Fresno City College football has had an up and down season this year, the Rams rank No. 9 in the state (4-3 overall, 1-1 Central Valley Conference) and are riding high after a big homecoming victory over No.11 Chabot College (3-4, 1-1 CVC), 49 to 21, on Saturday Oct. 25 at Ratcliffe Stadium.
“I was really happy with the way our team responded, how we redirected our focus this week in practice and responded to a tough situation,” said Head Coach Tony Caviglia.
After losing 41-7 to Laney College last week, the Rams knew they had to come back home and dominate which they did from the opening kick.
“We knew we were a better team than we showed last week,” said freshman running back Jeremy Smith. “We practiced a lot this week, executed everything coach taught us this week.” The Rams came out early and set the tone and ran the ball for 313 yards. They got a big game from freshman Jeremy Smith who ran for 168 yards. Smith is currently ranked 8th in the state in rushing.
Sophomore Errian Wingfield was also excellent on the night, running for 79 yards on 12 carries.
“When we ran the ball like we did in the first half, it opens up the passing game,” said freshman quarterback Christian Rossi. “Our receivers ran good routes and I just tried to find them.”
Rossi had his best game of the year, scoring four touchdowns for the Rams, two running and two passing.
“We wanted to come out and show Chabot how good we were,” said Rossi.
Sophomore wide receiver Darius Armstead led FCC with five receptions for 77 yards and two touchdowns.
The Rams defense was strong all night long, allowing just 93 yards rushing.
FCC also got great contributions from its special teams with a blocked punt by Deeldrick Taylor who returned it 47 yards for a touchdown.
“This game was the guys in this locker room, how much pride they have, and understanding what it takes to win,“ said Caviglia.
The Rams have just three games remaining this season to try and capture the Central Valley Conference title. Their last three games of the season will be at San Joaquin Delta on Nov. 1, at home against Modesto College on Nov. 8, and at the College of Sequoia on Nov. 15.
“We have to build off this game,” said Rossi. “If we play like we should, we should win the next three games easily.”
