Defending champion Fullerton College takes top spot in initial CCCSIA football poll
CCCSIA Poll (Sept. 5) (PDF) l JC Athletic Bureau (Sept. 5) (PDF)
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The top four teams from last year's state championship playoffs each opened the 2017 season with resounding wins on Saturday and, led by defending champion Fullerton College, occupy the top four spots in the first-ever California Community College Sports Information Association football poll released on Tuesday morning.
The Hornets dominated the first-place votes, gathering seven of the eight available, and finished with 119 points while American River, which Fullerton edged for last year's CCCAA title, picked up the remaining first-place vote and tallied 112 points. State championship semifinalists Butte (104) and Riverside City (95) ranked third and fourth, respectively.
The poll's top four teams dominated their competition on the opening weekend of action, averaging 61.8 ppg. between them and posting an average winning margin of 52.5 points. Fullerton opened with a 77-28 win over Santa Ana, American River downed Diablo Valley, 67-0, Butte shut out Santa Rosa, 51-0, and Riverside beat Victor Valley 52-9.
The next five teams in the rankings – Saddleback (73 pts), Ventura (69), College of San Mateo (67), Mt. San Antonio (61) and Long Beach City (57) ‑ each scored at least 41 points in their opening wins while Laney posted a hard-fought 17-14 win at City College of San Francisco and was rewarded by the voters with a No. 10 ranking.
El Camino (28 pts) is ranked 11th, Fresno City (24) and CCSF (24) are tied for 12th, and L.A. Valley (17) and Shasta (11) round out the top 15. Ten other teams received votes.
Saturday's action features three games among top-15 teams with the higher-ranked team having to travel for the matchups, possibly bringing some shakeup to the early season rankings: No. 3 Butte at Laney, No. 5 Saddleback at No. 9 Long Beach City, and No. 6 Ventura at No. 8 Mt. San Antonio.
(The poll is conducted by representatives of the CCCSIA and is evenly divided among both Northern California and Southern California region members. The rankings will be conducted on a weekly basis and will be released each Monday for the remainder of the 2017 season).
| CCCSIA FOOTBALL POLL (Sept. 5) |
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| Rk | Team | Pts. | Rec. | Last week | Sept. 9 matchup |
| 1. | Fullerton | 119 | 1-0 | Won vs. Santa Ana, 77-28 | vs. Cerritos (0-1), 1 pm |
| 2. | American River | 112 | 1-0 | Won vs. Diablo Valley, 67-0 | at (rv) Modesto (0-1), 6 pm |
| 3. | Butte | 104 | 1-0 | Won vs. Santa Rosa, 51-0 | at No. 10 Laney (1-0), 7 pm |
| 4. | Riverside City | 95 | 1-0 | Won vs. Victor Valley, 52-9 | vs. Golden West (1-0), 6 pm |
| 5. | Saddleback | 73 | 1-0 | Won at College of the Desert, 41-7 | at No. 9 Long Beach (1-0), 6 pm |
| 6. | Ventura | 69 | 1-0 | Won at Santa Barbara City, 44-6 | at No. 8 Mt. San Antonio (1-0), 6 pm |
| 7. | College of San Mateo | 67 | 1-0 | Won vs. Modesto, 47-7 | at Sierra (0-1), 1 pm |
| 8. | Mt. San Antonio | 61 | 1-0 | Won at San Bernardino Valley, 45-23 | vs. No. 6 Ventura (1-0), 6 pm |
| 9. | Long Beach City | 60 | 1-0 | Won at Pasadena City, 52-17 | vs. No. 5 Saddleback (1-0), 6 pm |
| 10. | Laney | 57 | 1-0 | Won at San Francisco, 17-14 | vs. No. 3 Butte (1-0), 7 pm |
| 11. | El Camino | 28 | 1-0 | Won at L.A. Southwest, 74-8 | vs. (rv) Moorpark (1-0), 1 pm |
| T12. | Fresno | 24 | 1-0 | Won vs. Sierra, 41-22 | at Santa Rosa (0-1), 5 pm |
| T12. | San Francisco | 24 | 1-0 | Lost vs. Laney, 17-4 | at (rv) College of Siskiyous (1-0), 1 pm |
| 14. | L.A. Valley | 17 | 1-0 | Won at Cerritos, 25-14 | vs. College of the Desert (0-1), 7 pm |
| 15. | Shasta | 11 | 0-0 | ppd. (air quality) vs. West Hills | at Hartnell (0-1), 1 pm |
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Others receiving votes: Sacramento City (1-0), 10 pts; College of the Canyons (1-0), 7 pts; Bakersfield (1-0), 6 pts; College of the Siskyous (1-0), 4 pts; Merced (1-0), 3 pts; San Diego Mesa (1-0), 3 pts; East Los Angeles (1-0), 2 pts; Modesto (0-1), 2 pts; Moorpark (1-0), 1 pt; Palomar (1-0), 1 pt. |
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