Football Season Comes To End With Bakersfield Loss

The Pasadena City College football team closed out the 2015 season with a 51-7 loss at Bakersfield. The National Northern League game was played before 2,730 fans at historic Memorial Stadium, in its 60th year as the Renegades' home field.

The Lancers finished 2-8 overall (one by forfeit) and endured a series of injuries and a lack of depth throughout the roster, especially on the offensive and defensive lines. The team allowed 50-plus points for the fourth straight game and the '15 team allowed 410 points overall, the most ever by a PCC squad.

PCC still had many players who put up some strong individual performances, including sophomore linebacker Jalyn Williams. The 6-foot-1, 240-pound Williams finished with 105 tackles, the most by a Lancers player since 2004 and the first time since that year that a PCC player reached the century mark in tackles--R.J. McNeill in '04 had 108. Williams added a team-best 12 quarterback hurries, made two sacks, and forced and recovered two fumbles.

With the Lancers, a rare team that has their bye or off week after the completion of their 10-game regular season schedule, Williams currently leads the state in total tackles and in solo tackles (61). His 178 overall tackles in his career is a new PCC school record since the statistic officially began to be kept by the college in 1993. The previous 2-year high was set by linebacker Jeremy Aguilar (173, 2008-2009). 

While Williams was the team leader in tackles for his two seasons, running back Justin Carroll finished as PCC's top rusher in both of his years here. Carroll rushed for 80 yards in 17 carries v. Bakersfield and scored the team's only touchdown on a 4-yard run in the second quarter. His overall '15 season numbers were modest with 374 yard in 114 carries as the team played mostly a spread, passing-type offense due to depth issues on the offensive line. 

Another top player was sophomore wide receiver Ricky Blair, who made 46 receptions for 629 yards (13.7 per catch) and led the team in scoring with eight touchdowns.

Quarterback Jett Even was the team's top freshman as he led the Lancers in passing with 2,019 yards and 17 touchdowns. He already set a school record for attempts and pass completions in a game v. Ventura.

Frosh running back Trensten Spragling was the team's all-purpose yards leader at 128.2 per game as he led the team in kick returns with 26 for a 28.7 yards average (eighth in the state). Teammate and freshman running back Joseph Thomas was 15th in the state with a 26.3 yards average in 23 kick returns.

Frosh defensive lineman Jaren Jackson made a team-high 7.5 sacks and 18.5 of his 42 overall tackles were behind the line of scrimmage.

"I was proud of the way the team played short-handed," said PCC head coach Thom Kaumeyer who completed his first season for the Lancers. "If it seemed like there were the same guys on the field throughout the games, it was out of necessity. Our reserves were scarce at so many key positions. We were asking our starting linemen and linebackers to play 60 minutes without much rest. It takes its toll later in games when the other teams were fresh."

Kaumeyer talked about next season and what to expect. 

"We will go into full recruiting mode and try to bring in a big crop of young players as well as transfers," said Kaumeyer who was hired too late to bring in a recruiting class for the '15 season. "There were glimpses that our team can play with the big boys. I think we played a lot better defensively over the first six weeks and then guys were getting beat up and the grind got to us. We don't intend to ever be in that position of weakness again."

[Photo--Lancer wide receiver Tony Claxton eludes a Bakersfield tackler Saturday, image by Richard Quinton.]