Saddleback faces Desert in opener

Saddleback College football opens the 2016 season by hosting College of the Desert on Saturday night at 6:00 PM.  The Gauchos and Roadrunners have not met since 1977.

Saddleback and Desert have not played in football since former head coach Ken Swearingen was in his second year as the coach of the Gaucho program.  Swearingen went on to win a record 149 games for the Gauchos in 19 seasons and, ironically, came out of retirement to finish his coaching career at Desert in 2004-05.  Other than a handful of folks still hanging around each athletics program, most of the people at the game on Saturday won't remember the opening-day, 27-3 win in 1977 that kick-started a 10-1 season and a win in the Mission Bowl. 

Saddleback is hoping for similar results in 2016 after playing their way into the 2015 state title game.  The Gauchos started 0-2 and then ripped off 10 straight wins before getting toppled 26-14 by San Francisco in the finals.  Desert is looking to build on a strong finish a year ago when they lost their opening three games and went 6-1 down the stretch. 

Saddleback is the defending National Division Southern League champions and head coach Mark McElroy enters his 18^th season at the helm of the program.  McElroy was named the National Coach-of-the-Year by the American Community College Football Coaches Association for 2015, but enters this season with a brand new squad and a ton of new faces.  The Gauchos have just a handful of returning starters, making for a tough challenge.

"This is the youngest team I have had at Saddleback in a long time," McElroy said.  "It is always a challenge this time of year but we like the character of our kids."

Desert is under the direction of third year head coach Jack Steptoe, who had the Roadrunners in a three-way tie for the American Division Mountain League title last fall.  Steptoe finished 4-6 in his opening season in 2014 and if the program continues to progress they could find themselves in the mix again this season. 

Saddleback and Desert will battle at 6:00 PM on Saturday at the stadium.