Cougars Ready to Rebound in Week 2 Meeting vs. Grossmont

By Jesse Muñoz/COC Sports Information Director 

College of the Canyons will look to rebound from its week one loss when the Cougars host Grossmont College in week two action. Saturday's matchup is a non-conference contest. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.

All Cougars home games will be live streamed to fans through a broadcast partnership with SoCalCollegeSports.com. To watch the week two live stream click here.

Home games will also be replayed on SCVTV Channel 20 and SCVTV.com.

Canyons (0-1), the defending SCFA National Division Northern League champions, suffered a 45-20 week one loss to Saddleback College as the Cougars struggled to stop Gaucho quarterback Chance Nolan, who tossed three touchdowns in the winning effort.

COC and Saddleback played to a 10-10 tie with under five minutes to go in the opening half, but the Gauchos converted on a pair of late scoring drives to take a 24-10 lead into the halftime locker room.

Canyons freshman quarterback Colton Doyle got the start, however, it was Armani Edden that saw the majority of snaps under center. Edden finished the game 19-of-34 for 211 yards and one touchdown. He also scored on a short run at the goal line and added 20 yards on the ground.

Sophomore Alonzell Henderson led the COC receiving corps with six catches for 139 yards, while Romello Cook caught five passes for 51 yards and a touchdown.

Kicker Tanner Brown converted on both of his field goal attempts.

Sophomore linebacker Tyler Richardson led the defense with eight stops and two forced fumbles, one of which he also recovered. Khalib Johns and Charles Ike both had seven tackles from the linebacker position, and defensive end Jack Schultz had the Cougars' lone sack.

Grossmont (0-1) dropped its season opener 55-24 to visiting Long Beach City College. The Griffins allowed 611 yards of total offense and played from behind for most of the contest, going just 1-of-15 on third downs. Sophomore running back Jarius Burnette led the attack with 82 yards on 19 carries including a 36-yard touchdown run.

Canyons is the No. 14 ranked team in the state according to the California Community College Sports Information Association (CCCSIA) Preseason Poll.

The Cougars are also ranked No. 15 in the JC Athletic Bureau Head Coaches Poll.

The Griffins are currently unranked.

Canyons and Grossmont last met during the 2018 season, with the Cougars coming away with a 47-14 road victory behind seven turnovers and more than 500 yards of total offense.

Grossmont holds a slight edge in the all-time series, with the Cougars having gone 5-7 all-time vs. the Griffins. However, Canyons has won the last two meetings.

General admission tickets to all Cougar football games are $10. Kids under 10 and seniors over 60 are $5.

In addition, COC head coach Ted Iacenda and the Cougars have announced a series of special FREE community group invites for each home game. 

For Saturday's game, all first responders are invited to attend free of charge. A full 2019 schedule and invite list is included here. 

Cougars fans are also reminded to make their plans to attend the college's 50th Anniversary Homecoming celebration prior to the week four game vs. Cerritos College on Saturday, Sept. 28. Fans and community members are invited to enjoy pre-game family activities, food and concessions, music, photo opportunities, T-shirt and rally towel giveaways, and a special on-field half-time alumni photo. Festivities begin at 4 p.m., with kickoff scheduled at 6 p.m. Admission and parking are both free for this event 

Stay up to date on all this season's action by following the College of the Canyons Athletic department on social media at @COCathletics on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. 

—Photo by Jeff Dahlia/COC Football