by Larry Ham

The Reedley College Football team traveled to Stockton for their first road game Saturday with a lot of questions that needed to be answered. Some of them were answered, but many remain a mystery after the Tigers were manhandled by San Joaquin Delta College 52-6.

After a second straight poor performance by the defense, the question remains – can the Tigers limit the opposition to few enough points to give the team a chance for victory? The Tigers gave up 548 yards in offense to the Mustangs, and were unable to stop either the run or the pass. Open receivers and backs running wild were the norm for Delta on Saturday, and unless the Tigers get things figured out in a hurry, it’s going to be a long season for the defense.

The same can be said for the offense. Quarterback Trey Mitchell struggled again, throwing for just 96 yards and running for 26 before being injured in the second half. The Tigers gained a total of 171 yards on offense, and when they did get near the Delta end zone, were unable to punch it in, and had to settle for two field goals from Place-kicker Ramiro Berrueco (Orosi High).

Speaking of Special Teams, that’s the one area of the total package where Reedley seems to be in good shape. Berrueco is a fine kicker, and punter Patrick Greene (Sanger High) is also having a good season so far.

So things don’t look too great right now for the Tigers, I agree. But we are just two games into the season, and although it looks like a tough assignment for the Tigers in the near future, things can turn around in a hurry. There was no lack of effort in the Delta game, but the Tigers still need to shore up the “D” and get some consistency in the offense, and figure out a way to score touchdowns instead of settling for field goals.

The Tigers play Fresno City this Saturday night at six at Ratcliffe Stadium in the annual Battle for the Pump. It will take a supreme effort by the Tigers to pull off a win, but even a close loss would be an improvement over the first two games.

Check back every Monday evening during football season for the latest game recap and watch for some RC football interviews!

Watch for a new Sports Spotlight column
from Larry monthly! ➡

Larry Ham is an ongoing contributor to our
Area Arts & Entertainment section where he covers local sports–something he has a great deal of experience in having covered many an area school game through the years for KRDU radio in Dinuba.