a

second-team, all-conference selection for special teams.

The Pirates’ defensive line has two returners in Vance Babin and

second-team, all-conference defensive end James Guglielmana.

The strength to the Pirates’ defense, according to Taylor will be at

the linebacker and secondary positions.

Returning to the Bucs’ squad are second-team all-conference standouts

Dustin Davis and Justin Blackard, along with Martin Janzon.

In the secondary, standout sophomores Johnnie Peeples and Manny Adams,

along with freshmen Tim Ogo and Jimmy Thorson will try to keep the

opposition in check.

The key to success for the Pirates will be winning the war in the

trenches as well as staying healthy.

“We’re two-deep in all positions, so I’m excited about that,” Taylor

said. “But, if we start losing some people throughout the season, that

could mean big trouble for us. Our success, just like most schools, will

come in the trenches. If we can win the battles on the lines, we’ll have

some success.”

The schedule-makers didn’t do OCC too many favors. After a

season-opener at home against Riverside, the Pirates will take on Long

Beach City on the road, El Camino at home and Mt. San Antonio on the

road.

“It’s all going to depend on how healthy we come out after each

contest,” Taylor said. “If we can survive the first four or five games

and have the use of the bye week to get healthy, it should be

interesting.”

Taylor sees division powerhouse Palomar being tough as usual, as well

as Santa Ana and Saddleback.

“I see Palomar as having the most talent out of all of us,” Taylor

said. “Santa Ana and Saddleback each had some solid recruiting in the

off-season so they should be tough and I’ve talked to some people at

Golden West and Fullerton and they’ve both improved their programs. It

all comes down to who can stay healthy and who can get hot at the right

time.”