Football players receive recognition

Football players receive recognition

The Southern California Football Association announced the All-Conference teams last month. Nine players were voted on by coaches of other teams in the league as the best from their school.

All-purpose Charles Yates and Safety Nate Jackson were selected on the first team.  

Linebacker Reesieo Kirksey, Defensive back Charles Yates, defensive end Oliq Kirksey, wide receiver Daniel Becerra, linebacker Tony Overstreet, wide receiver Jason Labra, offensive lineman Carter Noble and tight end Dante Holly were selected on the second team.

Yates made the list twice for his exceptional skills in the defensive back and running back positions. 

“Being recognized as all-conference was a big accomplishment for me,” Yates said. “I came to California from Mobile, Alabama. I was new coming to California and (my coaches) just always kept me on track and let me know that I was at Pierce for a purpose which was to get out of junior college and get a scholarship.”

Yates said he often plays multiple positions in the same game without a break. 

He was noted by his coaches for his endurance and perseverance. 

Yates leaves Pierce this fall and has already received offers from five schools, but he has his sights set on D1 schools.

“I currently hold one division one offer I have just received recently,” Yates said. “But more division one offers are coming because I am receiving phone calls day by day.”

Sophomore Carter Noble who made the second team as an offensive lineman said he wasn’t expecting to make the All-Conference team.

Noble recalled a time when he was a discouraged freshman. 

“I never thought I would’ve got this far,” Noble said. “I came from not making my high school football team my freshman year to this. I’m truly honored.”

Noble wasn’t the only one surprised by the recognition. 

Head coach James Sims said he knows how valuable Noble is as a player, but he wasn’t always as dedicated as he is now. 

“When I met Noble in February of this year he told me he was not playing football after Pierce and that his parents were paying for him to go to Cal Lutheran University,” Sims said. “Now, not only did he make all-conference he has five offers so far to go to the next level and will start his visits in January.”

That’s not all Sims had to say about his players. He’s incredibly proud of his team and their accomplishment, but a few stood out with all-star potential. 

“Reesieo Kirksey, who made the second team, deserves to be first and he was third on the MVP ballot,” Sim said. “He played both ways and still led the State in tackles.”

Sims has also seen massive improvement from his young team. 

“The most promising player would be Nate Jackson,” Sims said. “I knew he was going to be a starter for us from day one but had no idea he would dominate the way he did from the safety position and make first-team all-conference.”

The Brahmas roster was small for this past season, but the players who made the all-conference team deserve their recognition.

Pierce ended the season with a 0-10 record, but the consensus from players and coaches alike; don’t underestimate the Brahmas. Sims stands by his team and is looking forward to more success stories in the future. 

“A year ago, not only did they go 0-10 but they didn’t play in four games because they didn’t have enough players and many of them were beat up physically,” Sims said. “This season we showed up to every game and we fought the entire four quarters with no quit in us.  We scored points in every game except two and now we have 14 players with opportunities to go to the next level via scholarships.”