If one were to look at the stat line on paper it looked like the Pierce College Brahmas had gotten blown out offensively. 29-18 in terms of first downs and they were outgained in both the pass and run game, yet none of that matter except for what the scoreboard read.
It was the Brahmas who had the last laugh as they defeated College of the Desert Roadrunners 21-17 in the first game of the season. The Brahmas were lead by freshman Shakeem Wharton who ran 11 times for 84 yards including a three yard touchdown in the second quarter to make it 7-3.
Edrees Ahmadi who was expected to lead Pierce this year after being the backup to now Georgia State quarterback Nick Arbuckle had a very forgetable game going 7-17 for 119 yds including two interceptions.
Ahmadi would come out for freshman Sean Smith who threw a 48 yard touchdown to give Pierce a 14-3 lead with 5:03 left in the third quarter.
Pierce tight end Trey Dunkelberger gave credit to the defense for keeping the roadrunners at bay through most of the game who didn’t allow a touchdown until College of the Desert would score with seven seconds left in the third on a one yard run by roadrunner running back Erich Pili.
Our defense definitely won the game for us,” Dunkelberger said. “Offenses always have a tougher time in the beginning of the season but thanks to the defense we were able to come out with a win. We made major adjustments at halftime that also helped us come out running in the 3rd quarter.”
The defense was lead by safety Deandre Jordan who lead the Brahmas with 10 tackles including two for losses. Pierce also got production out of linebacker Evan Bishop who had six tackles including three for loss.
The Brahmas now get to head home after playing against College of the Desert where the game time starting temperature was 106 degrees in Palm Desert. Pierce will play host to Southwestern of Chula Vista on Sept. 20 at home. The game will start at 7 p.m.