Homecoming vs. Fullerton live on GSN

The Saddleback football team suffered its first loss of the season last week and now faces a critical battle with Fullerton College on Saturday night at the stadium.  For those that cannot make it, the Gauchos and Hornets will be live on the Gaucho Sports Network and 6:00 PM.

Saturday's game just got a lot more important after a disappointing 20-17 loss to Golden West College last weekend.  As if the added pressure of former players and fans showing up for Homecoming wasn't enough, the Gauchos now have one of the hottest teams in the state coming to town and a loss would put their playoffs hopes in serious jeopardy.

Saddleback and Fullerton have met 31 times, with the Gauchos holding a 16-15 edge.  Saddleback knocked off Fullerton a season ago when the Gauchos rallied from a big deficit to nip the Hornets, 39-36.  In that game, Fullerton led 14-0 after three minutes before Saddleback started to chip away at the lead.  The Gauchos ended up scoring with 23 seconds remaining when Myron Buchanon scored a 1-yard touchdown to win their seventh straight game.  It was a critical piece of winning the National Division Southern League title and Fullerton will be looking to return the favor on Saturday night.

Fullerton comes into the game red hot, as the Hornets have been scoring in buckets.  Fullerton has scored over 50 points in five of its six games, including a 79-18 drubbing of Grossmont College last week.  The Hornets are scoring a state-leading 57.2 points-per-game, led by quarterback Jordan Hoy.  The freshman from Texas has completed 70% of his passes with 21 touchdowns and also leads the team in rushing.

Fullerton isn't all about offense, however, as the Hornets are also No. 8 in the state in scoring defense, allowing only 18.2 points-per-game.  Fullerton has recorded 21 sacks while intercepting opponents 10 times, scoring five touchdowns with the defensive unit.

Saddleback counters with a balanced offensive unit that is also solid, ranking seventh in the state and scoring 40 points-per-game.  The Gauchos are seventh in the state in rushing at 211.8-per-game, led by freshman Edward Vander.  Saddleback has scored 18 times on the ground while their quarterbacks have combined to complete 66.3% of their passes. 

Like Fullerton, Saddleback is no slouch on defense.  The Gauchos are No. 19 in the state in scoring defense, allowing 22.8 points-per-game.  Saddleback is third in the state with 26 sacks, but has yet to score a defensive touchdown.

Fullerton and Saddleback are both considered heavyweights amongst the various polls.  The Hornets are ranked No. 4 nationally in the JCGridiron.com Dirty 30 Rankings and are tied for the top spot with Riverside in the Southern California Regional Coach's Poll.  The Gauchos are ranked No. 14 nationally by JCGridiron while garnering the No. 3 ranking in Southern California.

The game is scheduled for 6:00 PM at the stadium.  For those that cannot make it, the game can be viewed on any computer, smartphone, laptop of communication device in HD on the Gaucho Sports Network.  There is a minimal fee for the stream, which goes directly back into the athletics department to help promote the athletes and programs.  Click HERE to subscribe.