Grossmont linebacker Ian Seau, the 2012 Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Year, gained All-America honors. (File photo by Don DeMars Photography)

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
RENO, Nev. (1-24-13) — Never believe a sure thing is what it appears to be.

Those who recognize Grossmont College redshirt freshman IAN SEAU as a blue chip linebacker-DE were sure that the La Costa Canyon High-Kansas State transfer would advance to a higher level.

Seau, a JC All-State and All-American as a member of the Griffins this past season, has surrendered a free ride to SDSU in favor of a scholarship to the University of Nevada.

Seau collected 19 sacks to lead the state, and was Grossmont's leading tackler.

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-8-13) – Three Grossmont College football players have been anointed with further postseason honors from the 2012 season.

Linebacker IAN SEAU, who is ticketed on a scholarship to San Diego State, was named All-America and All-State by the California Community College Football Coaches Association. The 6-foot-3, 240-pound Seau was earlier named the National Division Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Year.

Corner KWEISHI BROWN, a product of Valhalla High, was selected All-State for the rugged Region IV. The 6-foot-1,180-pound freshman ranked among the state leaders with seven interceptions.

Freshman wide receiver NICKOLAS KURTZ, a 6-5, 190-pound graduate of Valhalla, made 50 catches for 797 yards and 10 touchdowns to earn his All-State honors.

Another East County athlete earning All-State recognition was Mount Miguel’s KHALID ABDULLAH of Southwestern College, also a freshman.

Region V Coach of the Year was Southwestern’s ED CARBERRY, who led the Jaguars to a 10-1 season and the championship of the American Division Mountain Conference.

By Nick Pellegrino
© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (12-11-12) — Grossmont College linebacker IAN SEAU, the Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Year this past season, has made a verbal commitment to play for San Diego State in 2013.

Although SDSU officials are not allowed to comment until after a player signs, it is strongly believed that Seau, the nephew of former NFL linebacker JUNIOR SEAU, is well on track and will gain his Associates Degree by June, when he can officially place his signature on a National Letter of Intent. Seau carries a 3.80 grade-point average.

An All-San Diego CIF standout out of La Costa Canyon High, Seau first signed with nationally-ranked Kansas State, but returned home after red-shirting as a freshman.

With the Griffins, Seau led all California community colleges with 19 quarterback sacks and was the ballclub's leading tackler, helping keep Grossmont in state bowl contention until the final moments of the regular season. Seau is a current nominee for both all-state and All-America teams.

Seau will join an Aztecs squad which returns 10 starters on defense. The lone loss is cornerback Leon McFadden, who was recently named team MVP and winner of the John Simcox Memorial Trophy at the annual team banquet held Sunday (Dec. 9).

McFadden, a three-year starter, led SDSU in interceptions (3), pass breakups (10) and was fourth in total tackles (59).

SDSU (9-3), which joined The Big East Conference in football only in 2012, have won seven consecutive games heading into their Poinsettia Bowl appearance against Brigham Young on Dec. 20 at Qualcomm Stadium.

By Nick Pellegrino
© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (11-30-12) — Highlighted by sophomore quarterback CHRIS BONNER and linebacker IAN SEAU, eight members of the Grossmont College football team were honored following selection to the all-National Division Southern Conference football team at the recent Griffins team banquet.

Bonner, a Clairemont High product who finished second in the conference with 247.0 passing yards per contest, received the prestigious JOE ROTH AWARD. Bonner was also a second-team pick by coaches on the all-conference team.

Meanwhile, Seau was honored with the MAUGA DEFENSIVE AWARD. Seau, a transfer from Kansas State via La Costa Canyon High, led the state with 19 quarterback sacks and thus was tabbed the conference's Defensive Player of the Year.

The only other Griffins freshman honored on first-team offense was 6-foot-5 wide receiver NICKOLAS KURTZ (Valhalla), who reeled in 50 passes for 797 yards and 10 touchdowns in nine games. A second-team berth went to running back ALEX CORNIST (Olympian).

On defense, frosh cornerback KWEISHI BROWN (Valhalla) landed a first-team berth, while inside linebacker DONNIE WALSH (St. Augustine) gained a second-team honor.

Special teams was dominated by Grossmont. Sophomore ANDRES CARRILLO (Bel Air) was tabbed placekicker of the year for a first-team selection, while a second-team berth went to punter RHYS FELTON (Australia).

Nevertheless, MICHAEL SCALES (West Hills) was tabbed the team's special teams player of the year in discussions by Grossmont head coach MIKE JORDAN and his staff.

Offensive tackle ISAIAS LARA of Tahquitz High in Hemet was named Griffins team captain.

The Griffins finished with a 5-5 record this season, yet were in bowl contention until the final day of the season.

Grossmont linebacker Ian Seau 2012 Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Year (Don DeMars Photography)

© East County Sports
EL CAJON (11-15-12) — Eight Grossmont College players have been named to the prestigious National Division Southern Conference All-League team.

At the top of the list is Griffins freshman linebacker IAN SEAU, who led the state with 19 sacks and thus was tabbed the Southern Conference Defensive of Player of the Year. Seau is a transfer from Kansas State via La Costa Canyon High School.

The only Griffin named to the first team offense was 6-foot-5, 190-pound freshman receiver NICKOLAS KURTZ, who reeled in 50 passes for 797 yards and 10 touchdowns in nine games.

In addition to Seau, on the first team defensive side was freshman cornerback KWEISHI BROWN, who ranked among the California leaders with 7 interceptions.

Second team offensive picks for Grossmont were quarterback CHRIS BONNER (191 of 382, 2470 yards, 19 TDs), running back ALEX CORNIST (108-464, 4 TDs) and kicker ANDRES CARRILLO (25 of 26 PATs, 7 of 8 field goals, 46 points in eight games).

Sophomore linebacker DONNIE WALSH was a second team pick, as was punter RHYS FELTON (41.2 avg. on 41 punts). Walsh ranked among the Griffins leading tacklers and was named to the all-conference team for the second year in a row.
 

Griffins receiver Nickolas Kurtz connects with quarterback Chris Bonner on a quick slant for a touchdown against Palomar. (Don DeMars Photography photos) ADDITIONAL PHOTOS HERE

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (11-11-12) — Grossmont College ended its season on a sour note.

A 33-28 National Division Southern Conference loss to visiting Palomar was a painful setback for the Griffins (5-5 overall, 3-3 conference), who dropped four of their final five games to ranked teams.

After DeMar Henderson returned a blocked field goal 71 yards for a touchdown to put Palomar (4-6) ahead 33-21 with 11:07 to play, Grossmont fought back and had two legitimate chances to win the game.

Instead, the Griffins turned the ball over twice in the final four minutes and Palomar left Mashin-Roth Memorial Field with a 5-point victory.

Grossmont battled back as quarterback CHRIS BONNER, who completed 22 of 52 passes for 296 yards and two touchdowns, found NICKOLAS KURTZ on a 4-yard scoring pass to make it a one possession game. Earlier in the contest the same two Griffins hooked up for a 51-yard scoring strike that sliced Palomar’s edge to 26-21 with 25 seconds left in the third period.

Kurtz finished the game with 9 receptions for 174 yards and the two scores. He concluded the season with 50 catches for 797 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Bonner totaled 2470 yards to go along with 19 touchdowns. He completed 191 of 382 passes.

What marred the finale for Grossmont were three turnovers and 15 penalties for 141 yards. There were actually three opponents on this chilly afternoon. The wind chill factor pushed the temperatures into the low 40s by game time and it only got colder. The gusty winds caused 55 of the 105 passes to flutter and miss the mark – more often than not for both teams. And that doesn’t take into account for how many balls were dropped because the receivers’ hands were cold.

For one of the few times this season the Griffins outgained an opponent on rushing. E’LON SPIGHT, who has been dogged by injuries about half the season, led the Griffins with a game high 97 yards on 16 rushes. He also scored on a 16-yard run.

ALEX CORNIST added 49 yards on a dozen carries for Grossmont.

Palomar totaled 42 yards on 26 rushes.

“This was a pretty evenly matched game,” said Comets coach Joe Early. “For us it was a real morale victory since we’ve had so much adversity this season. Grossmont is a good club and I know what MIKE (JORDAN) probably feels like, after those two late turnovers. It was a great game to win and a bitter one to lose.”

Grossmont had two chances to pull out a victory in the final 3:10 but turned the ball over both times in the waning moments. Donovan Thurman intercepted a Bonner pass at the Palomar 3-yard line to squelch one Grossmont scoring bid but the Griffins would get a second chance as Palomar was unable to run out the clock.

After a short punt by the Comets, the Griffins completed a pass to the Palomar 14-yard line but fumbled the ball away with 1:06 remaining. Since Grossmont had exhausted their supply of timeouts Palomar was able to go into the victory formation (took a knee) as time expired.

Defensively Grossmont played one of its better games. WILLIE WHITE led the Griffins in tackles with 11, including 5 solo. CHRISTOPHER COLLINS added 7 tackles, while GARY WHITE notched 6.

The Griffins were unable to sack Palomar quarterback Ryan Lamb, who completed 23 of 50 passes for 295 and 3 touchdowns. Lamb, who was playing with a separated shoulder, was repeatedly knocked to the ground by IAN SEAU, who registered 3 quarterback hurries. ZACH CLAUSE had 2 hurries and Collins added one.

Griffins freshman corner KWEISHI BROWN intercepted his 7th pass of the season, which ranks him among the state leaders. He also had 7 tackles.

Griffins linebacker Ian Seau (11, left) with a near sack of Palomar's passer. (Photo by Don DeMars Photography)

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (11-9-12) — The last time Grossmont College hosted National Division Southern Conference rival Palomar was a year ago — in a downpour at Mashin-Roth Field.

A 70 percent chance for rain is predicted by the weather bureau for Saturday’s (Nov. 10) conference finale.

The Griffins (5-4) have won three of their last six games, and Palomar (3-6) has also won three of its last six. Thus this should be a statistically even battle.

It’s difficult to say whether either team has any chances for post-season play. The Comets are out of the picture. The Griffins have a slim chance if they beat the Comets to earn a bowl bid.

Southwestern, which is at the second tier, should finish the season 9-1 and will earn a Beach Bowl bid, probably against Santa Monica next weekend. The Jaguars only loss was to Palomar, 47-43.

CHRIS BONNER directs the Grossmont attack, completing 50 percent of 330 passes for 2174 yards and 17 touchdowns. The 6-foot-7, 215 pound sophomore has also rushed for three touchdowns.

Sophomore running back ALEX CORNIST has 415 yards and 4 touchdowns on 96 carries.

The Griffins leading receiver is NICKOLAS KURTZ who has reeled in 41 passes for 623 yards and 8 touchdowns.

Palomar looks to quarterback Ryan Lamb (166-311, 2104, 17 TDs) and hard charging running back Chad Dobbins, who in eight games has rushed for 808 yards on 175 carries for 4 touchdowns.

GRIFFIN GRAFFITI — Grossmont freshman 6-foot-3, 180 pound punter RHYS FELTON of John Curtin College of the Arts, Freemantle, Western Australia averaged 47.5 yards in four punts against Saddleback. One of his punts was blocked but in the scramble he scooped up the ball and raced 31 yards to set up a Griffins touchdown. A product of Australian Rules Football, Felton is averaging 42.9 yards on 36 punts... Griffins freshman linebacker IAN SEAU leads Southern California with 18 sacks... Palomar College sophomore middle linebacker Ofisa Kose was recognized as the conference Defensive Player of the Week, setting a Comets record with 23 tackles (17 solo) and also recovered a fumble vs. conference co-leader Santa Ana... Palomar leads the all-time series 16-11, including last year’s rain-soaked 34-31 win at Grossmont.

Griffins quarterback Chris Bonner faces the heat from Saddleback. (Gauchos courtesy photo)

In their latest outing – a 66-42 Southern Conference loss at Saddleback on Saturday (Nov. 3) – the Griffins were two-faced: decent offense and sad sack defense. Special teams struggled but coined some unusual plays that led to further scoring.

The Griffins had the lead three times over the Gauchos (5-4, 4-1 SC) 8-7, 16-14 and 23-21, and trailed only 42-36 after a 26-yard scoring pass from KHARI KIMBROUGH to TRAIVONNE BROWN with 1:23 left in the third quarter. But the Griffins were cuffed around for 24 consecutive points thereafter to put the game in the Saddleback victory column.

Grossmont set one school record – for most points allowed in a game: 66.

Saddleback tied three school records – 2 of them set by quarterback Tim Belman for 35-yard completions (in 50 attempts) to go along with a record-tying 6 touchdowns. Receiver Eric Lauderdale reeled in a Saddleback tying 10 passes for 218 yards and 3 touchdowns.

The game was not without its oddities. Trailing 7-0 Grossmont had a punt blocked. But by the time the ball rattled around Griffins punter RHYS FELTON picked up the loose ball and rambled 31 yards downfield. But Grossmont gave the ball up on an interception only to get it back two plays later on a CHRISTOPHER COLLINS theft.

One play later ALEX CORNIST scored on a 25-yard run to make it 7-6.

Weird play No. 2: Saddleback blocked the PAT and the football pinballed between the two teams before CHAD BRICE picked it up for the Griffins and took it across the goal line for a 2-point conversion.

After Saddleback scored to make it 14-7, Bonner hit DANE BURKI with a 9-yard scoring strike to tie the game with 13:09 left in the half. Bonner then gave the Griffins the lead by punching across the 2-point conversion.

Not to be denied, Saddleback regained a 21-16 lead three plays later.

But the Griffins, on the strength of Bonner’s passing arm, connected for a 48-yard pass to CARLTON BAILEY. Then it was NICKOLAS KURTZ’ turn as Bonner hit him for a 25-yard gain to the Saddleback 1-yard line. After losing a yard the 6-foot-7, 215-pound Bonner dove over the front of the Saddleback defense for the go-ahead touchdown. ANDRES CARRILLO’s PAT kick gave the Griffins a 23-21 edge.

The rest of the half belonged to Saddleback as the Gauchos took a 35-23 lead to the locker room. The amazing thing about that was they produced 372 yards in just over 12 minutes in time of possession.

Early in the 3rd quarter the Griffins appeared to be about one possession from elimination as Saddleback extended its lead to 42-23. But the Griffs came to life on one play as Bonner connected with a wide open Burki for 78 yards and a first-and-goal at the Saddleback 2-yard line. Bonner eventually scored on a 1-yard sneak and Carrillo tacked on the extra point.

Aided by three major penalties against Saddleback, the Griffins drove downfield to cut the deficit to six points. After that the Griffins seemed to just run out of gas.

Bonner, who was knocked out of the game by a cheap shot personal foul in front of the Saddleback bench, finished by completing 15 of 34 passes for 259 yards.

Kimbrough, who saw extensive playing time off the bench, completed 5 of 10 passes for 75 yards and a score, and also rushed 5 times for 15 yards.

Griffins receiver Kurtz caught 5 passes for 66 yards but all of that came in the first half before he was knocked out of the game.

Traivonne Brown caught 4 passes for 63 yards for the Griffins, and Burki hauled in 2 for 88 yards.

Cornist led the Grossmont running game with 75 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.

Even though he was under siege all day, punter Felton averaged 47.5 yards on four punts, three of which landed inside the 20.

It was hardly a banner day for the Griffins defense, which surrendered 608 yards in 85 plays. In one less play, Grossmont totaled 84 for 478.

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
MISSION VIEJO (11-2-12) — In the faceoff between two of the four National Division Southern Conference leaders – Grossmont, Saddleback, Fullerton and Santa Ana – all with 3-1 conference records, the duel between the Griffins and Saddleback's Gauchos could be worth a ticket to the state playoffs (if Grossmont doesn’t get upset by Palomar in the final game of the season).

Grossmont (5-3) counts on sophomore quarterback CHRIS BONNER (150-296, 1915 yards, 16 TDs) and state sackmaster IAN SEAU who has 18 sacks to his credit.

NICKOLAS KURTZ is one of the conference’s leading receivers with 36 receptions for 557 yards and 8 touchdowns.

Griffins punter RHYS FELTON ranks in the state leaders with a 42.3 average on 32 attempts for 1353 yards.

Saddleback will bring freshman running back James Marshall, who was named an SCFA offensive player of the week against Palomar, with 15 carries for 78 yards including three TD runs. The Gauchos also will look to SCFA special teams player of the week Doak Workman, who intercepted a pass and returned it 14 yards for the first score of the game against the Comets, and later threw a 27-yard pass on a fake punt that led to another score.

GRIFFIN GRAFITTI: Southern California Football Association Defensive Player of the Week JOSHUA COX, a sophomore free safety, intercepted two passes that led to touchdowns for the Griffins against Fullerton... Victories for the Griffs over Saddleback have been rare as they’ve won only five of 20 meetings.

Grossmont-Southwestern in bowl game?

By Nick Pellegrino
© East County Sports.com
SAN MATEO (10-31-12) — While Grossmont College remains in the hunt for a COA state playoff berth as part of an amazing 4-way tie for first place in the Southern Conference, speculation abounds on what would happen should the Griffins (5-3 and ranked 16th in the state) should fall just short.

State officials are always looking for great match-ups in bowl games, so when this week's Southland rankings were released, one great potential pairing stood right in everyone's face.

Grossmont, rated 8th in the South, is one step ahead of Southwestern (7-1), a Division Two program and long-time rival of the Griffins.

For some reason, the state, which dictates football schedules for all schools, elected to have these county rival not meet this season. But if the Coaches Association poll remains similar in two weeks when the regular season comes to a conclusion, don't be surprised by a quick reincarnation of the San Diego Bowl (a game from the 1980s) or a contest with a name with ties to the area – some suggestions include Pacific Coast Bowl and Border Bowl.

Speculation on a venue would eliminate Grossmont (no lights) and Southwestern (stadium renovations), while San Diego City's Glenn Broderick Field (old Balboa Stadium) may not be available, leaving Mesa College's Douglas Stadium as a prime neutral site location.

Grossmont receiver D'Angelo Bowie (15). (Photo by Don DeMars Photography) ADDITIONAL PHOTOS HERE

Sophomore corner GARY WHITE intercepted the ball on the second play of the game and returned it 43 yards for a touchdown.

Talk about short-lived. Fullerton’s Ryan Byrd, on the third play of the game, dashed 75 yards for a game-tying touchdown.

About that time people started reaching for their abacus. It did pan out that way in the first half as the Hornets raced to a 35-21 lead by intermission.

Defense and sloppy play dominated the second half for both teams, but it was too late for the Griffins, who fell 38-31. It was the first conference loss for Grossmont (5-3, 3-1) and left the Griffins in a four-way tie for first place in the seven team league.

Here’s the breakdown: Of those in the deadlock the Griffins defeated Santa Ana (6-2 overall), lost to Fullerton (4-4) and now travel to Saddleback (4-4) next Saturday (Nov. 3).

After falling behind by 17 points early in the third quarter the Griffins scored the final 10 points on a 3-yard quarterback sneak by CHRIS BONNER and a 36-yard field goal by CONNOR DERBY with 8:30 remaining. However, the story for the Griffins was missed opportunities.

As poorly as Grossmont played, the Griffins still had chances to pull out a victory in the second half. In addition to missing two field goals, the Griffins muffed a scoring chance late in the third quarter when they were unable to convert a 4th-and-inches play that would have made it a 10-point deficit.

That missed opportunity was part of the big picture. Following the Griffins’ latest misfire, Fullerton fumbled on a third down handoff that CHRIS COLLINS recovered at the Hornets’ 3-yard line. Grossmont, which did not elect to call on Bonner for a quarterback sneak in the previous series, did so from the 3-yard line and the 6-foot-7, 215-pound sophomore scored, cutting the Hornets’ advantage to 38-28.

“It was pretty disappointing,” said Grossmont receivers coach ANUYELL GOODWIN. “It seemed like we made a lot of wrong calls in key situations.”

The usually sure-handed Bonner seemed to have trouble gauging the wind as he completed only 15 of 35 passes for 161 yards and a 13-yard TD strike to TREYOUS JARRELLS in the first quarter.

JOSH COX was the kingpin of the Grossmont defense with a pair of interceptions – one of which led to a 26-yard scoring burst by E’LON SPIGHT that cut Fullerton ’s advantage to 28-21 late in the second quarter.

“This is a tough one to lose,” said Cox, a sophomore free safety from Miami, Fla. who was coming off a high ankle sprain and a fibula hairline fracture. “They tried to fool us but they really didn’t. It was more a case of them making plays.”

Cox, like his teammates, believes the Griffins will win the Southern Conference championship.

“These last two games are what it’s all about,” he said. “We need to win both games.”

Grossmont blue chip linebacker IAN SEAU was clearly held most of the game without penalties being called, but still managed to record 8 tackles (7 solo), forced a fumble and raised his state-leading sack total to 18 with 1 ½ against Fullerton.

DARCY NORRIS chalked up 7 tackles (2 for losses), while BRANDON WATSON and DONNIE WALSH made 6 stops apiece.

Every year, Grossmont College celebrates Samoan culture with a special halftime show, including these dancers from local families. (Photo by Don DeMars Photography)

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (10-26-12) — Grossmont College hosts Fullerton College in Saturday’s (Oct. 27) game that could be another step for the Griffins toward the National Division Southern Conference championship, with two games to play. The game will be played at Mashin-Roth Memorial Field at 1 p.m.

The Griffins (5-2, 3-0) are coming off a bye and will look to quarterback CHRIS BONNER (135-261, 1754 yards, 15 TDs) to lead the offensive charge.

NICKOLAS KURTZ, one of the state’s top receivers, has hauled in 33 passes for 531 yards and 8 touchdowns. Four other Griffins have caught 14 passes this season.

Grossmont’s weakness is its running game as the Griffins are averaging 123 yards per game. To win a championship, the Griffs must bolster their running attack.

On the defensive side Grossmont will count on state sack leader, linebacker IAN SEAU who has 16.5 quarterback muggings on his slate.

KWEISHI BROWN has 6 interceptions to anchor the Grossmont secondary.

GRIFFIN GRAFITTI: Grossmont is ranked No. 5 in Southern California and No. 10 in the state; Fullerton is 15th in the Southland... Games against Fullerton have been very rugged as the Hornets have won 15 of 20... Ironically these two teams met on local television in 1962, the Griffins first season, with the Hornets winning by a score of 22-0... Grossmont downed Fullerton, 47-30, to capture the 2003 Southern California championship in a contest after mounting an early 30-point cushion.

Grossmont linebacker Ian Seau: four Defensive POW citations. (Frank Price photo, youatplay.com)

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (10-19-12) — There is a general sigh of relief around the state community colleges this week as Grossmont College draws a bye.

That means Griffins freshman linebacker,
6-foot-3, 240-pound IAN SEAU — the state’s sackmaster – will be inactive this week.

For the fourth time in seven games, Seau earned National Division Southern Conference defensive player of the week after his trashing in the Griffins’ 26-23 win over Golden West. In the win over the Rustlers, Seau racked up 11 solo tackles, including 3 for losses, 3 sacks, forced a fumble and recovered a fumble.

He previously earned player of week honors for his performance against College of the Desert with 8 tackles, 5 for loss, and 5 sacks. Seau’s domination continued against San Diego Mesa when he rolled up 8 tackles, 5 for loss and 4 sacks.

His rampage resumed against Orange Coast where he rolled up 12 tackles, 4 for loss, and 4.5 sacks.

With three games remaining Seau has 56 tackles (40 solo), 22 for losses, 2 forced fumbles, one fumble recovery to go along with his state leading 16.5 sacks.

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
COSTA MESA (10-12-12) — It’s been 20 years since Grossmont College last faced the Rustlers of Golden West College, and that’s probably a good thing considering the Griffins have never beaten that team.

Fact is, the Rustlers are 5-0 against the Griffins, their last knockout coming in 1992 by a 15-10 count. So if Grossmont plans to partake in post-season play, this is a must-win 1 p.m. game on Saturday (Oct. 13) at Orange Coast College, where Golden West plays its home games.

Based on the standings, Grossmont (4-2, 2-0) and Golden West (2-4, 0-2) the Griffins should be a decisive favorite. Regardless, the Griffins have to win this game if they are to believe they are of championship caliber.

You’d think just the fact that Grossmont has never beaten this team would be enough incentive for the No. 3 ranked Griffins to send the Rustlers reeling.

The triggerman for Grossmont is 6-foot-7 quarterback CHRIS BONNER – the No. 1 passer in the National Division Southern Conference. He’s completed 118-of-234 passes for 1,572 yards and 14 touchdowns.

NICKOLAS KURTZ is the No. 2 receiver in the conference with 33 catches for 531 yards and 8 touchdowns. While Kurtz is obviously the front-runner, SHAUN EDWARDS is definitely capable of getting under the defense’s skin as he has 11 catches for 210 yards and 4 touchdowns. Edwards is on the verge of a breakout game.

It would probably be fair to say that Grossmont is a team that is offense first and defense second. If the Griffins have a shortcoming it is an inconsistent running game.

Running back ALEX CORNIST (62-249, 2 TDs), however, is trying to pick up the pace.

On the defensive side it’s all about IAN SEAU, who leads the state with 13.5 sacks and 45 tackles – 19 for losses.

Griffin linebackers DONNIE WALSH has accounted for 36 tackles and 3 sacks, while CHRISTOPHER COLLINS has tallied 38 tackles and a sack.

Griffin Graffiti: Conference Player of the Week honorable mention went to Kurtz, who had 5 receptions for 124 yards including 2 touchdowns and an 80-yard score against Mt. San Antonio... the Griffins have a bye next Saturday (Oct. 20) before returning to action Saturday (Oct. 27), hosting Fullerton at 1 p.m. at Mashin-Roth Memorial Field.

Mt. San Antonio running back Garrett Paredes races 32 yards for the final TD of the first half to give the Mounties a 35-7 lead. (Mt. SAC courtesy photo)

By Andrew Smith
© East County Sports.com
WALNUT (10-7-12) — The Grossmont College Griffins came into Saturday's (Oct. 6) non-league contest with top-ranked Mt. San Antonio with a golden opportunity to make some real noise in the national polls. Escaping Walnut with a victory over the Mounties was going to be tough, but certainly not unfathomable.

“If we're on our 'A' game we can beat anyone,” proclaimed Griffins' head coach MIKE JORDAN. “But this is a good football team and you can't make mistakes.”

After one offensive series it seemed like Grossmont had their so-called 'A' game, but the Mounties turned three turnovers into 21 points and served up a big ole piece of humble pie, slicing up the Griffins 52-28.

Son of Hall of Fame QB Joe Montana, Nick Montana, wasted no time getting the Mounties on the board, going 6-for-6 on an opening 10-play 87-yard touchdown drive.

Not rustled, Griffins 6-foot-7 quarterback CHRIS BONNER matched him 13 plays later when he hit NICKOLAS KURTZ from 8 yards out, for the first of his two receiving touchdowns (8, 80) on the afternoon.

“It's our first year playing together,” Kurtz said of the growing chemistry between him and Bonner. “With all the hard work we've put in together we're really starting to get our timing down.”

With all hands on deck, the Griffins offense was warned of the iceberg they we're about to encounter, but they couldn't avoid it. On the final six drives of the first half, they skated away with only 19 yards.

The Mounties, on the other hand, piled up 384 yards of total offense, en route to a comfortable 35-7 halftime lead and they did it with balance – 206 passing, 178 rushing.

The elusive Montana didn't have much of a pass rush to deal with and the few times he did, he was able to turn it into positive yards. For the first time all season the Griffins ended the game without recording a sack. Montana ended the game 19-of-24 for 221 yards and three touchdowns and was also plagued by 3 dropped balls.

On the ground, the Griffins were outrushed by the five-time Southern California champions 275-108, which only put more pressure on the aerial attack.

“We just couldn't take advantage of what they were giving us,” Bonner said. “We should've been able to get the run going, but for some reason we just couldn't today.”

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
WALNUT (10-5-12) — Grossmont College can make a bid as a nationally ranked contender if the Griffins (4-1) knock off undefeated Mt. San Antonio College (5-0) Saturday (Oct. 6) at 1 p.m. in Walnut.

No question, this should be a close one. The Griffins destroyed College of the Desert 36-3 in the season opener, while Mt. San Jacinto used three non-offensive touchdowns to escape with a 28-26 win over the Roadrunners.

On the flip side Mt. SAC beat Cerritos 30-19, while the Griffins suffered their lone setback to the Citrus Owls 36-22.

If Grossmont can upset five-time Southern California champion Mt. SAC, it would certainly propel the Griffins into the national limelight. But first things first.

Offensively the Griffins are led by quarterback CHRIS BONNER (99-191, 1319 yards, 12 TDs) and receiver NICKOLAS KURTZ (323 yards, 6 TDs), while state-leading sackmaster IAN SEAU (13.5 sacks) anchors the Griffs’ defense.

Obviously both teams have plenty more standouts in their scheme, but the bottom line is, can the Griffins pull the upset?

The last time Grossmont won the state championship was in 2005 when they beat City College of San Francisco 41-38. Of course, that was a banner year – when the Griffins won their second national championship (the first was in 1974 over Orange Coast, 34-17).

GRIFFIN GRAFFITI – Southern California Football Association Players of the Week included defensive standout PENI TE’L with 12 tackles – 2.5 for losses – forced a fumble and had 2 sacks and a QB hurry against Orange Coast. Versatile SHAUN EDWARDS also earned all-conference honors, compiling 37 yards rushing, 34 receiving, 23 kick return and 115 punt return yards for total all-purpose yardage of 209, including a touchdown against the Pirates... Grossmont scored 4 rushing touchdowns against OCC, which gives them 5 for the season.

Grossmont back Treyous Jarrells breaks three tackles en route to a 37-yard touchdown vs. OCC.. (By Frank Price, youatplay.com) VIEW / PURCHASE ADDITIONAL PHOTOS HERE

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (9-30-12) — For the first 12½ minutes of Saturday’s (Sept. 29) National Division Southern Conference contest at Mashin-Roth Memorial Field, host Grossmont College gave indications that this might be an uphill climb for any post-season bids.

After falling behind 10-0 less than five minutes into the showdown between visiting Orange Coast (3-2, 1-1) and No. 4 ranked Grossmont (4-1, 2-0), the Griffins reeled off 35 unanswered points to claim a 49-31 victory over the visiting Pirates from Costa Mesa.

The victory vaulted the Griffins into sole possession of first place in the conference.

But this is only the beginning of the brawl, as four of the Griffins’ final five games are against conference competition. The only exception is next week’s shootout against top-ranked Mt. San Antonio (5-0).

So it would be safe to say the Griffins are not going to back into anything.

“We’re playing well but we haven’t won anything yet,” said Griffins coach MIKE JORDAN.

Grossmont quarterback CHRIS BONNER delivered scoring passes of 42 yards to TRAIVONNE BROWN, 12 yards to DANE BURKI and 8 to NICKOLAS KURTZ as the Griffins marched to a 35-10 lead with 13:13 left in the 3rd period.

Sophomore Bonner and his freshman sidekick KHARI KIMBROUGH were not sacked all day and have been dropped only seven times all season.

Grossmont’s offensive line has been cementing the cracks on a daily basis, which explains why the Griffs rushed for a season-best 232 yards and 4 touchdowns against Orange Coast. Prior to this game the Griffins had scored only 2 rushing touchdowns.

“I know as a quarterback that when you have a good running game it makes it easier to throw the football,” Bonner said. “As usual the guys I throw it to are always making catches, but because of our O-line I had a lot more time to look downfield.

“We attacked the middle, which was our game plan,” added Bonner, who completed 18 of 35 passes for 247 yards and 3 touchdowns.

TREYOUS JARRELLS paced the Grossmont ground game with 88 yards and one TD on 11 carries. ALEX CORNIST (10-66, 1 TD) hauled the load for the Grossmont running game.

On the defensive side IAN SEAU (12 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks) and PENI TE’I (12 tackles, 2.5 for loss, one forced fumble, 2 sacks) and CY SALANOA (7 tackles – 3.5 for losses, two sacks) and SAMSON TOALEI (10 tackles) anchored the Grossmont defense.

The offensive line of Grossmont College did not allow a sack in Saturday's win against Orange Coast. Meanwhile, the Griffins' D got to the QB 7 times. Pictured from Grossmont are A.J. Allen (77) and Darrell Daugherty (71). (Photo by Frank Price, youatplay.com)

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (9-28-12) — In one of many National Division Southern Conference showdowns, Grossmont College (3-1, 1-0) will entertain visiting Orange Coast (3-1, 1-0) in a game that could determine Saturday’s (Sept. 29) showdown at Mashin-Roth Field at 1 p.m.

Six-foot-7 CHRIS BONNER has been tall in the saddle as he’s clicked on 81 of 156 passes for 9 TDs. Fourteen Griffins have taken passes from Bonner, including receiver NICKOLAS KURTZ (24-280, 5 TDs).

The running game has sputtered as nobody has stepped forward to take the lead. That could be costly down the line.

Linebacker IAN SEAU (9 sacks) has been the Grossmont defensive kingpin.

Meanwhile, Orange Coast is off to its best start since head coach Mike Taylor took over in 2000. Following an overtime loss to Moorpark, the Pirates have reeled off three straight victories, downing Pasadena and Long Beach, then taking last week's conference opener against Palomar, 35-28.

GRIFFIN GRAFITTI — The Griffins are 14-7-1 against Orange Coast, including a 1974 win at Aztec Bowl which gave Grossmont it's first-ever state championship... Coast became state and national champs the following year (1975)... Griffin kicker ANDRES CASTILLO booted two field goals including a game-winner that earned him National Division Southern Conference Specialists of the week.

Griffins move among Southland's Top 5

© East County Sports.com
SAN MATEO (9-26-12) — With apologies to Citrus College, Grossmont College completed another massive jump in this week's Southland rankings, moving from 10th to 5th place in voting by the coaches association.

The top three teams – Mt. San Antonio, Ventura and Riverside – all won in Week 4, but five of the next six schools all fell, allowing the Griffins (3-1) to advance.

Frankly, the G-House should be sixth behind Citrus, which won at Grossmont two weeks ago – some coaches simply don't look at the scores, just the overall team records.

Making the largest jump the poll is Orange Coast, which visits Grossmont this Saturday. The Pirates (3-1) moved up 10 full slots from 18th to 8th place after dumping Palomar.

Santa Ana receiver Joshua Webb (3), who caught a pair of TD passes, will be caught from behind by Grossmont defensive back Michael Scales. Webb would later tie the game at 31-all, but the Griffins added a field goal to win their conference opener (Courtesy, Santa Ana College athletics)

By Andrew Smith
Special to East County Sports.com
SANTA ANA (9-23-12) — Grossmont College opened its SCFA Southern Conference schedule on the road Saturday (Sept. 22), sending a firm message to the rest of the league that they are a force to be reckoned with this season.

After falling behind 24-7, the offense fought back to get even by the half, then defense and special teams ignited a furious comeback that left the Griffins with a 34-31 victoryover Santa Ana College.

The offense had a perfect start thanks to the right arm of sophomore quarterback CHRIS BONNER, who led the Griffins down the field 86 yards on 5-of-6 passing, hitting five different receivers, before finally hooking up with SHAWN EDWARDS for a 14-yard scoring strike.

That was the extent of the offense early as they combined to only gain 33 yards the next three drives, while the Dons couldn't be stopped. It took just two plays for them to tie things on a 77-yard score and they weren't done there.

Penalties once again were a problem for the Griffins, as they were flagged 15 times for 89 yards, but they were flagged for nine offsides penalties, prolonging the Dons' possessions and they took full advantage of the mistakes. Their first four drives resulted in three touchdowns, a field goal and a 17-point lead in front of a home crowd at Santa Ana Bowl.

Then the contest completely turned around.

The Griffins pride themselves on their defense and rightly so, but it was their special teams that turned the game around at that point.

Edwards returned the next kickoff 45 yards, setting Grossmont up at mid-field, and then caught his second touchdown of the game from 8 yards out. With the defense forcing a three and out JOSHUA COX went back to field a punt, caught it with traffic everywhere and returned it 63 yards for the score to make it a 3-point contest.

“I really didn’t see anything at all and I probably should have fair caught it,” Cox admitted. “I just knew I had to make a play with us trailing at that point.”

Freshman defensive back MICHAEL SCALES (West Hills) forced a fumble on the ensuing kickoff and the Griffins recovered on the Santa Ana 20-yard line setting up the first of two ANDRES CARILLO field goals.

In terms of total yardage, Grossmont was outdone handily, 491-354, including being outgained on the ground to the tune of a 264-59 clip.

“We knew Santa Ana had a really good team coming in,” head coach MIKE JORDAN said. “They line a lot of guys up at the line of scrimmage so it's hard to run the ball, plus we have a freshman offensive line, so that makes it even harder and we knew we had to throw the ball. Chris just made a lot of nice plays for us through the air.”

Bonner had a career-high 45 pass attempts and connected on 26 of those for 295 yards and two scores.

“They were giving up the pass all day and we made a couple of adjustments at halftime,” said the 6-foot-7 gunslinger. “We just kept pushing all game and never quit and this is the best way to start conference play.”

The defense then clamped down and intercepted the Dons on their next four possessions. GARY WHITE started the thievery, JOSHUA McMURRIN snagged the next and KWEISHI BROWN collected the next two, the latter he snatched out of the end zone and returned it 95 yards down to the 5-yard line.

“I read the quarterback as he rolled out so I just slowly scooted over,” diagrammed Brown. “I saw a hole in front of me, so I knew I was definitely taking it out no matter what. I just didn't know that last guy was behind me and kinda just ran out of gas.”

Even though the running game stalled it came up big when it needed to. ALEX CORNIST took the next handoff 5 yards for a touchdown and the 31-24 lead.

The Dons calmly responded with a 9-play, 82-yard touchdown drive to tie things up, but even without the services of Cox in the secondary IAN SEAU took the game over, constantly getting into the Santa Ana backfield, finishing the game with 7.5 tackles (5 for loss) and 2 sacks, boosting his season total to 11.

“He's one of our biggest leaders out there vocally,” Seau said of Cox. “When he went down right after the half we all just had to make more of an effort to communicate with each other and I think we all did a great job of that.”

Carillo's second field goal, from 37 yards out, gave the Griffins the last 3 points they would need as the defense blanked the Dons in the fourth quarter, forcing them to punt on all three possessions. The stagnant run game finally came alive when it needed to run the clock out behind Cornist's tough runs of 21, 11 and 9.

“It felt good to finally bust through at the end,” Cornist said. “Honestly, I think I should have scored on that last one, but I'm glad I just held onto the ball and we came away with the victory.”

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
SANTA ANA (9-20-12) — The Grossmont College Griffins need to learn to keep their hands to themselves if they expect to win the Northern Division Southern Conference championship.

In their last two games the Griffins have been tagged for 42 penalties but somehow gained a split. Living life on the edge like that won’t work in this conference.

If Grossmont plays straight up football, quarterback CHRIS BONNER, who has connected on 55 of 111 passes for 777 yards and 7 touchdowns, should be able to pick apart the Dons’ defense. But if they keep getting called for fouls, Grossmont’s defense will continue to stall.

Grossmont’s strength is defense, led by linebacker IAN SEAU (20 tackles, 9 sacks), DONNIE WALSH (20 tackles, 3 sacks), BRANDON WATSON (15 tackles, 2 interceptions) and ZACH CLAUSE (8 tackles, 2.5 sacks).

These teams have one common opponent. Grossmont opened the season by rocking Desert 36-3. Santa Ana beat the Roadrunners 38-20 in week two. What that means? Who knows.

Santa Ana returns to the Southern Conference following a 2-year hiatis. Before that. the Dons took a pair of 3-point victories in 2008-09.

Prediction: Grossmont 21-20.

GRIFFIN GRAFITTI — Linebacker DONNIE WALSH was named the Southern California Football Association honorable mention all-league pick with 12 tackles in the loss to Citrus... Santa Ana leads the all-time series 9-4 with the Dons winning the last meeting 13-10 in 2009.

Just like in the National Football League, the Owls' triumph leaves just six unbeaten teams in the Southland. Fortunately, Grossmont was not hurt too badly in the rankings, announced Tuesday (Sept. 18) by the JC Athletic Bureau. The Griffins (2-1) dropped just three spots to No. 10 this week (20th in the state).

The top three positions remained the same: Mt. San Antonio (3-0) leads, followed by Ventura (3-0), Riverside (2-1), then Citrus and local rival Palomar (2-1).

The only other unbeatens are Mt. San Jacinto and East L.A., both 3-0, which meet this week in a Mountain Conference opener, and the 2-0 Antelope Valley Marauders.

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (9-15-12) — Grossmont College takes a lot of pride in its defense. Through the first two games of the season the Griffins had allowed only one touchdown and a field goal. They were surrendering only 162 yards per game, while averaging 36 points on the offensive side.

On Saturday (Sept. 15) in 100-degree heat, the Griffins got dealt a little taste of reality at Mashin-Roth Memorial Field.

They failed to maintain a 22-21 edge over the final 7:21 and eventually succumbed to the undefeated Citrus Fighting Owls 36-22.

A quick comparison of the final statistics – Citrus had 424 yards on 76 plays to the Griffins 403 yards on 79 plays – is an indication of how hotly this contest was battled.

Where the Griffins were destroyed was in the penalty column. They were hit with a school-record 26 flags (23 of which were accepted for 198 yards in walk offs). Many of the calls were questionable, as coaches from both sides were barking out this displeasure.

On the flip side, Citrus was whistled for 15 fouls totaling 170 yards.

Yet, the Griffins who trailed most of the stifling afternoon, still had opportunities to pull out a victory.

After a sack by CHRISTOPHER COLLINS halted a budding Citrus drive early in the final period, the Griffins embarked on a 13-play, 71-yard march that culminated in a 30-yard field goal by ANDRES CARRILLO. That gave Grossmont a 22-21 advantage.

However, a blown coverage in the Grossmont secondary on the ensuing series allowed the Owls’ Scott Calles to reel in a 54-yard touchdown strike from backup quarterback Andrew Romero, propelling Citrus into a 29-22 edge with 4:49 left.

Grossmont followed with seven consecutive incomplete passes by quarterback CHRIS BONNER, who finished by hitting 18 for 42 passes for 253 yards and three TDs. Two of his scoring strikes went to NICKOLAS KURTZ.

The 6-foot-7 Bonner seemed to have his passes late in the game hampered by the swirling wind. KHARI KIMBROUGH came off the bench and burned the Owls with nifty quarterback draws, but it was too little, too late.

Linebacker DONNIE WALSH had a dozen tackles to lead the Griffins. BRANDON WATSON intercepted his second pass of the season for Grossmont.

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (9-14-12) — Grossmont College, which is ranked 7th in the Southland and 15th in the state, goes for its third straight victory when it hosts Citrus College (11th in SoCal) on Saturday (Sept. 15) at Mashin-Roth Memorial Field at 1 p.m.

Both teams come in undefeated at 2-0.

The Griffins like to believe that they have a balanced offense but the truth is they live and die by the passing game. Quarterbacks CHRIS BONNER and KHARI KIMBROUGH have combined to complete 43 of 84 passes for 626 yards and 5 touchdowns.

Receiver NICKOLAS KURTZ ranks among the state leaders with 14 catches for 189 yards and 3 touchdowns.

While Grossmont has produced a steady offense, it’s the Griffins defense that’s making the headlines. Grossmont has allowed only one touchdown and 320 yards in two games. The ringleaders of the Griffins defense are linebacker IAN SEAU and defensive end ZACH CLOUSE.

The Grossmont defense is more of a horde than one or two standouts. Sophomore linebacker DONNIE WALCH ranks among the best in the state and linebacker CHRISTOPHER COLLINS is also a nugget.

BRANDON WATSON is the kingpin of the Griffins’ secondary, along with KWEISHI BROWN.

Probably the greatest strength about the Gross mont defense is depth.

Citrus receiver Isaiah Kepley scored 29 points in the Owls’ victories over Moorpark and Pasadena.

Here’s the prediction on this one... Grossmont 28-20.

GRIFFIN GRAFITTI — The Griffins own an 11-9 all time series edge that began in 1962 – the first year of the football program... Grossmont head coach MIKE JORDAN owns a 39-24 record in his 8th season... The Griffins are allowing only 5 points, 65 yards and 97 yards passing per game... The last time these teams played Grossmont won 34-17... Wide receiver NICKOLAS KURTZ, who made 8 catches for 129 yards and 2 TDs against Mesa, was named SCFA Offensive Player of the Week, and linebacker IAN SEAU was selected as the SCFA Defensive Player of the Week with 8 tackles – 5 for losses, and 4 sacks against Mesa. Seau now has 9 sacks on the season... It’s only the second time that the Griffins have had a sweep of the top SCFA awards.

Griffins take biggest stride in poll

© East County Sports.com
SAN MATEO (9-13-12) — Grossmont College took the largest jump forward by any community college football team in Southern California this week, advancing seven positions to gain a No. 7 ranking in the football coaches association poll released Wednesday (Sept. 12) by the JC Athletic Bureau.

The Griffins (2-0), the lone unbeaten ballclub in the Southern Conference following two weeks of play – the others all are 1-1 – are one spot ahead of local rival Palomar (which dropped from 2nd into 8th), yet still behind Saddleback, which advanced from 8th into 5th position.

Mt. San Antonio continues to lead the poll, followed by Ventura, Riverside and Allan Hancock. Palomar dropped seven spots, but the biggest free-fall was eight position by Golden West (4th to 12th) and El Camino (9th to 17th). CC San Franciso is the leader among Northern California schools.

The jump ball for the interception goes to Grossmont's Kweishi Brown (4) in front of teammate Joshua Cox (7) as the defense limited visiting Mesa to just 40 yards in total offense. The theft was nullified on one of an amazing 19 G-House penalties. (Nathan Price photo, youatplay.com)

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (9-8-12) — IAN SEAU could be making tackles at Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kan., these days.

Might have been a case of being homesick, but Seau wasted little time blurting out, “I didn’t like living in Kansas.”

Rather than continuing to sidestep tornados and choking on dust in the plains state, Seau returned closer to home to play for Grossmont College. The 6-foot-3, 240-pound redshirt freshman has strong-armed the Griffins’ first two opponents as a rush end.

Check the Seau statistics scale: 16 tackles, including 9 for losses; 9 sacks; and one forced fumble over two games.

Seau contributed four sacks of the 11 Grossmont heaved on Mesa quarterback Joe Kennedy as the Griffins (2-0) rolled to a 36-7 home-opening victory over the Olympians at Mashin-Roth Memorial Field.

Few players at the community college level have a swifter first step than Seau, the Griffins premier quarterback stalker.

“It’s all feeling,” Seau said. “Getting a great jump start is where it starts. You look at the ball, and give-aways from the linemen, and go for it.”

Recent Scores Year 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 36 30 36 47 31 66 58 64 70 24 48   7 33   7 13 14 17   0   3   7 17 28 Pts 511 146

NICKOLAS KURTZ was the star of the offensive show with 8 catches for 129 yards and three touchdowns. The Valhalla graduate, who hauled in scoring strikes of 33, 28 and 8 yards against Mesa, leads the Griffins with 14 receptions.

Quarterbacks CHRIS BONNER and KHARI KIMBROUGH combined to throw for 300 yards and four touchdowns. They completed 24 of 43, but served up four interceptions.

JESSE KLEIN grabbed a 28-yard TD pass from Bonner in the 1st quarter staking the Griffins to a 9-0 lead. And the rout was on.

Grossmont’s all-time record is 14-7-3 against Desert. Against the Olympians, the Griffins are 17-21-1 following last season's upset loss to snap Grossmont's 9-game winning streak in the head-to-head series.

Despite the victories, both teams have plenty of question marks. What are those question marks?

Are the Griffins a passing team or a running team? That’s something for Mesa to figure out. Grossmont quarterback CHRIS BONNER and KHARI KIMBROUGH are sharing the snaps, while Mesa looks to Joe Kennedy to lead the Olympians’ aerial game.

Griffin Grafitti: CONNOR DERBY was named the SCFA special teams Player of the Week... other Griffins who received honorable mention were quarterback CHRIS BONNER, who – playing just three quarters of the game – completed 17 of 37 passes for 273 yards and a 90-yard TD…IAN SEAU was also an honorable mention for his 8 tackles (5 for losses) and 5 sacks against Desert... KWEISHI BROWN had 3 interceptions.

© East County Sports.com
PALM DESERT (9-2-12) — Grossmont College freshman linebacker IAN SEAU played peek-a-boo with the College of the Desert offensive line in Saturday’s season opener for both teams.

Everywhere the Roadrunners looked, the 6-foot-3, 240-pound freshman was lurking.

“Seau is a beast,” said Grossmont College coach MIKE JORDAN. “They didn’t know what to do with him. He’s the ideal rush end – too quick for the offensive linemen to even get a piece of him.”

Seau was the shining star as the Griffins opened the season in the desert by overcoming the 106 degree temperature to rout the Roadrunnersm 36-3.

On the defensive side Seau recorded 8 tackles – 5 of them for losses – and 5 sacks as the Griffins limited COD to 284 yards in 73 plays.

KWEISHI BROWN had 3 interceptions against the Roadrunners, one shy of the school record shared by DAVE NUTTALL against Southwestern in 1965 and TONY VAUGHN vs. Mt. San Jacinto in 1998. Three other Griffins have picked off as many as three interceptions in a game: NATE SCHAD (2006), TERRY HANSLIK (1976) and BRETT HUDSON (2001).

Grossmont turned the game into a blowout by scoring 24 points in the final period as the heat seemed to affect the home team more than the visitors.

“You know, I didn’t really even notice the heat,” said Jordan.

Probably because the humidity was only 10 percent.

Sophomore kicker CONNOR DERBY had a runaway on the track as he kicked field goals of 43, 42, 46 and 24 yards – without a miss. For good measure, ANDREAS CARRILLO capped the Grossmont scoring with a 35-yard 3-pointer.

“ Derby was unstoppable,” said Jordan. “Every time our offense stalled he picked us up. In reality we should have scored three or four more touchdowns.”

As it was, Grossmont compiled 475 yards compared to COD’s 284.

Starting quarterback CHRIS BONNER, a 6-foot-7 product of Clairemont High, broke the game open with a 90-yard touchdown pass to El Cajon Valley alum JESSE CODERE to give the Griffins a 19-3 lead with 11:24 left in the game.

Freshman quarterback KHARI KIMBROUGH, came off the bench to connect with SHAWN EDWARDS with a 31-yard TD and the game was all but over.

Kimbrough, a product of San Diego High, finished with 2 of 4 passes for 53 yards. Bonner led the Griffins on 17 of 37 passes for 273 yards.

The Griffins added 10 more points in the final period as E’LON SPIGHT scored on a 4-yard run and Carrillo punched through a 35-yard field goal with 1:29 remaining.

NICKOLAS KURTZ caught 6 passes for 60 yards to lead a troop of nine Griffin receivers.

“He’s a nugget – you haven’t heard the last of him,” Jordan said of Kurtz. “He’s just beginning to make an impact.”

© East County Sports.com
PALM DESERT (8-30-12) — One thing that’s for sure about community college football is that it’s dotted by a lot of unfamiliar faces. The Griffins are lined up with several new faces as they open the season at 6 p.m. on Saturday (Sept. 1) at College of the Desert.

The Griffs have a unique set of quarterbacks in 6-foot-8 CHRIS BONNER and 6-foot-3 KHARI KIMBROUGH. What that means will develop in the opener. Bonner is a drop back passer while Kimbrough relishes the role of sprint out specialist.

Wide receivers TRAIVONNE BROWN, STEVON JONES, CARLTON BAILEY, DANGELO BOWIE will provide the targets for the two Grossmont QBs.

The running game will be led by E’LON SPIGHT, ISAAC SMITH, DEAVIN EDWARDS, TREYOUS JARRELLS and ALEX CORNIST.

Defensive backs DORION HOWARD, BRANDON WATSON, MICHAEL SCALES, linebacker TYLER DAVIS head up the defense.

GRIFFIN GRAFFITI: The Griffins lead the all time series 14-7-3 against the Roadrunners... Grossmont’s last meeting with Desert was in 2009 when the Griffs won 61-14.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (4-12-12) — Grossmont College’s YOUSIF KHOURY, a 6-foot-6, 310 pound offensive lineman out of Steele Canyon High, has accepted a scholarship to Florida International University – a Division I school in the Sunbelt Conference.

This is an up-and-coming program. The last two years the Bulls have been invited to bowl games both seasons. Khoury carries a GPA of 3.50. He moved from Iraq to the United States at the age of 2. His father passed away 5 years ago.

“Khoury worked very hard this last year to get to this point in his football career,” said Grossmont offensive line coach KEN WILMESHERR.

Dave Jordan with his plaque, indicating his enshrinement into the California state Community College Football Coaches Fall of Fame.

© East County Sports.com
VISALIA (3-6-12) — Former Grossmont College football coach DAVE JORDAN, who directed the Griffins to state championships in 1974 and 2005, was inducted into the California Community College Football Coaches Hall of Fame on Saturday (Mar. 3).

“This honor is very special to me,” Jordan said.

Jordan attended Compton Junior College in the “glory years” when Compton was consistently playing for the National Championship. He was the starting offensive guard in 1955 when Compton played in the Junior Rose Bowl in Pasadena vs. Jones JC from Mississippi before 59,000 fans. Compton defeated Jones, and it was the largest crowd to ever see a JC football game.

Jordan transferred to Whittier College and played for two great coaches, Don Coryell and George Allen. After graduating he began his teaching and coaching career at Chowchilla High School, first as an assistant and the second year as the head coach, turning their program around.

In 1970 for his next step, he helped establish the new program at CSU Fullerton as an assistant coach to Dick Coury. Jordan also earned his Masters Degree from CSU Los Angeles that year.

In 1971, Jordan became head coach at Grossmont College, which started his career of community college coaching success. In 1974 Grossmont went undefeated en route to caputring the State Championship and was ranked No. 3 nationally.

Jordan left coaching in 1978 and later returned in 1981 as an assistant. He again took the reins of the program in 1990 and during the next 16 years Grossmont compiled a tremendous record, posting three undefeated regular seasons and five seasons of only one loss.

Jordan has had many awards presented to him. He has been the Conference Coach of the Year selection by his peers 8 times, 3 times California Community College Coach of the Year, and in his last year of coaching, 2004, was named National Coach of the Year. The San Diego Press Club honored him in 2003 at the 31st Headliners Banquet for his College Sports Leadership.

One statistic that Jordan is particularly proud of is that of having 70 plus percent of his players continue on to 4-year colleges.

Jordan has been active in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes for 20 years. He and his wife Jean have four sons, Kenneth, Brent, Michael, and Dave Jr., and one daughter Dee Ann.

GROSSMONT COLLEGE Schedule

Date Opponent Score/ Time Sept. 1 Sept. 8 Sept. 15 Sept. 22  Sept. 29 Oct. 7 Oct. 13 Oct. 20 Oct. 27 Nov. 3 Nov. 10 at Desert San Diego Mesa Citrus *at Santa Ana *Orange Coast at Mt. San Antonio *vs. Golden West (at OCC) bye *Fullerton *at Saddleback *Palomar W 36- 3 W 36- 7 L 22-36 W 34-31 W 49-31 L 28-52 W 26-23 L 31-38 L 42-66 L 28-33 *Southern Conference game

SoCal website for standings and more HERE... for Free   (Note: JCFootball.com is now a pay website)

2012 FINAL STANDINGS

SCFA Southern Conf. Conf All PF PA Fullerton Hornets 5-1 7-4 422 317 Saddleback Gauchos 5-1 6-5 397 328 Santa Ana Dons 4-2 8-3 362 301 Grossmont Griffins 3-3 5-5 332 320 Palomar Comets 2-4 4-6 266 304 Golden West Rustlers 2-4 3-7 174 308 Orange Coast Pirates 1-5 3-7 287 353

Week 14 / Sat., Dec. 8
State Championship
Bakersfield 35, CC San Francisco 14

Week 13 / Sat., Nov. 24
SCFA Championship
(3) Bakersfield 30, (1) Mt. San Antonio 21

Week 12 / Sat., Nov. 17
DIVISION I
SCFA Semifinals
National Bowl: (1) at Mt. San Antonio 12, (4) Saddleback 7
Beach Bowl: (3) Bakersfield 48, (2) at Ventura 8
Bowl Games
Golden State Bowl: Riverside 34, L.A. Harbor 23
Western State Bowl: Fullerton 31, Citrus 24
Southern California Bowl: Santa Ana 24, Canyons 21
DIVISION II
American Championship Bowl: Southwestern 45, Santa Monica 31
Patriotic Bowl: L.A. Pierce 37, Mt. San Jacinto 34 (2-OT)

Week 11, Sat., Nov. 10
DIVISION I
Southern Conference
Palomar 33, Grossmont 28
Saddleback 48, Golden West 10
Fullerton 57, Santa Ana 23
Orange Coast, bye
Central Conference
Desert 44, Long Beach 6
L.A.Harbor 36, Citrus 21
Mt. San Antonio 25, Riverside 9
El Camino, bye
Northern Conference
Canyons 47, Allan Hancock 36
Cerritos 42, Moorpark 20
Bakersfield 38, Pasadena 17
Ventura, bye
DIVISION II
Mountain Conference
Southwestern 55, Chaffey 25
San Diego Mesa 45, East L.A. 42
Mt. San Jacinto 34, Victor Valley 31 (OT)
SBVC 35, Compton 12
Pacific Conference
Santa Monica 24, Antelope Valley 21
L.A. Pierce 26, Glendale 22
West L.A. 52, Santa Barbara 6
L.A. Valley 26, L.A. Southwest 9

Week 10, Sat., Nov. 3
DIVISION I
Southern Conference
Saddleback 66, Grossmont 42
Santa Ana 34, Palomar 31
Fullerton 59, Orange Coast 6
Golden West - bye
Central Conference
Riverside 40, Deset 10
Citrus 43, Long Beach 24
Mt. San Antonio 38, El Camino 10
L.A. Harbor, bye
Northern Conference
Bakersfield 56, Allan Hanaock 27
Ventura 27, Pasadena 14
Canyons 38, Cerritos 36
Moorpark, bye
DIVISION II
Mountain Conference
San Diego Mesa 14, Chaffey 10
Southwestern 56, Victor Valley 21
Mt. San Jacinto 37, SBVC 27
East L.A. 48, Compton 27
Pacific Division
Santa Monica 50, L.A. Pierce 47
West L.A. 26, L.A.Valley 16
Santa Barbara 36, Glendale 18
Antelope Valley 35, L.A. Southwest 3

Week 9, Sat., Oct. 27
DIVISION I
Southern Conference
Fullerton 38, Grossmont 31
Golden West 23, Orange Coast 21
Saddleback 35, Palomar 21
Santa Ana - bye
Central Conference
Mt. San Antonio 44, Long Beach 9
L.A. Harbor 30, Desert 0
Citrus 23, El Camno 18
Riverside - bye
Northern Conference
Canyons 21, Moorpark 20
Ventura 31, Allan Hancock 24
Bakersfield 21, Cerritos 14
Pasadena - bye
DIVISION II
Mountain Conference
East L.A. 40, Chaffey 27
Victor Valley 65, Compton 28
Southwestern 21, Mt. San Jacinto 7
SBVC 35, San DIego Mesa 21
Pacific Conference
L.A. Valley 57, Glendale 18
Santa Monica 41, Santa Barbara 27
L.A. Pierce 43, Antelope Valley 20
West L.A 83, L.A. Southwest 7 (eighty-three)

Week 8, Sat., Oct. 20
DIVISION I
Southern Conference
Fullerton 33, Palomar 32
Santa Ana 28, Golden West 21
Saddleback 52, Orange Coast 24
Grossmont - bye
Central Conference
Riverside 21, Citrus 18 (OT)
Desert 49, El Camino 39
L.A. Harbor 58, Long Beach 41
Mt. San Antonio - bye
Northern Conference
Ventura 18, Cerritos 13
Allan Hancock 49, Pasadena 42
Bakersfield 31, Moorpark 3
Canyons - bye
DIVISION II
Mountain Conference
Southwestern 69, Compton 20
San Diego Mesa 24, Victor Valley 22
Mt. San Jacinto 24, Chaffey 21
San Bernardino Valley 54, East L.A. 42
Pacific Conference
L.A. Pierce 39, Santa Barbara 28 (Fri.)
Santa Monica 17, L.A. Valley 0
Antelope Valley 45, West L.A. 23
L.A. Southwest 13, Glendale 0

Week 7, Sat., Oct. 13
DIVISION I
Southern Conference
Grossmont 26, Golden West 23
Saddleback 44, Fullerton 29
Santa Ana 45, Orange Coast 38 (OT)
Palomar - bye
Central Conference
Riverside 63, El Camino 35
Mt. San Antonio 52, L.A. Harbor 42
Citrus 50, Desert 17
Long Beach - bye
Northern Conference
Moorpark 36, Pasadena 15
Ventura 44, Canyons 37
Cerritos 55, Allan Hancock 25
Bakersfield - bye
DIVISION II
Mountain Conference
Southwestern 34, San Diego Mesa 11
Mt. San Jacinto 44, Compton 9
East L.A. 40, Victor Valley 34
SBVC 44, Chaffey 20
Pacific Conference
Antelope Valley 20, Santa Barbara 13
West L.A. 41, Glendale 6
L.A. Pierce 24, L.A. Valley 6
Santa Monica 68, L.A. Southwest 0

Week 6, Sat., Oct. 6
DIVISION I
Non-Conference
Mt. San Antonio 52, Grossmont 28
Santa Ana 42, Long Beach 7
Cerritos 35, Palomar 20
Desert 52, Orange Coast 50
Pasadena 17, Golden West 9
Riverside 45, Fullerton 28
Ventura 21, Saddleback 14
Allan Hancock 50, L.A. Harbor 44
Bakersfield 40, El Camino 13
Canyons 62, Antelope Valley 61 (OT)
Citrus 54, Chaffey 21
L.A. Pierce 41, Moorpark 31

Week 5, Sat., Sept. 29
DIVISION I
Southern Conference
Grossmont 49, Orange Coast 31
Palomar 27, Golden West 7
Santa Ana 33, Saddleback 20
Fullerton - bye
Northern Conference
Bakersfield 45, Canyons 7
Cerritos 65, Pasadena 14
Ventura 41, Moorpark 9
Allan Hancock - bye
Central Conference
Mt. San Antonio 28, Desert 26
L.A. Harbor 17, El Camino 6
Riverside 75, Long Beach 12
Citrus - bye
DIVISION II
Mountain Conference
Mt. San Jacinto 31, San Diego Mesa 21
Chaffey 35, Compton 6
Southwestern 35, East L.A. 26
SBVC 49, Victor Valley 34
Pacific Conference
Antelope Valley 55, L.A. Valley 7
Santa Barbara 24, L.A. Southwest 10
Santa Monica 35, Glendale 32
L.A. Pierce 52, West L.A. 35

Week 4, Sat., Sept. 22
DIVISION I
Southern Conference
Grossmont 34, Santa Ana 31
Orange Coast 35, Palomar 28
Fullerton 48, Golden West 14
Saddleback - bye
Northern Conference
Ventura 40, Bakersfield 24 (4-OT)
Allan Hancock 49, Moorpark 40
Canyons 36, Pasadena 14
Cerritos - bye
Central Conference
Riverside 31, L.A. Harbor 7
El Camino 59, Long Beacj 7
Mt. San Antonio 38, Citrus 14
Desert - bye
DIVISION II
Mountain Conference
Chaffey 27, Victor Valley 24
Mt. San Jacinto 35, East L.A. 32
San Diego Mesa 28, Compton 7
Southwestern 42, SBVC 3
Pacific Conference
Antelope Valley 24, Glendale 12
L.A. Pierce 45, L.A. Southwest 0
Santa Barbara 14, L.A. Valley 6
Santa Monica 31, West L.A. 21

Week 3. Sat., Sept. 15
Non-Conference
Citrus 36, Grossmont 22
Santa Ana 45,Moorpark 16
Golden West 35, Allan Hancock 32
Orange Coast 34, Long Beach 12
Palomar 47, Southwestern 43
Bakersfield 31, Fullerton 17
Riverside 51, Saddleback 13
Antelope Valley 44, Chaffey 35
Desert 48, Canyons 30
East LA 57, West LA 55
El Camino 46, Pasadena 27
Glendale 31, San Diego Mesa 19
Mt. San Antonio 20, Cerritos 8
Mt. San Jacinto 42, LA Valley 22
Santa Barbara 41, Compton 7
Santa Monica 45, San Bernardino Valley 34
Ventura 39, L.A. Harbor 35
Victor Valley 61, L.A. Southwest 10

Week 2 / Sat., Sept. 8
Grossmont 36, San Diego Mesa 7
Orange Coast 27, Pasadena 10
Saddleback 50, Canyons 34
Cerritos 46, Fullerton 30
L.A. Harbor 42, Golden West 7
Riverside 47, Palomar 7
Santa Ana 38, Desert 20
Allan Hancock 33, El Camino 20
Citrus 29, Moorpark 16
East L.A. 28, Santa Barbara 27
L.A. Southwest 45, Compton 0
Mt. San Antonio 34, Bakersfield 14
Mt. San Jacinto 44, L.A. Pierce 30
San Bernardino Valley 35, Glendale 0
Santa Monica 34, Chaffey 20
Southwestern 42, L.A. Valey 3
West L.A. 29, Victor Valley 23
Ventura 51, Long Beach 14

Week 1 / Sat., Sept. 1
Grossmont 36, Desert 3
Fullerton 52, Long Beach 21
Golden West 25, Canyons 19 (OT)
Palomar 20, El Camino 7
Bakersfield 36, Santa Ana 19
Mt. San Antonio 51, Saddleback 48
Moorpark 23, Orange Coast 20 (OT)
Allan Hancock 41, Santa Barbara 19
Antelope Valley 33, San Bernardino Valley 20
Citrus 35, Pasadena 14
East L.A. 40, L.A. Valley 13
Glendale 27, Compton 10
L.A. Harbor 35, Cerritos 20
L.A. Pierce 42, Victor Valley 26
Mt. San Jacinto 31, Santa Monica 28
San Diego Mesa 24, L.A. Southwest 8
Southwestern 55, West L.A. 33
Ventura 28, Riverside 27 (RCC's first loss in 19 games)

2010: 6-5 overall, 1-4 conference

Date Opponent Score Sept. 4 Sept. 11 Sept. 17 Sept. 25 Oct. 2 Oct. 9 Oct. 16 Oct. 23 Oct. 30 Nov. 6 Nov. 13 Nov. 20 SAN DIEGO MESA EL CAMINO at Southwestern ORANGE COAST at College of the Canyons BYE *at Saddleback *MT. SAN ANTONIO *at Fullerton (Fullerton HS) *PASADENA *at Palomar (Escondido HS) Beach Bowl at Santa Ana W 36- 7 FW 14-21 W 45-31 W 42-35 W 36-18   L 20-30 L 20-34 L 16-34 W 69-34 L 35-43 L 43-52

*Southern Conference game; FW - Forfeit win. SCFA Website HERE

2009: 8-3 overall, 3-3 conference

Date   Opponent Score Sept. 5   at San Diego Mesa @Cathedral Catholic HS W 47-13 Sept. 12     College of the Desert W 61-14 Sept. 19   Southwestern W 59-20 Sept. 26   at Chaffey W 28-27 Oct. 3 *at Palomar @Escondido HS W 29-26 Oct. 10 *Long Beach W 21-9 Oct. 17 *at Fullerton @Fullerton Union Stadium L 17-30 Oct. 24 *Orange Coast W 43-12 Oct. 31   BYE - Nov. 7 *Santa Ana L 10-13 Nov. 14 *at Saddleback L 27-44 Nov. 21 US Bank Beach Bowl at El Camino W 27-22 *SCFA National Division /Southern Conf. contest SCFA Website HERE

2011

SCFA Southern Conf. Conf All PF PA Mt. San Antonio Mounties 5-0 10-1 351 210 Palomar Comets 4-1 7-4 397 304 Saddleback Gauchos 3-2 8-3 445 293 Grossmont Griffins 2-3 4-6 261 263 Pasadena Lancers 1-4 3-7 240 366 Fullerton Hornets 0-5 5-5 249 242

2010 STANDINGS

SCFA Southern Conf. Conf All PF PA Mt. San Antonio Mounties 5-0 13-0 469 237 Saddleback Gauchos 4-1 8-3 362 275 Fullerton Hornets 3-2 7-4 409 291 Palomar Comets 2-3 5-5 268 264 Grossmont Griffins 1-4 6-5 376 339 Pasadena Lancers 0-5 4-6 269 310 *Points For and Against do not reflect forfeits.

2009 FINAL STANDINGS

SCFA Southern Conf. "The Super 7" 2009 Conf All PF PA Fullerton Hornets 6-0 10-2 432 201 Palomar Comets 4-2 10-3 389 240 Saddleback Gauchos 4-2 9-2 412 216 Grossmont Griffins 3-3 8-3 369 230 Long Beach Vikings 2-4 3-7 254 405 Orange Coast Pirates 1-5 5-5 220 307 Santa Ana Dons 1-5 4-6 300 297