“We have some work to do,” Los Medanos College football head coach Chris Shipe said following the Mustangs 38-20 loss against San Jose City College.
While the Mustangs offense only had six fewer yards on offense, they turned the ball over on downs three times in field goal range and only scored touchdowns on two of their four red zone trips.
San Jose jumped ahead early in the first quarter 14-0, then led 21-6 going into the halftime break. Despite the deficits, Shipe felt his team still had opportunities to get back in the game. The offense didn’t turn the ball over, but couldn’t consistently move downfield to cut into the Jaguars lead.
“If you don’t turn the ball over you’re going to be successful at times,” said Shipe. “Today, [San Jose City College] played well and they deserve it.”
Shipe opted at times to keep the Mustang offense on the field rather than send out the special teams unit to kick a field goal or punt. Punter Tommy Turner punted three times for a total of negative nine yards, while also having one blocked. The Mustangs also had a PAT attempt fail after a bad snap killed the play.
“We gotta make some adjustments. We are trying to figure out who is going to be our snapper but it also has to do with our protection as well,” Shipe said.
After gaining 250 rushing yards in their previous game against Merced College, the Mustang’s ground attack went quiet racking up only 34 total yards and averaged under three yards a carry.
While 38 points were scored, LMC’s defense had bright spots throughout the game. Cornerback Bryson Parker intercepted the lone turnover of the game while the Mustang defensive line recorded four sacks on the day. The defense was put in numerous short-field situations from the Mustang offense turning the ball over on downs and Shipe says the offense has to be better at giving the defense a chance.
“It took them a little bit to get adjusted early because before you know it, it was 14-0. As an offensive unit, we have to continue to be working to be able to not put them in a position like that,” Shipe said.
The loss to the San Jose City College Jaguars drops the Mustangs back to .500 on the season with a 2-2 record. The Mustangs look to bounce back at home as they start conference play against De Anza College Saturday, Sept. 30 at 1 p.m.
Shipe mentioned that despite struggles from all three different sides of the game, this loss was a team loss.
“It’s a team game, there is no blame put on one player, individual or group, it’s a team effort so we have to get back to work to fix that,” Shipe said.
