Blue Devil defense looking for bounce back against undefeated Monterey

For the first time in the opening month of the season, the Merced College football team’s defense was found wanting.

While admittedly banged up, the Blue Devils lacked their usual energy on defense. Even a fast start in a 44-28 loss to West Hills wasn’t enough to get Merced fired up. The Blue Devils failed to rally to the ball for the first time all season and, after yielding 37 points through the first three weeks, were lit up by a Falcons squad that hadn’t scored more than 35 coming in.

After two excellent performances to open the season, it was the Blue Devils’ second consecutive loss. The team will try to avoid a third in a row when it hosts Monterey Peninsula on Saturday. The NorCal American Division No. 2-ranked Lobos (4-0, 1-0 Golden Coast Conference) are one of just three teams still undefeated in the North. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Stadium ’76.

“We had some injuries early,” Casey said. “Then we got ahead early and I think we became a little lax and complacent. I probably should have run the ball more. They were doing some things against us that gave us opportunities in the passing game, but we didn’t execute them.

“I may have outcoached myself instead of just sticking with what we do well and forcing them to prove they could stop it. Credit to West Hills, though. They didn’t let our fast start bother them and they fought hard for four quarters.”

West Hills did the bulk of its damage on the ground, rushing for 360 yards. The Falcons exploited injuries to defensive tackle Trevor Taufahema and outside linebacker Nathan Duran, which opened some holes.

“They were a big physical team, probably the most physical we’ve seen,” Casey said. “Their backs were a little quicker than we gave them credit for on film, but they hadn’t really shown they could run the ball like that against anybody going into the game.”

Merced (2-2, 0-1 GCC) will try to bounce back against a Monterey squad that hasn’t been afraid to throw the ball out, averaging 276 passing yards. The Lobos have benefited from one of the weaker early schedules, with their four opponents combining for just six wins. Still, four wins is four wins.

Quarterback Kody Steele is coming off of a 397-yard, five-touchdown performance in a win over Gavilan. Wide receiver Michael Williams ranks third in the state with 129 receiving yards per game.

“Monterey has done a great job of finding a way to win so far,” Casey said. “Coach (Mike) Rasmussen is very, very good. He takes advantage of your weaknesses and takes advantage of his personnel and uses it to the best of his ability. They scheme very well and have used it to get off to a good start.”

This story was originally published September 30, 2016 at 3:53 PM with the headline "Blue Devil defense looking for bounce back against undefeated Monterey."