Sports info directors go with Riverside City, coaches choose San Mateo in latest football polls

SAN MATEO – College of San Mateo continues atop the second week’s poll of California Community College football coaches, conducted by the JC Athletic Bureau, while the first poll of the California Community College Sports Information Association (CCCSIA) this season shows Riverside City in the No. 1 spot, according to the rankings released on Tuesday.

San Mateo holds a narrow seven-point margin over defending state champion Riverside City College in the coaches poll, each gaining five first-place votes, while the teams evenly split eight first-place tallies among the SIDs.

San Mateo extended its regular-season winning streak to 12 games, getting its 100^th home season underway by blanking then-No. 25 College of the Sequoias, 41-0. Riverside finally started its season on the field, defeating No. 12 Long Beach, 24-6, after “winning” its opener by forfeit - and now has a pacesetting 14-game streak.

For a second straight week, there were no upsets among the top ten teams, an unusual start after a 2-year postponement of most action in California.

Ventura remains solidly in the No. 3 position after dispatching formerly No. 16 San Diego Mesa, 49-21 while Modesto, City College of San Francisco, American River, College of the Canyons, Fullerton, Butte and Mt. San Antonio comprise the JCAB top 10. The same teams make up the CCCSIA top 10 but are in a different order. CCSF is ranked third, American River is fourth and Ventura holds down fifth. Canyons, Modesto, Fullerton, Mt. SAC and Butte round at that poll's top 10.

Butte is in the top 10 of both rankings after beating Laney, 23-10, and next visits No. 1/2 San Mateo Saturday in a regional TV (KOFY-TV 20) game, which will also air nationally (same day) on NEXT LEVEL SPORTS (on DirecTV and AT&T). It will be streamed on baosn.tv (which will also televise the 2021 state title game). The weekend schedule kicks off Friday night with No. 21/21 Shasta visiting Laney at 7 p.m. in another regional TV game (KOFY-TV 20).

Some  TOP  MATCH-UPS  Saturday, Sept. 18   (which should shuffle next week’s state poll):       No. 9 Butte at No. 1 San Mateo;  No. 12 Saddleback at No. 2 Riverside;   No. 3 Ventura at No. 19 El Camino;    No. 5 CCSF at No. 4 Modesto;     No. 11 Fresno at No. 6 American River; No. 7 Canyons at No. 8 Fullerton;  San Bernardino Valley at No. 10 Mt. San Antonio.

Other Top Games Saturday (Sept. 18), all non-league:  No. 14 Long Beach at Chaffey;  No. 15 Bakersfield at No. 13 Golden West;No. 16 East LA at No. 23 SD Mesa; No. 17 Reedley at Santa Rosa; No. 18 Cerritos at No. 22 Allan Hancock; No. 20 Diablo Valley at Sacramento; Grossmont at No. 24 Citrus; No. 25 Monterey Peninsula at Feather River.

(JC Athletic Bureau)
(Polls conducted by CCCAA)