Olympians fire 68-point warning shot

By Ramon Scott
Updated: September 13, 2026

2026 COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOOTBALL

NO. 10 SAN DIEGO MESA 68, CITRUS 28

Taylor throws 6 touchdown passes, McCann catches 3 and Mesa scores on offense, defense, special teams to remain unbeaten

By Ramon Scott
EastCountySports.com

GLENDORA — San Diego Mesa spent its first two weeks proving it could survive tense, consequential football games.

The Olympians spent Saturday proving they could demolish one.

Diesel Taylor threw six touchdown passes, Colin McCann caught three of them and No. 10 San Diego Mesa scored on offense, defense and special teams during a 68-28 dismantling of Citrus College.

Mesa scored touchdowns on its first three possessions, built a 21-0 first-quarter lead and reached the end zone 10 times while improving to 3-0.

The Olympians required only 22:55 of possession to accumulate 419 yards. They produced seven passing touchdowns, a rushing score, an 89-yard kickoff return and a 43-yard interception return.

Citrus possessed the ball for more than 37 minutes, ran seven more offensive plays and gained 308 yards.

Those numbers merely extended the amount of time the Owls spent trailing.

Mesa needed only 33 seconds to score its second touchdown, 1:43 to produce its third and 16 seconds to answer Citrus’ first score with Isaiah Jackson’s 89-yard kickoff return.

The Olympians led 42-21 at halftime and scored 26 of the game’s final 33 points.

Their reward is an immediate increase in difficulty.

Mesa hosts Palomar next Saturday in the first major showdown involving two of San Diego County’s four community college programs. The Comets will arrive attempting to recover from their first loss, while the Olympians can use the game to establish themselves as Southwestern’s leading challenger for county supremacy.

The Jaguars will be waiting one week later.

TAYLOR NEEDS THREE POSSESSIONS

Mesa’s opening touchdown drive covered 61 yards in seven plays.

Taylor converted the possession by finding Jayden Chanel for a 27-yard touchdown, giving the Olympians a 7-0 lead with 10:31 remaining in the first quarter.

The second possession was considerably shorter.

Mesa took over at the Citrus 48 following another Owls punt. Two plays and 33 seconds later, Taylor connected with McCann for a 42-yard touchdown.

The Olympians’ third possession began at their 30.

Taylor completed a 5-yard pass to Grady Woodward on third down before Citrus committed an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty. A holding call later placed Mesa in first-and-18 at the Owls’ 49.

The extra yardage did not matter.

Taylor hit Woodward for a 49-yard touchdown, extending the advantage to 21-0 with 3:55 remaining in the opening quarter.

Mesa’s first three touchdown passes covered 27, 42 and 49 yards.

The Olympians had needed fewer than 12 offensive minutes to place Citrus in a three-score deficit.

UNDERHILL STRIKES—JACKSON ANSWERS

Citrus finally reached the end zone on the opening play of the second quarter.

Former Rancho Buena Vista quarterback Connor Underhill, who entered the game as the SCFA leader in passing yards per game, found Lorenza Simmons for a 33-yard touchdown on fourth-and-13.

The scoring play completed an 80-yard drive and reduced Mesa’s lead to 21-7.

Citrus had reason to believe it had finally established momentum.

Jackson removed it immediately.

Jackson fielded the ensuing kickoff at the Mesa 11 and raced 89 yards for a touchdown, restoring the Olympians’ 21-point lead only 16 seconds after Underhill’s scoring pass.

The return demonstrated the difference between the teams.

Citrus needed 11 plays and nearly four minutes to score.

Mesa required one touch to answer.

Jackson also returned three punts for 30 yards and finished with 119 total return yards.

The touchdown was the first of three Mesa scores produced outside its primary offense.

McCANN KEEPS RUNNING AWAY

Mesa’s passing game resumed its assault following another Citrus punt.

Taylor found McCann for a 50-yard touchdown, completing a three-play, 53-yard possession that lasted only 57 seconds.

McCann later caught a 25-yard touchdown on Mesa’s opening drive of the second half.

He finished with four receptions for 123 yards and three touchdowns, averaging 30.8 yards per catch.

His three scoring receptions covered 42, 50 and 25 yards.

McCann entered the week among the SCFA leaders with 82.5 receiving yards per game. His performance against Citrus raised his season total to 288 receiving yards, and he has now caught six touchdown passes through three games.

The sophomore has emerged as more than Taylor’s most productive receiver.

He has become one of the most dangerous big-play targets in Southern California.

Chanel contributed four receptions for 58 yards and his 27-yard touchdown. Woodward caught two passes for 54 yards, including his 49-yard score.

Braxton Sherley added a 13-yard touchdown reception before halftime, while Joshua Newbern caught a 4-yard touchdown pass from Ryland Jessee during the fourth quarter.

Six different Olympians caught a scoring pass.

TAYLOR PRODUCES SIX

Taylor completed only 12 passes.

Half of them went for touchdowns.

The freshman finished 12 of 22 for 234 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions. His scoring throws covered 27, 42, 49, 50, 13 and 25 yards.

Taylor averaged 19.5 yards per completion and produced a touchdown once every 3.7 attempts.

He completed touchdown passes to Chanel, McCann, Woodward and Sherley while repeatedly attacking a Citrus secondary that had no answer for Mesa’s speed.

Taylor’s six-touchdown performance also demonstrated the depth of Mesa’s quarterback room.

Taylor’s six-touchdown performance also demonstrated the unusual pedigree within Mesa’s quarterback room.

Jessee, the former Helix High standout and Michigan State bounceback, added touchdowns with his arm and legs.

Jessee broke a 34-yard scoring run and later found Joshua Newbern for a 4-yard touchdown.

Tyson Line completed 3 of 5 passes, and Matthew Bresko completed his only attempt.

In all, four Mesa quarterbacks completed at least one pass.

The Olympians finished with 294 passing yards and seven touchdowns through the air without an interception.

CITRUS ATTEMPTS TO KEEP PACE

The Owls did not disappear immediately.

After McCann’s 50-yard touchdown made it 35-7, Citrus freshman quarterback Noah Sandoval broke a 78-yard touchdown run on third-and-13.

Taylor responded by driving Mesa back into scoring territory and finding Sherley from 13 yards, extending the lead to 42-14.

Underhill returned and completed a lengthy 68-yard possession with a 1-yard quarterback sneak, pulling Citrus within 42-21 shortly before halftime.

The Owls had scored 21 second-quarter points.

They still entered the locker room trailing by three touchdowns.

Underhill completed 9 of 18 passes for 81 yards and a touchdown. He was sacked three times and apparently dealt with an injury that led Citrus to alternate quarterbacks.

Sandoval finished 15 of 28 for 123 yards, one touchdown and one interception. He also led the Owls with 99 rushing yards on six attempts, almost all of them coming on the 78-yard score.

Simmons caught four passes for 95 yards and a touchdown, continuing his productive start to the season.

Citrus generated enough offense to score four touchdowns.

Mesa generated enough explosions to make those touchdowns nearly irrelevant.

OLYMPIANS KEEP POURING IT ON

Mesa received the second-half kickoff and immediately resumed scoring.

Taylor completed passes to McCann for 6 and 25 yards, with the second producing their third touchdown connection of the evening.

The Olympians covered 54 yards in 2:03 and extended their lead to 48-21.

Citrus went three-and-out.

Mesa needed only 52 seconds to score again.

Jessee broke a 34-yard touchdown run, giving the Olympians a 54-21 advantage with 10:01 remaining in the third quarter.

Jesee rushed five times for a team-high 47 yards, averaging 9.4 per attempt.

Citrus answered with Sandoval’s 3-yard touchdown pass to Dylan Tapley, but the Owls would not score again.

Jessee found Newbern for Mesa’s seventh passing touchdown early in the fourth quarter. Logan Factor completed the scoring by intercepting Sandoval and returning the ball 43 yards for a touchdown with 1:40 remaining.

Factor’s pick-six gave Mesa its 10th touchdown and pushed the Olympians to 68 points.

Mesa scored in every quarter:

21 in the first
21 in the second
12 in the third
14 in the fourth

The Olympians never went more than one quarter without producing at least two touchdowns.

DEFENSE CREATES NEGATIVE PLAYS

The final score belonged primarily to Mesa’s explosive offense and return units, but the defense contributed more than Factor’s touchdown.

The Olympians recorded four sacks and 14 tackles for loss totaling 74 yards.

Tobiah Araujo led Mesa with six tackles, 1½ sacks and 2½ tackles for loss. Jack Metzler and Isaac Rimada recorded one sack apiece, while Payton Allen shared another.

Citrus managed 139 rushing yards, but 99 came from Sandoval and 78 arrived on one play.

The Owls’ remaining rushing attempts produced only 40 yards.

Mesa forced Citrus to convert only 5 of 19 third downs. The Owls went 3 of 6 on fourth down, including Underhill’s touchdown pass on fourth-and-13, but repeatedly failed to sustain possessions once Mesa built its second-half advantage.

Beau Caliendo recorded five tackles, while Araujo led a defense that used its depth extensively with the game out of reach.

Thirty Mesa players recorded at least one tackle or assist.

THE SCORE HIDES CORRECTION POINTS

A 40-point victory rarely requires an extensive list of complaints.

Mesa nevertheless supplied several.

The Olympians committed 16 penalties for 151 yards, a total that ordinarily would make winning difficult against a stronger opponent.

Citrus gained five first downs through Mesa penalties. Several infractions prolonged Owls possessions or created unnecessarily difficult situations for the Olympians’ offense.

Mesa also converted only 4 of 16 third downs and went 5 of 8 on fourth down.

The Olympians possessed the ball for only 22:55 and allowed Citrus to run 80 offensive plays.

Those weaknesses never threatened the outcome because Mesa produced one enormous play after another.

Against Palomar and Southwestern, the margin for self-inflicted errors will shrink dramatically.

The Comets have already demonstrated their ability to generate sacks and tackles for loss. Southwestern has allowed only two offensive touchdowns through three games and possesses the depth to punish teams that repeatedly operate behind the chains.

Mesa’s explosiveness is real.

So is the work remaining before its two most important local tests.

PALOMAR COMES NEXT

Mesa’s schedule now turns directly toward San Diego County.

The Olympians host Palomar (2-1) next Saturday after the Comets suffered a 26-17 home loss to Pasadena City.

Palomar opened the season by upsetting Ventura, 19-6, and followed with a 26-7 victory over East Los Angeles. The Comets allowed only 13 points through their first two games behind a disruptive defense led by Jonathan Class.

Pasadena changed the equation.

The Lancers rushed for 191 yards, including 165 from Dom Ezeonye, and held Palomar to only 67 yards on the ground.

Palomar quarterback Noah Schuback threw for 269 yards, but the Comets missed a short field goal before halftime, were limited to one offensive touchdown over the final three quarters and never led after Pasadena answered their early second-quarter score.

The result removed Palomar from the unbeaten ranks but did not diminish the importance of its visit to Mesa.

The Comets possess the pass rush and secondary required to test Taylor in ways Citrus could not. Mesa’s defense must also prepare for a Palomar offense that can attack downfield even when its running game is contained.

The matchup will reveal whether Mesa’s 68-point eruption represents the beginning of another offensive surge or the high point before a considerably more difficult stretch.

SOUTHWESTERN WAITS BEYOND PALOMAR

Southwestern will have a bye while Mesa and Palomar meet.

The Jaguars are also 3-0 after defeating Long Beach City, 34-14. Southwestern has outscored Canyons, Grossmont and Long Beach by a combined 113-24.

Mesa has followed victories over Orange Coast and Mt. San Antonio with its 68-point eruption at Citrus.

The Olympians and Jaguars have now separated themselves from the other two county programs.

Palomar’s loss removed the possibility of an unbeaten Comets-Olympians matchup, while Grossmont fell for the second consecutive week after surrendering a 17-point lead against Antelope Valley.

Mesa must handle Palomar before looking any farther ahead.

If the Olympians do, their meeting with Southwestern will become the top regular-season matchup among the four San Diego County community college programs this year.

The contrast would be compelling.

Southwestern has won with defense, field position, rushing depth, explosive passing and special teams.

Mesa has survived a one-point battle against Mt. San Antonio and now demonstrated the ability to score from almost anywhere.

The Jaguars have Duran.

The Olympians have Taylor.

Both teams possess deep receiving groups, productive defenses and return units capable of changing a game in one snap.

That showdown is one week away from becoming official.

Mesa’s 68-point warning made it impossible to ignore.

MESA’S 10 TOUCHDOWNS

Type	Player	Play
Passing	Diesel Taylor to Jayden Chanel	27 yards
Passing	Taylor to Colin McCann	42 yards
Passing	Taylor to Grady Woodward	49 yards
Kickoff return	Isaiah Jackson	89 yards
Passing	Taylor to McCann	50 yards
Passing	Taylor to Braxton Sherley	13 yards
Passing	Taylor to McCann	25 yards
Rushing	Ryland Jesee	34 yards
Passing	Jesee to Joshua Newbern	4 yards
Interception return	Logan Factor	43 yards

Mesa produced seven passing touchdowns, one rushing touchdown, one kickoff-return touchdown and one defensive touchdown.

TAYLOR’S SIX-PACK

Diesel Taylor, San Diego Mesa

12-of-22 passing
234 yards
Six touchdowns
No interceptions
19.5 yards per completion
Touchdown passes of 27, 42, 49, 50, 13 and 25 yards

Half of Taylor’s 12 completions resulted in touchdowns.

McCANN’S BREAKOUT

Colin McCann, San Diego Mesa

Category	Total
Receptions	4
Receiving yards	123
Average per catch	30.8
Touchdowns	3
Scoring receptions	42, 50 and 25 yards

McCann has 288 receiving yards and six touchdowns through three games.

SCORING SPEED

Mesa scored its first nine offensive or return touchdowns on possessions or plays that required:

2:53
0:33
1:43
One kickoff return
0:57
A short field
2:03
0:52
2:53

The Olympians scored 68 points despite possessing the ball for only 22:55.

BY THE NUMBERS

Category	San Diego Mesa	Citrus
First downs	24	20
Total offense	419	308
Passing yards	294	169
Rushing yards	125	139
Yards per play	5.7	3.9
Passing touchdowns	7	2
Third downs	4 of 16	5 of 19
Fourth downs	5 of 8	3 of 6
Sacks	4	1
Tackles for loss	14	6
Return yards	183	87
Turnovers	0	1
Penalties	16-151	9-81
Possession	22:55	37:05

SAN DIEGO MESA LEADERS

Passing: Diesel Taylor 12-22-234, six touchdowns, no interceptions; Ryland Jesee 2-12-30, touchdown.

Rushing: Ryland Jesee 5-47, 34-yard touchdown; Devin Cerda 8-31; Alexander Villanueva 9-27.

Receiving: Colin McCann 4-123, three touchdowns; Jayden Chanel 4-58, touchdown; Grady Woodward 2-54, touchdown; Joshua Newbern 2-30, touchdown.

Defense: Tobiah Araujo six tackles, 2½ tackles for loss and 1½ sacks; Beau Caliendo five tackles; Logan Factor 43-yard interception-return touchdown.

Returns: Isaiah Jackson 89-yard kickoff-return touchdown and 30 punt-return yards.

COUNTY ROAD AHEAD

Saturday, Sept. 19
Palomar (2-1) at San Diego Mesa (3-0)

The Comets will attempt to rebound after allowing Pasadena City to rush for 191 yards in a 26-17 loss.

Following week
San Diego Mesa at Southwestern (3-0)

If Mesa defeats Palomar, the Olympians-Jaguars matchup will bring together the county’s two remaining unbeaten community college teams.

SCORING

First quarter

MESA — Diesel Taylor 27-yard pass to Jayden Chanel (Robert Petrich kick), 10:31.
MESA — Taylor 42-yard pass to Colin McCann (Petrich kick), 8:12.
MESA — Taylor 49-yard pass to Grady Woodward (Petrich kick), 3:55.

Second quarter

CIT — Connor Underhill 33-yard pass to Lorenza Simmons (Aaron Wong kick), 14:51.
MESA — Isaiah Jackson 89-yard kickoff return (Petrich kick), 14:35.
MESA — Taylor 50-yard pass to McCann (Petrich kick), 12:44.
CIT — Noah Sandoval 78-yard run (Wong kick), 11:49.
MESA — Taylor 13-yard pass to Braxton Sherley (Petrich kick).
CIT — Underhill 1-yard run (Wong kick), 1:45.

Third quarter

MESA — Taylor 25-yard pass to McCann (kick failed), 12:51.
MESA — Ryland Jesee 34-yard run (kick blocked), 10:01.
CIT — Sandoval 3-yard pass to Dylan Tapley (Wong kick), 6:36.

Fourth quarter

MESA — Jesee 4-yard pass to Joshua Newbern (Petrich kick), 11:14.
MESA — Logan Factor 43-yard interception return (Petrich kick), 1:40.

San Diego Mesa — 21 21 12 14 — 68
Citrus         —  0 21  7  0 — 28

EastCountySports.com

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