Graffiti Bowl bid is within MJC's reach

By Ron Agostini
ragostini@modbee.com

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What's left for the Modesto Junior College Pirates to play for, you ask?

There might be more motivation than you think.

We know this much: The Pirates (5-4, 2-2) will not win their third straight Golden Gate Conference title. Their chances vanished when they blew a 19-0 lead last week and fell at Laney 29-19.

While Laney and Chabot collide with the GGC title at stake, Modesto will welcome valley rival Merced on Saturday night with pride — and a few other items — on the table for Week 10.

For starters, Modesto will be eligible for a bid to its own Graffiti Bowl if it gains a sixth victory. The Pirates will count on that incentive to shake out of their post-Laney funk.

"We took the loss pretty hard after we had a chance to at least gain a share of the championship," quarterback Greg Panelli said. "Everyone came back Monday ready to work. We want that chance to experience the postseason and to have a winning record over a 5-5."

Standing in the Pirates' way is Merced (1-3, 3-6), which let its own 17-6 halftime lead slip away last week against Los Medanos, losing 18-17. That sealed the Blue Devils' sixth straight losing season, though first-year coach Mark Kaanapu has been encouraged by his team's competitiveness. Merced's three GGC losses came by a total of only eight points.

"We're assuming this is their bowl game," MJC coach Sam Young said. "We're treating it as an opportunity to maybe play for another week."

The Pirates and the Blue Devils also will vie for the Gateway Trophy — named for the schools' proximity to Yosemite National Park — the series emblem begun by MJC coach Steve Da Prato in 1997.

Modesto, 7-3 against Merced since '97, gained possession of the trophy with last season's 49-34 victory. The Gateway had belonged to the Blue Devils since 2005 (the teams did not play in 2006 and '07).

The Pirates' season most certainly will end if they're beaten by Merced. It will most likely continue with a win.

"It will be a wacky, four-quarter affair just like it was last year," Young predicted. "It's kind of like breaking up with your girlfriend. You gotta find a new girlfriend. The Graffiti Bowl is our new girlfriend. We can't go on with a broken heart. We've got to move forward and our leaders have got to lead."

• NOTES -- Game time is 7 o'clock Saturday night at MJC Stadium for the regular-season finale. ... Modesto, down by 10 points in the final minutes at Laney, marched 95 yards only to turn the ball over on downs. Young elected to go for the touchdown rather than extend the game by kicking the field goal and trying the onside kick. "I thought that was our best chance to get seven (points)," he said. ... Merced's Fabian Miramontes missed a 44-yard field goal, a potential game-winner, late in the fourth quarter against Los Medanos. ... MJC freshman Donovan Wallace is ranked third in California with his 17.8-yard punt return average. Vince Andrews is third with 20.24 yards per catch and fourth with 109.86 receiving yards per game.

Bee staff writer Ron Agostini can be reached at ragostini@modbee.com or 578-2302.