MC shares the love in rout of Los Medanos

One of the drawbacks to having a bevy of talented skill players is trying to find touches for everyone.

It’s a problem all coaches would love to have, but still needs to be handled with a light touch. It’s one Merced College coach Bob Casey will have to navigate with a logjam of six able-bodied running backs in his backfield.

Casey and his staff used a little creativity with personnel packages to try and keep everyone involved on Saturday. One such move keyed the Blue Devils’ 44-14 season-opening victory over Los Medanos.

After a jittery opening quarter and a half by the MC offense, the Blue Devils slipped sophomore running back Stephon Cross into some passing plays. Cross found space down the middle seam repeatedly and helped get freshman quarterback Randy Jones into a rhythm in his collegiate debut.

The pair connected on seven passes for 121 yards, with Cross producing a pair of touchdowns just before the break. MC (1-0) rode that momentum into the second half, outscoring Los Medanos 30-8 the rest of the way.

“We go out and compete and push each other every day in practice,” Cross said. “We know there are lots of guys that can get the job done and we pull for each other when somebody else’s opportunity comes.

“I just wanted to help my quarterback anyway I could. It was his first start in his first game and he came out a little flat. He apologized to everyone for not coming out with more energy, but after he completed a couple passes, he got going.”

Jones (17 of 26 for 348 yards) sure did.

The freshman found Cross for a 28-yard gain down the middle of the field to help set up a Cross two-yard touchdown run and give MC its first lead with 4:59 left in the half. Jones could barely miss the rest of the way, completing 14 of his last 17 passes for 330 yards.

A three-and-out by the Blue Devil defense put the ball right back in Jones’ hands and he found Cross with an 8-yard toss to send MC into the break up 14-6. Unlike a number of times a year ago, the Blue Devils rode that momentum into the second half.

“That was one of the main things we talked about at halftime,” Casey said. “We had the momentum at halftime, but there was still work to be done. We couldn’t afford to start the second half flat and I felt like the guys responded to that challenge.”

The Blue Devils left no doubt after the break, getting a number of their talented young players involved.

Nih-jer Jackson hauled in a 34-yard touchdown pass from Jones on MC’s opening possession of the second half and Kama’re Bailey followed with an 8-yard touchdown run. Noah Croninger added a 27-yard field goal and a 90-yard reception.

Fullback Justin Stefani helped put the game out of reach. After fumbling an exchange on his first collegiate touch, the freshman bounced back with runs of 53 and 42 yards on his next two carries. The 42-yarder went for a score and he added a 2-yard plunge to finish with 100 yards on five carries and two touchdowns.

“We got off to a slow start,” said defensive tackle Trevor Taufahema, who had a fumble recovery. “It was the first-ever college game for a lot of us and you could see the nerves. The coaches made sure at halftime that we understood we couldn’t have a slow start to the second half.

“Things started clicking on both sides of the ball and we never let them back in the game.”

This story was originally published September 6, 2015 at 10:10 AM with the headline "MC shares the love in rout of Los Medanos."