FOOTBALL: HORNETS FALL IN THE STATE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

It was a brisk sunny day in Oroville, CA before a crowd of 2,500 football fans.  Two undefeated teams faced off against each other for the first time ever to lay claim to the California Community College Athletic Association's state title with one team representing the South and one representing the North.  By the time the last tenth of a second disappeared from the game clock, the Butte College Roadrunners (12-0) remained unbeaten as they defeated the Fullerton College Hornets (12-1) 28-13.

The game began on the wrong hand for Fullerton as QB Jose Escobar threw two picks in the first half.  Escobar had been playing with a broken throwing hand since the SoCal Championship game against Riverside City College.  Freshman QB Blake McKenzie filled in nicely in the second quarter.

Butte drew first blood scoring on a six-yard pass by QB Thomas Stuart to TE Bo Brummel at 14:54 in the second quarter (failed PAT).

With two of the highest scoring offenses in the state, the first half flew by in an hour's time with a modest score of 6-0.  The Hornets had not been shut out in the first half all season.

Escobar was brought back under center at the start of the second half and played the rest of the game.

The Roadrunners went on to score with 4:38 in the third quarter on a beautiful 70-yard pass from Stuart to TE Richard Murphy.  Going for the 2-point conversion, Butte was successful on a pass from RB Kendall Williams to WR Jon Parks.

Fullerton finally got on the scoreboard with 1:18 left in the third quarter on a 4-yard run by RB Nick Norman (PAT good).

With the score 14-7, Butte took a step at distancing themselves at 13:56 in the fourth on a 14-yard TD pass from Thomas to Brummel (PAT good).

The Hornets would not go away quietly as they answered back with 4:33 left in the game on a 47-yard touchdown pass from Escobar to WR Keondrick Daniels bringing the score to 21-13 (PAT failed).

Butte sealed the game with 38 seconds left on the clock on an interception by London Muse who took it to the house 51-yards giving the Roadrunners the 2013 championship title.

Turnovers were the Hornet's Achilles Heel with a total of seven on the day.  Butte played a mistake-free football game without committing a single turnover.

Fullerton had not been to the state championship game since Hal Sherbeck led the Hornets back in 1983 with a 28-7 win over Taft in the Potato Bowl.  Going 12-1 on the season, the Hornets tied a school record (1967) for most wins in a season.

Butte enjoyed a stellar season winning the state championship for the second time in five years, locking down their 15th conference title, going unscathed for 12 straight games, and breaking a few school records along the way (Notably, 84 points against Foothill). 

MVP OF THE GAME
Thomas Stuart, QB, Butte College

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME
Richard Murphy, TE, Butte College

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME
Justin Owens, LB, Fullerton College

Story and graphic by Phil Thurman, CCCSIA