Football Downs Glendale, 41-14, First 2-0 Start Since 2010

A high-energy offense has brought genuine excitement to Pasadena City College football team in the young 2018 season. Second-year head coach Steven Mojarro has his Lancers playing on all cylinders especially after Saturday's 41-14, SCFA non-league triumph at next door neighbor Glendale College. PCC is 2-0, the program's best start in eight years.

The Lancers surpassed the 40-point mark for the second straight game in dominating the Vaqueros, tripling them in total offense, 497 yards to 145. PCC piled up 25 first downs to only seven for Glendale (0-2). PCC has collected 54 first downs over the team's first eight quarters of play.

Sophomore quarterback Mario Bobadilla led the charge, completing 14 of 22 passes for 225 yards and three touchdown strikes. Freshman wide receiver David Telles, like Bobadilla a Franklin High product, totaled 190 yards in all-purpose yardage (receiving, rushing, punt and kick returns) and scored a pair of touchdowns. PCC's ground attack, virtually invisible in recent seasons, was impressive again with 42 carries for 229 yards, averaging 5.45 per attempt. Transfer sophomore Sultaan Sullivan ran for 90 yards in 16 carries and one score while Drake Beasley added 56 yards in nine touches and a TD.

PCC scored on its first three possessions to take a commanding 21-0 lead in the first quarter. The team marched 93 yards on the opening series, including Bobadilla completions of 22 yards to Telles and 18 to Forest Fajardo. Telles then took a late pitch near the line of scrimmage from Bobadilla and bolted in for a 12-yard TD carry. Cesar Ruiz kicked the first of his four extra points for a 7-0 lead 4:49 into the contest.

With 6:13 left in the period, Bobadilla launched a 42-yard TD bomb to transfer wide receiver Hernandel Johnson for a 14-0 lead. After the defense stopped Glendale on three downs and out for the second straight series, Telles returned a punt near midfield 19 yards plus a Vaqueros 10-yard holding penalty that gave the Lancers great field position at the Glendale 23. A roughing-the-passer penalty got it closer before Bobadilla fired a 7-yard scoring pass to Fajardo and a 21-0 lead with 3:13 left in the period.

While Bobadilla was error-free, letterman backup QB Isaia Ah-Hing had a difficult night as he was intercepted three times, including a 27-yard return for a touchdown by the Vaqueros' Johnny Reed early in the second quarter. Ah-Hing finished 4-for-8 for 43 yards. 

PCC kept its comfortable lead throughout adding touchdowns on a 12-yard pass from Bobadilla to Telles in the third quarter and runs of 2 yards by Beasley and a nifty, 44-yard carry by Darnell Williams in the fourth quarter. Williams cut through three tacklers and took two hard lefts to complete the team's longest play of the night with 2:43 left in the contest. 

The Lancers defense made a huge improvement from the season opener, especially on its pass rush. Frosh lineman Hector Palacios performed two of the team's three quarterback sacks. PCC made 11 tackles behind the line of scrimmage. Sophomore linebacker Kimani Williams led the team in tackles with seven while letterman DB Torus Stepney Jr. made a 30-yard interception return that helped set up the Lancers' final score.

PCC travels to face Saddleback College, surprisingly 0-2 this year, next Saturday, Sept. 15 in a 6 p.m. kickoff at Mission Viejo High School. 

PCC GRIDIRON NOTES: Telles had five punt returns for 60 yards and led the team in receiving on five catches for 88 yards...Ruiz is 10-for-10 on extra point kicks this season while backup Fernando Murillo added his first point-after and delivered a successful on-side kick in the first quarter Saturday...Freshman Jonathan Borashan punted three times, including a 41-yarder downed at the Glendale 15 and a 42-yarder that should have been a 48-yard pin to the Vaqueros' 18, but was touched inadvertently by a PCC special teams player...The Lancers now have 36 career wins against Glendale, the most against any opponent...The referees got sore arms from throwing flags as the teams combined for 32 penalties for 328 yards (17-for-176 for PCC)...Media members inside the Glendale press box couldn't say enough about the team's offensive linemen, especially the size and strength of letterman tackle Juan De La Torre (6-foot-5, 295) and sophomore Demarcus Gilmore (6-3, 375). The team's line has helped the PCC rushing attack to be fourth in the state in yards per game, the team fourth in total offense, and third in first downs.