Last season was a turning point for Santa Monica College. The Corsairs won their first American Pacific Conference title since 2003, but were stopped in the postseason by East L.A College losing 42-28 in the American Championship Bowl. Despite the postseason loss, several players were voted to the All-Conference team and five were sent to 4-year universities. Even with those players leaving, the Corsairs return a group of guys that are hungrier for success.
Behind the arm of quarterback Alfonso Medina and that explosive offense, the Corsairs balanced attack overwhelmed opponents on their way to an 8-3 record and going undefeated against conference opponents.
"Last season was amazing," head coach Gifford Lindheim said, "It was a culmination of a lot of hard work from a lot of people, and I'm happy to see this program succeed." After his team's remarkable run Lindheim won the Coach of the Year award.
Medina returns after a noteworthy freshman season where he not only lead the conference in passing yards and set a new SMC record in passing touchdowns, throwing 27,but he also won league MVP.
"Anytime you have a guy like Medina, who is one of the top returning quarterbacks in the state," Lindheim said "You gotta feel good about your chances."
The departure of Alexandru "Cheech" Ceachir left a hole on the offensive line. Even though there will be some experience on the line, early injuries have left the team with no choice but to use some of their inexperienced freshman more in practice. Freshman Maurqice Shakir has been a pleasant surprise early in summer camp and could earn some playing time.
"His work ethic and athleticism is very good," Lindheim said "And I think he will turn out to be a big time recruit for us." Even with the potential of Shakir and a healthy offensive line, they still have not developed a good chemistry with each other.
Also missing are wide receivers Kris Comas and Brandon Taylor; both combined for 563 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns, but unfortunately will not play this year due to ineligibility. Ralph Gordon II is the only returner at that position, he and running back Myles Johnson will exchange playing time in the slot position. Johnson had 542 rushing yards and saw the end zone six times. Gordon was mostly used as a return specialist last season and racked up 538 total yards, but will need to be a leader for the young unit.
Two young receivers that could make an immediate impact are Reggie Mitchell and Carzell Vickers. Both receivers are projected to be prime targets for Medina. Mitchell played for the Corsair's in 2009, but took some time off to "focus on academics," now he is back and ready to play. Vickers is ready to help the team win any way possible, his size should give him a clear advantage in the red zone; he's listed as 6'5.
"Because of his height he can just go up and snatch it when we are close to scoring," Gordon said about Vickers.
Defensively, the Corsairs return a couple players in Rico Wright, Austin Ehrlich, and Benjamin Brown; all three saw significant playing time last season. Wright will undoubtedly be the leader of the secondary, while both Ehrlich and Brown will be the leaders for the front seven. The defense will be better than last year, according to Lindheim. The Corsairs led the league in takeaways with 33.
"They are very aggressive and athletic," Lindheim said "They love to go after it." Led by that core group of guys the Corsairs look to repeat their success from just a season ago.
The Corsair's kick their season off against Mt. San Jacinto at 1 p.m at Corsair field.