CHABOT FOOTBALL TAKES STEP FORWARD IN LOSS TO REEDLEY

By Phil Jensen

Special to Chabot Athletics

From its first play of the game, the Chabot College football team showed its offense was going to be dangerous against visiting Reedley on Saturday afternoon.

Chabot quarterback Colby Furia found Kierr Stewart open over the middle for a 71-yard touchdown pass. It was the first of four touchdown passes for Furia, but Reedley had a huge third quarter and edged Chabot, 34-26.

"I was happy with some things with the defense, and I was happy that our offense was rolling," said Chabot coach Eric Fanene. "We minimized the amount of penalties (from the opener against Feather River) … our special teams got a little bit better.

"We're so young," Fanene also said. "That was a very good team that we played right there, year in and year out. They're consistent, they always make a bowl game, they're well-coached, they've got big guys, great athletes. And we matched up well in the most part. But when you make the mistakes, give them the short field, that's not good at any level."

Reedley (2-0), ranked 24th in the state in the JCAB poll entering Saturday's game, was kept out of the end zone in the first quarter by the Gladiators defense, which allowed only a 32-yard field goal in that frame. But the Tigers scored a rushing touchdown early in the second quarter and led 10-7.

However, the Gladiators produced another huge pass play with 4 minutes, 4 seconds left in the half. From near midfield, Furia found Carlos Franklin near the left sideline, and the sophomore from Largo, Fl. juked a defender at the 25 on his way to a 53-yard touchdown reception and a 13-10 Chabot lead that held up the rest of the half.

However, the Tigers marched 77 yards for a touchdown and a 17-13 lead on the first drive of the second half. But Chabot (0-2) answered with a scoring drive capped by a 33-yard catch-and-run by Manny Higgins for another Chabot passing touchdown.

The Gladiators (0-2) had seven players who caught passes. "That's our goal in this offense, to get our playmakers the ball in space," Fanene said.

Reedley responded to Higgins' touchdown with a short 25-yard scoring drive, ending with a 15-yard run by Paul Sharp. Later in the third quarter, a fumbled punt return gave Reedley another short field, and top back Contae Cason later scored from the 2-yard-line, giving Reedley a double-digit lead.

Chabot didn't back down, however. Four plays into the fourth quarter, Furia found Franklin for another touchdown pass, from 32 yards out, and the Gladiators trimmed the Reedley lead to 31-26. But Chabot only got back into Reedley's territory once more; the drive stalled at the Tigers 31 with one minute remaining in the game. A 30-yard field goal by Reedley's Jayden Evangelo with 5:14 remaining, set up by a blocked punt, lifted his team to its eventual 34-26 advantage.

Furia, a 6-foot-1 sophomore, completed 22 of 38 pass attempts for 334 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. "He's very good in the pocket; he's a very good decision-maker," said Fanene of Furia.

Chabot had six players with multiple receptions, led by Stewart (four catches, 121 yards), Ismael Sanchez (five receptions, 37 yards), Franklin (three receptions, 87 yards) and Malakai Matthews (four receptions, 22 yards).

Defensively, Henry Pole and Callan Ivy were among the Chabot players who pressured Reedley quarterback Santhony Brown throughout the game and took him down for three sacks.

Chabot travels to Sacramento City College for a 1 p.m. gameon Sept. 16.