North-South Rivals San Francisco, Mt. SAC to Battle for 2014 CCC Football State Championship
Northern California Football Conference (NCFC) champion City College of San Francisco will face Southern California Football Association (SCFA) winner Mt. San Antonio College for state supremacy on Saturday, December 13 as the two squads will battle in the 2014 California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) Football State Championship. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Mt. SAC's Hilmer Lodge Stadium in Walnut.
The contest will mark the fifth meeting since 1997 between the colleges in the state championship final as the Mt. SAC Mounties defeated San Francisco for the title in 1997 and 2010 while the CCSF Rams posted championship victories over Mt. SAC in 2007 and 2011.
Both teams took very different paths to the state championship, this year hosted by the Southern California champion.
San Francisco suffered its first loss of the season in Week 4 to American River College, but bounced back by winning eight straight. The Rams went 5-0 to capture a Bay 6 Conference championship as they outscored their opponents by an impressive 254-45 margin.
CCSF dispatched Chabot College 47-20 in the semifinals of the Northern California playoffs before avenging its lone loss of the season to American River with a 17-14 victory in the NCFC Championship on November 29. Under Bay 6 Coach of the Year George Rush, the Rams bring an 11-1 overall record into the state championship.
The Rams swept the Bay 6 awards as freshman quarterback Anthony Rodriguez was named Offensive Player of the Year and sophomore defensive back Shalom Luani earned Defensive Player of the Year honors to head a list of 17 Rams to earn all-conference honors.
Rodriguez led the Rams' offense that ranked fifth in the state in scoring, averaging 42.6 points per game. But it was Luani and the CCSF defense that really stood out in 2014 as the Rams were among the state leaders. San Francisco allowed just 15.1 points per game to lead the state and were second in yards per game giving up 239.4. The Rams' 156.2 passing yards allowed was also second while they were fourth in rushing yards giving up just 83.2.
San Francisco looks to win its seventh state championship overall after winning it all in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2007, and 2011.
Playing in likely the toughest conference in the state, Mt. San Antonio narrowly made its way into the Southern California playoffs but took care of business in the postseason to reach the state championship.
The Mounties suffered their first loss of the season in Week 5 at Long Beach City College and dropped their second contest in Week 8 at Central Conference champion Riverside City College.
When postseason announcements were made, Mt. SAC was awarded the fourth and final at-large bid into the playoffs which the Mounties felt they rightfully deserved. And the results proved it as Mt. SAC blew out Fullerton College 44-14 in the Southern California semifinals before knocking off top-seeded Riverside at RCC by a final score of 35-14.
Head coach Bob Jastrab leads the Mounties into the title game with a 10-2 overall record after finishing 4-2 in conference play.
First-team SCFA All-Central League quarterback Justin Alo guides a balanced Mt. SAC offense. He was one of 12 Mounties to earn Central League postseason honors. Mt. SAC ranks seventh in the state in both points per game (41.2) and offensive yards per game (458.2). Just like San Francisco, the Mounties are stingy on defense allowing just 15.8 points per game to rank No. 3 among state leaders.
Mt. San Antonio is going for its fourth state championship overall after winning in 1997, 2009, and 2010.
Other notes: Saturday's CCCAA State Championship game will be the final football game played at Mt. SAC's historic Hilmer Lodge Stadium. A new $62 million stadium and field house project is set to begin next summer ... ticket prices to the game are $10 for general admission and $7 for children (ages 6-12), seniors (ages 60+), and faculty/students/staff with ID.
