Merced College dominates, earns must win over Gavilan

Finishing games has not been the Merced College football team’s forte.

The Blue Devils were outscored 87-56 in the second half during a four-game losing streak, allowing winnable contests to slip through their fingers.

Merced knows it must halt that trend if it’s going to run the table and have a chance at a postseason game. Saturday was a step in the right direction. The Blue Devils produced 23 points over 12 minutes spanning the third and fourth quarters and scored a season high in a 51-3 drubbing of Gavilan at Stadium ’76.

“We needed this win so badly,” said defensive end Justin Aguilar, who set a single-game school record with 5.5 sacks. “It seems like it wasn’t that long ago that we were talking about possibly being 3-0, and everything took a negative turn since then.

“This was a good victory, but we still have a lot of work to do. We’re fully capable of winning out and going to a bowl game, but we have to believe.”

Merced coach Bob Casey has spent the last month waiting for one of his two quarterbacks to seize the starting job. Nathaniel Nelson made a compelling argument with his performance against Gavilan (1-6, 1-2 Golden Coast Conference). The freshman completed 11 of 19 attempts for 279 yards and touchdown passes on two of the Blue Devils’ first three possessions. Perhaps more importantly, he didn’t turn the ball over.

Nelson started with a bang, too, connecting with Marlon Fleming on a 53-yard play-action touchdown pass on Merced’s first play from scrimmage to make it 6-0. Jeffery Richardson hauled in a slant and took it 83 yards for a score to double the lead.

“The offense did a great job tonight, especially the offensive line,” Nelson said. “They gave me all kinds of time, and guys went out and made plays for me.

“Scoring right away took a lot of pressure off of us. It was just one of those plays where everything came together and we were fortunate enough to get a score on it.”

In the second quarter, Josh Stevens and Justin Stefani scored on one-yard runs, and Noah Croninger kicked a 25-yard field goal, giving Merced (3-4, 1-2 GCC) a 28-3 halftime lead.

Good as the first-half performance was, all the halftime talk from players and coaches alike concerned duplicating the effort after the break.

The Blue Devils’ defense helped see to that. The Crazy Blues forced four of Gavilan’s five turnovers in the second half, helping spark scores on four straight possessions to put the game out of reach.

Stefani (15 carries, 57 yards) punched in his second touchdown run, a two-yarder, and linebacker Nawell Rojas returned an interception 25 yards for a score 1:26 later. Croninger added a 34-yard field goal, and Stevens (24 carries, 83 yards) finished the scoring with a three-yard touchdown run.

“Winning was huge, obviously, but it was also important how we won,” Aguilar said of the team’s four penalties after averaging 13 the last three weeks. “I don’t think the defense committed a penalty all night. If coach brings something up that’s fixable like that, we need to do it.

“That’s the difference between a team that wins the rest of its games or one that just goes through the motions the rest of the way.”

This story was originally published October 25, 2015 at 11:17 AM with the headline "Merced College dominates, earns must win over Gavilan."