Giants football hosts Reedley in pursuit of bowl eligibility

By Nick Giannandrea

COS ATHLETICS

With the most daunting stretch of its season in the rearview mirror, College of the Sequoias' football team is closing in on being eligible to play in a bowl for the third straight championship season.

The Giants (3-3 overall and 0-1 in the Valley Conference) need wins in two of their remaining four regular season games in order to meet the California Community College Athletic Association's requirement of a .500 record for bowl eligibility.

After opening with four of its first six games against teams ranked among the state's top 17, the chase for a bowl berth resumes at 1 p.m. Oct. 22 when Sequoias, ranked No. 25 in the state by the JC Athletic Bureau, hosts No. 32 Reedley (3-3, 0-1) at its campus field. Admission is $8 general admission, and $5 for seniors and students.

The Giants need a win in the Valley Conference game to have a realistic shot at competing for the program's first conference championship since 1998. They opened Valley Conference play Oct. 15 with a 21-13 loss at No. 17 Fresno City.

"Every goal we want to achieve is still well alive," Sequoias coach Travis Burkett said. "We have to think we are undefeated every week. We're trying to go 1-0 every week. And we try to teach the guys what that means for them in their lives to help them become more successful as people."

The Giants enter Saturday's game having lost two straight, including a 50-43 overtime loss at No. 15 Diablo Valley on Sept. 30. Sequoias held a fourth quarter lead against Diablo Valley and was tied with Fresno City in the third quarter before letting both games slip away.

"When you win a game, it's easy to be invigorated," Burkett said. "And when you lose, it's easy to be discouraged. What we are trying to do is stay focused on our process."

Reedley opened Valley Conference play with a 22-14 double overtime loss to Contra Costa. Former Dinuba High standout Joshua Magana threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Shemar Kirk with 35 seconds left to force overtime.

Magana has passed for 1,114 yards and 11 touchdowns to lead a Tigers' offense averaging 25.7 points and 375.2 yards per game.

Reedley's defense has included contributions for former Tulare County performers defensive back Aaron Boesch (Exeter High) and defensive back Noah Hunter (Lindsay).

"Reedley is a solid team. They have good overall team speed in all three phases," Burkett said. "Defensively, they are going to put eight to 10 (players) near the formation and dare you to throw it. And offensively, they have a lot of stuff going on with an experienced quarterback and receivers who have the ability to get the ball up and down the field. They are a great opponent for us to compete against."

Sequoias is led offensively by quarterback Nathan Lamb (Tulare Union), who has passed for 1,194 yards and 13 touchdowns while rushing for 143 yards and four scores.

He's thrown at least one pass to 16 different receivers, led by tight end Anthony Valencia (Mt. Whitney), who has 18 catches for 228 yards and five touchdowns.

Defensively, the Giants are paced by twin brothers Lonnie and Michael Wessel (Golden West), who have amassed 30 and 21 tackles, respectively.

"We've had some physically competitive periods of practice this week," Burkett said. "We've asked the guys to focus more on each play and win each play. We're excited to have that show up on Saturday."

Sequoias and Reedley are among the oldest rivals in community college football. The Giants lead the all-time series 51-26, but the Tigers won last season's meeting 42-35. Prior to last season, the teams hadn't met since 2013 as they competed in different conferences.

After Reedley, Sequoias closes the season with Valley Conference games at home against No. 29 Sacramento City at 1 p.m. Oct. 29, at No. 35 Modesto at 5 p.m. Nov. 5 and at home against Contra Costa at 1 p.m. Nov. 12.

Wins in at least two of their final four games likely puts the Giants in a bowl. Sequoias beat Merced 40-39 in overtime last season during the Valley Center Bowl and lost to Butte 38-28 during the Gridiron Classic in 2019.

There were no bowl games in 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

"We've got a great group of kids who have poured a lot of their time and spirit into this season," Burkett said. "It's a fun time of year when you get to see a bunch of hard work come to fruition."