Pirates are down about move up

The glow from Modesto Junior College's Graffiti Bowl victory was dimmed Monday when coach Sam Young heard the news.

The Northern California Football Association promoted the Pirates to the Tier 1 Valley Conference, their traditional home, starting in 2010. They will return to one of the region's premier leagues for the first time since 2003.

"There went all the good feeling from the Graffiti Bowl," Young said.

By definition, this was a reward for Modesto, which strung together 14 straight victories in the Golden Gate Conference between 2007 and this season.

The change also upgrades the Graffiti Bowl to a potential Northern California title game and gives MJC the chance to win a state championship. Those goals weren't possible for the Pirates in the GGC.

So why all the down faces on the MJC coaching staff?

Simply, the Valley comprises schools that welcome out-of-state athletes. MJC remains the quintessential "community college" and replenishes its program with area high school products. Competing in the Valley over the years has brought MJC mixed results, and success in the new league will demand more performance from Modesto than winning in its former league.

In 2001, a Modesto team which finished 9-2 extended Fresno before losing 21-19 in the game that decided the Valley title. But two years later, a 2-8 campaign — the Pirates' worst since 1989 — resulted in their relegation to the Golden Gate, a Tier 2 league.

The system was begun in 2002 to facilitate realignment among Northern California's 34 community college teams. Tier 1 comprises the NorCal and Valley conferences, Tier 2 the Mid-Empire and the Golden Gate and Tier 3 the Bay Valley and the Coast.

The committee evaluates the teams every other year and suggests changes. Downward movement is voluntary but upward is mandatory.

Young understands the new challenge.

"We're again dealing with teams that are different philosophically than us. Some of them are rural schools that couldn't field teams otherwise, and we get that," Young said. "I would say the odds are against us, but I do think our program is ready for this."

Modesto went 1-2 vs. Tier 1 opponents this fall, featuring a season-opening win over Delta and losses to West Hills and Santa Rosa.

Modesto will replace West Hills, which changes into the Golden Gate along with Diablo Valley. Laney, which beat Modesto for the GGC title, swings upstairs to the Northern California Conference.

The MJC promotion no doubt becomes the farewell gift from its past two teams, which went a combined 15-7 with one league crown and two Graffiti victories. This year, the Pirates extended their GGC winning streak until losses at Chabot and Laney squelched all chances for a third straight league title.

Modesto recovered, however, by defeating Merced 34-24 and overwhelming San Jose in the Graffiti Bowl 54-13 in a performance Young termed the team's best.

The Pirates' 7-4 year, successful by most standards, did prompt a question: Did they pull the maximum from a solid team guided by sophomore leaders on both sides of the ball?

Quarterback Greg Panelli passed for 2,673 yards and 25 touchdowns against 11 interceptions. Inside linebacker Keith Yamamoto registered 105 tackles for the season and was named the GGC's defense player of the year.

Conversely, Modesto averaged nearly 10 penalties and 100 yards per game. The Pirates led at Chabot until they yielded three touchdowns in the final 10 minutes.

"For the most part, we were our own worst enemy," Young said. "I don't know if they were feeding off our goal of three straight league titles. I just couldn't put my finger on it. Perhaps I didn't read it right or prepare the team right.

Young shouldn't beat himself up too much. MJC's seven wins places it among the top 20 percent of the most winningest teams in the school's 88-year football history.

Panelli's 48 career touchdown passes broke the old record of 42 set by Chad Draper (2006-07). Vince Andrews accounted for 213 receiving yards against Cabrillo, which topped Kirk Clifton's 205 yards in the 1992 Bay Bowl.