by Larry Ham
Most football coaches will tell you they don’t believe in moral victories. Reedley College football Coach Randy Whited may or may not be in that particular group, but he has to be somewhat pleased with the way his team fought and fought before finally surrendering to Fresno City College 49-44 Saturday night in Fresno.
Fresno is an elite program, and the Rams are consistently ranked near the top in the state rankings. But the Tigers met them toe to toe at Radcliffe Stadium, and almost pulled the upset.
The Tigers actually scored the game’s first touchdown, on a deflected 35-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Joshua Allen to wide receiver Raphael Araujo-Lopes. They also led at the half after a 38-yard field goal by Chance Carter on the final play of the half.
The first few minutes of the second half has been a problem for the Tigers all season, and again against Fresno, the Tigers were outscored 14-7 in the third quarter. The fourth quarter saw each team score, and the Rams escaped with a hard fought win.
This is where the moral victory comes into play. The Tigers have been outgunned and manhandled by better and bigger teams on a regular basis over the past several seasons, but such was not the case against Fresno. The Tigers were every bit as good as the Rams, and a break here or there would have changed the outcome. The Tigers, now 2-3 on the season, should be filled with confidence as they head into conference play on October 18 at West Hills College in Coalinga.
Check back every Monday evening during football season for the latest game recap and watch for some RC football interviews! And you can check out the webcasts here: www.meridix.com/everywhere.php?liveid=ReedleyCollege
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