JC football: MPC completes first undefeated regular season in 16 years
MONTEREY — Each win has been cherished and never taken for granted. A lunch pail attitude is brought to practice each day with the goal to go 1-0 each week.
While claiming a conference football title for the fourth straight year was worth a celebration Saturday, Monterey Peninsula College achieved a rarer feat with regular season perfection.
For the first time since 2008, the Lobos completed an undefeated season, erupting for 60 plus points for the fourth straight game in a 62-17 win over visiting Cabrillo.
“It’s a good feeling,” said MPC coach Ronnie Palmer, after getting doused with ice water. “I’ll take it. It’s very rare to go 10-0. We’ve kept a blue-collar mentality. We compete and we have fun. Now we’ve extended our season two more weeks.”
One of three teams left in the state that is still undefeated, the Lobos will face 10-0 De Anza in the American Bowl on December 9. Where will be determined by a committee.
“I have not been told where the game will be played,” said Palmer, who is 20-1 as a coach in conference play. “I would suspect it will either be at De Anza or here.”
Champions of the American Golden Coast Conference, MPC and American Pacific 7 champion De Anza are not complete strangers, having scrimmaged each other before the season started.
“I remember they had a lot of speed at the skilled positions,” Palmer said. “The scrimmage tape will not help much. I have been able to watch some tape of them because we’ve faced a lot of common opponents.”
The two teams went into their season finales ranked in the state, with one poll ranking De Anza in front of the Lobos, and the other having MPC ranked in front of the Dons.
“I’ve already put a couple of De Anza games up,” Palmer said. “I appreciate how well our guys have jelled. Why not make something special out of this season.”
De Anza, who rallied Saturday for a 26-24 win over Chabot in its season finale, used a field goal with 1:22 left three weeks ago to beat Redwoods 25-22.
The Lobos, who came into the game ranked No. 2 in the state in scoring at just over 45 points a contest, have outscored their last four opponents 257-30, with the defense posting a pair of shutouts for the first time in over 30 years.
“It sure doesn’t feel like 60 at times,” Palmer said. “It feels fast. Our offense is explosive, and the turnovers help get the ball back to our offense. When momentum is working in our favor, that’s when the points start racking up.”
As has been the case throughout the Lobos last four games, they struck fast, producing three touchdowns in the first quarter before Cabrillo mustered a point.
Kieryus Boone put together a highlight reel with three touchdowns, including a 95-yard sprint in the second quarter to stake them to a 28-3 lead. His 11-yard run extended the Lobos lead to 35-3 at the half.
“Kieryus is having an MVP type year,” said Palmer, who has guided the Lobos to 15 consecutive conference wins.
Quarterback Eric Gibson tacked on three more touchdowns to his resume for the Lobos, finding state leader Devin Ellison for a touchdown to open the game, and hitting Marina graduate Julius Robinson on a 69-yard scoring strike.
An LSU transfer, Gibson has thrown 29 touchdown passes this fall, equaling Hunter Raquet’s mark of 29 set during MPC’s run to a bowl win in Mike Rasmussen’s final season as the head coach in 2019.
“It’s safe to say Eric is coming off those injuries that have plagued him and is playing a little loose,” Palmer said. “He’s making faster decisions to get out of harm’s way.”
Ellison, who has a dozen Division I colleges inquiring about his services, has caught 17 touchdown passes this fall for the Lobos and is closing in on 1,000 receiving yards.
Boone, who came into the game averaging 125 rushing yards a game, had that in the first half for MPC, while backup quarterback Miekael Brooker’s 35-yard run late in the first half set up the first of two field goals from Isaac Mancera.
“What’s fun is seeing the backups keep the big plays rolling,” Palmer said. “But we’re deep at a number of positions. We put in a lot of work during the week. Saturday is about us.”
Lost in the offensive firepower that was on display was the Lobos defense, which forced seven turnovers, five of which turned into points for the offense, while allowing just three points in the first half in the last four weeks.
“It’s a team game,” Palmer said. “Anyone that watches the game and pays attention to football knows it’s not one-sided. I love the praise the offense gets. But you have to have great special teams, you have to execute, and you have to stop somebody.”
Rotating players in and out on defense has seen the numbers split evenly among a group of tenacious defenders that don’t seem to care who gets the credit.
“We’re playing with 44 players,” Palmer said. “Each week, it’s next man up. It’s been tough. But we’ve made it work. There’s quality reps in practice with smaller numbers. It’s not about quantity, it’s quality.”
Coalinga 63, Hartnell 0: There will be some sole searching in the off-season, as the Panthers lost their identity in the second half of the season, closing the year with five straight losses.
For the third straight game, Hartnell (1-9) was staring at a 40 plus point deficit in the first half before even producing a point, having given up 141 points in the first half during that stretch.
Part of the Panthers struggles all season was the quarterback position after all-conference selection Adam Shaffer was lost for the season in the first half of their season opener with a knee injury.
Six different players have taken snaps behind center, with three of them being injured during the course of the season. Hartnell produced just 21 points in its last four games, outscored 225-21.
Two of Hartnell’s losses this fall were to teams that are undefeated, while a third loss came from a team headed to a bowl game. It suffered two other setbacks by a touchdown or less in the first half of the season.
While growing pains were expected with 45 of its 56 players being freshman, injuries slowed that progressed, while the offense was in constant transition after the loss of Shaffer, scoring just 95 points in its nine loses.
Brian Neal stepped in at quarterback in the second quarter for Hartnell, as the 30-year-old converted three of the teams four first downs.
