As the sun was setting Saturday night, the Chabot Gladiators took the field for the last time this season against De Anza College. With excitement in the air you could really feel the energy the players were emitting while some expressed the somber realization that this could be the last home game of their Chabot Career.

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The warm up routine consisted of the team dividing into positions and meeting with their respective coach while running through drills.

After the warm up the players gathered to support the sophomores that would be playing in their last home game wearing the Chabot Black and Gold. Families and friends joined their loved ones while walking through the tunnel of teammates.

Ryan Bosque and family walk through the tunnel of players as they prepare to start the final game of the season

Austin Williams

Eric Stewart

Then came the playing of the national anthem while the players and fans directed their attention to the scoreboard.

D'Marco Jimmerson

After the conclusion of the opening ceremony the game got underway. Chabot won the toss and elected to receive with number 27, Brian Mickel waiting in the backfield. Bellow is the sequence of images showing Mickel’s 95 yard return for a touchdown putting the  Gladiators on top to start the game.

Brian Mickel

After Mickel ran past the defenders the sidelines erupted and teammates celebrated what would eventually turn out to be the only points Chabot could get on the board tonight.

Gladiators offensive linemen Carrington Reyes #71 and Kyle Mickey #70 celibate after their team scores their first touchdown during the first quarter against De Anza College.

Travis Gardner

Bryan Jones

A view from press box at the Chabot College football field during the 1st half of the game

As the game would come to an end De Anza would prevail as the victor with a final score of 29 to 7.

Gladiators collapsed in front of Falcons

Chabot Gladiators (6-3, 2-2) had the West Hills Falcons (3-6, 2-2) right where they wanted them, yet it was not enough to win in Coalinga as they fell short, 37-34.

The game came down to the last drive. The Gladiators were winning 34-30. A good punt by Ryan Bosque backed the Falcons up against their own 4-yard line. Then quarterback Steven Hurt and the Falcons marched down 96 yards on 11 plays on the Gladiators who were seeking their 4^th road win in five tries.

On the first play the Falcons’ Steven Hurtr found receiver Darrel Ashberry for a 40-yard gain to give the Falcons a little breathing room.  When the same drive went to a huge 3^rd and 8, Hunter hit sophomore Michael Bowman for a 16-yard gain.  The drive was capped when Hurt found Dewayne Lorick for the 6-yard touchdown.

The game was close statistically.  Time of possession was even at 30 minutes apiece.  Quarterback Travis Gardner had a rare off game.  The Gladiators were able to stay relevant behind the play of workhorse Bryan Jones (26 carries, 118 yards, and 2TDs).

Some highlights from the game include:

• The Gladiators fell behind 14-0 in the first quarter and were drowning 30-7 by halftime.
• The Falcons first two scores came on runs of 56 yards and 1 yard by Gabriel Love and Rasuel Thomas respectively.
• The Gladiators responded when Gardner found receiver Joe Castro for the 8-yard strike.
• Momentum shifted right back to the Falcons on the next two possessions; Hunter found Lowick for scores with 43 yard and 49 yards.  Sandwiched between the two big plays was a safety.
• The Gladiators were able to reel off 24 unanswered points.
• With four minutes left in the second quarter, linebacker York Leapaga stepped in front Hunter’s pass. The turnover gave the Gladiators possession at midfield.
• With Gardner struggling to complete a pass, the Gladiators turned to Jones. Jones was able to get them 40 yards on 5 carries in the drive, including an impressive 20-yard scoring run.
• Special teams and defense led the third quarter comeback.  In the quarter, the Gladiators managed 20 points. After the defense forced a quick three and out, Castro’s 39 yards punt return put the Gladiators on the Falcons 4 yard line.  Gladiators only managed a field goal.
• On the Falcons next possession, cornerback stud Joshua Pride intercepted Hurt first pass attempt and returned it 45 yards for a touchdown.  This was Pride’s fourth interception in the last two games, three for which he has returned for touchdowns.
• A Bryan Jones 7 yard touchdown run late in the quarter gave the Gladiators their first lead at 34-30.  But the long drive by the Falcons ended the Gladiators hopes of coming home with the win

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The Gladiators figure to have their hands full this week as they will host powerhouse De Anza College (6-3, 4-0).  De Anza is coming off a 29-21 victory of Los Medanos, in which they scored 26 second half points.  De Anza is also in the process of a five game winning streak.

On October 30, in Hayward, Ca, the Chabot Gladiators took on Los Medanos Mustangs. The Gladiators defense led by defensive back Joshua Pride proved to be too much for the Mustangs in their 47-19 win.
In the first quarter, the Mustangs quarterback Juan Corral found Devin Legall for a 63 yard touchdown. The rest of the way was a nightmare for Corral. He only threw 97 yards more the rest of the game, including three interceptions all made by Pride.
The first interception came as the Mustangs were attempting to climb back into the game after falling behind 24-6. They were on a 7 play drive that produced 66 yards when Pride stepped in front of Corral pass to prevent the score.
The third quarter saw more of Pride. Pride picked Corral off twice more, running both in for scores.
By the fourth quarter, Mustang coach Chris Shipe had seen enough of Corral and decided to pull the struggling quarterback in favor of Alex Steindel.
Steindel tried to rally the Mustangs, but it was a little bit too late. Though he did lead them to consecutive scoring drives, his team fell short 47-19.
With the win, the Gladiators improve to (6-2, 2-1) on the season. The Mustangs fell to (3-5, 1-2). The Gladiators travel to Coalinga, Ca, Saturday to take on West Hills College.

On Sept. 25 nearly 5,000 fans packed the Pit in Salinas, Calif. to watch the undefeated Chabot Gladiators take on the Hartnell Panthers (0-2). After an exciting game the Gladiators won 55-38.

Behind the passing attack of Austin Fales, Hartnell raced to a quick 21-0 lead. The Gladiators responded with touchdown passes of 51 and 61 yards to Darnell Reed and James Davenport, respectively.

In an attempt to put the Gladiators away, Hartnell put up 10 more points and went into halftime with a 31-20 lead.

The Gladiators, however, would not go away. Behind a balanced attack the Gladiators reeled off 35 unanswered points.

Quarterback Travis Gardner led the attack, throwing four second half touchdowns. Gardner set a new Chabot record totaling seven touchdown passes. Reed was the recipient of three.

Bryan Jones balanced the offense with 157 yards on the ground. He also had three touchdowns.

The Gladiators were 11-18 on third down and 6-6 in the red zone.

Hartnell put up a good effort behind the play of Fales. Fales completed 22-26 passes for a total of 285 yards and three touchdowns.

The Gladiators once again did a good job protecting the ball. In two of the first three games the Gladiators did not turn the ball over once. For the season the Gladiators lead the turnover battle plus seven.

On Saturday Oct. 2 the Gladiators (3-0) are figured to have their hands full as they hit the road to take on the College of San Mateo, the No. 2 ranked team in the country. This rivalry produces two of the highest scoring teams in Northern California.

The San Mateo Bulldogs are also 3-0. They recently manhandled West Valley College 77-14, setting a junior college football record by rushing for 592 yards.

It’s that time of the year again, time to return to a tradition as old as time.

Introduced in 1869, tailgating first took place from audience members’ carriages. This is a little different compared to the more modern way that began in the 1950s when alumni would gather in parking lots before a big game or waiting to hear their favorite musicians.

What you do is park the car or camp wherever you can enjoy cooking up a good bite. All that is really required is a grill, food, a few chairs and company.

People usually eat a variety of things including ribs, sandwiches, chips and even gourmet dishes. There are usually alcohol beverages for the adults and fruity drinks for the kids.

Tailgating usually turns into a party and sometimes all the action is in the parking lots, meaning tailgaters may not even attend the event.

It’s parking lot fun and games with this subculture, and this tradition has always been a great social event and a nice pregame warm up.

Practiced almost religiously across the nation, tailgating has become especially popular among colleges where students gather for outings. However, the experience and environment has gone far beyond just an event.

Tailgating has even expanded into the media where you can catch your favorite announcers in the parking lots on any given football Sunday bringing the folks at home the real time experience.

The art of tailgating has evolved so much that products and even automobiles have been adapted to fit the needs of the tailgater.

Want to get in on the fun? The following is a list of suggested items for a tailgating event:

1. Portable grills

(Highly recommend)

2. Binoculars

(To see of course, unless you have good seating)

3. Rain gear/Umbrella

(To block sun and rain)

4. Drinks

(Beer, water, juice, etc.)

5. Collars

(For the drinks)

6. Blankets

(Might get chilly, or to lay on the ground)

7. Music

(Music and food? Why not?)

8. Games

(bean bag toss football, etc.)

9. A big appetite!!!

Saturday September 11 the Gladiators hosted the West Valley Vikings of Saratoga. The Gladiators used a suffocating defense and a potent offense in the blowout of the Vikings 65-13.

The game was decided before many fans even reach their seats. The Glads led after one quarter 28-0. Within the first four possessions, the Glads had forced two turnovers including a 24 yard interception return for a touchdown by Aoese Noa.

West Valley ran for a mere 49 yards on 40 carries. The Vikings only gained another 107 yards in the air. The defense recorded 6 sacks including 2 1/2 by Langakall Moa. Noa also had a sack

The Gladiators out gained West Valley 482-156.

The Gladiators also scored touchdowns on their first six possessions. They also finished 8-9 in the red zone.

In the game, Chabot played most of its reserves. They only needed 12 carries from D’Marco Jimmers who scored three touchdowns and was done after only getting a half of work. Quarterback Travis Gardner finished 16-20 for 173 yards including three touchdowns passes.

Chabot only punted one time in the game.

If there was one place that the Gladiators would like to improve on, it would most definitely be to limit their penalties. They committed an astounding 16-169 yards.

The Gladiators improve to 1-0 on the season. They travel up to Mendicino County Saturday for a showdown with the College of the Redwoods.

The Chabot football team has been practicing hard all summer for the start of the 2010
season and they couldn’t be anymore excited about it. “We are tired of hitting each
other,” Head Coach Danny Calcagno said, now entering his seventh season.

Though optimistic about his team right out the gate, Calcagno will be striving for
improvement throughout the season: “I’m looking forward to seeing us develop.
Hopefully by conference we will be better than week one.” Development is going to be a
key term this season due to all the newcomers.

There are many fresh-faced freshmen on the squad this season that survived camp and
Calcagno is very excited to see what they can do. “We have some talented freshmen but
they just have not played in a college football game yet,” said Calcagno.

These new freshmen will play an enormously big role this season for a squad that only
has four players returning from last season. “We are very young, only one returner on
offense and three on defense,” noted Calcagno.

Asi Moa and Travis Tupou are two of those returning players Coach Calcagno will
look toward to take charge and make the biggest and most immediate impact. Both
players being on the defensive line should make for some serious pass rushing as well as
dominant run stopping.

Though this squad is young there is depth as well as talent. If these players can come
together and play at the level this season’s coaching staff feels they can there will be
plenty of wins. “Potentially we will be competitive,” said Calcagno.

Not only looking to be competitive against other teams, but being competitive against
each other will also play a big role for many of these young freshmen that are new to the
college football environment. “All these freshmen are competing for a job and there is no
one that has taken a position” noted Calcagno.

Being consistently competitive with each other in practice will only make these
Gladiators tougher and more sound on the field come game day.

Calcagno has a record of 28 wins and 23 losses in his six-year career as Chabot’s Head
Coach since starting in 2004. Coaching football for seventeen years, however, Calcagno
brought an instant success to the program leading the Gladiators to their only Bowl Game
of the new millennium back in his first season coaching in 2004.

Calcagno will be looking to lead this young batch of ball players to Chabot’s twenty-first
Bowl Game as well as the school’s fourteenth Conference Championship. Chabot has a
strong football tradition and this season will be no different.

The Gladiators start their season Saturday, Sept. 11 at 6 p.m. here on Chabot’s very own turf against West Valley College. Last year’s football squad handled these opponents
with ease, winning the game 56 to 13, and this year should be no different.