Rams' defense dominates with sacks and interception in win over Lobos

Fresno City College football head coach Tony Caviglia was all smiles after Saturday's 33-6 victory over Monterey Peninsula in a Valley Conference game.

The Rams led from start to finish and saw a breakout game by quarterback Ya'J Vance, who passed for two touchdowns. Then the defense showed its dominance by sacking the quarterback three times and had an interception by Brandon Holmes.

"We really played good pass defense," Caviglia said. "They have really good fast wide receivers, and I thought our defensive guys played the ball in the air really well."

It was a win the Rams (4-4 overall, 2-1 Valley) needed to remain hopeful of a bowl game. Making the Northern California playoffs is still a possibility, but Fresno City would need plenty of help.

To qualify for a bowl game, the Rams would need to defeat College of the Sequoias at Ratcliffe Stadium on Nov. 1 and defeat Reedley College in a road game on Nov. 8.

Fresno City's full attention was on the state's 14th-ranked Lobos.

The 20th-ranked Rams took care of business early on when Ray Brown caught a 26-yard touchdown pass from Vance. Shortly thereafter, the Rams' defense came up with a safety for a 9-0 lead in the first quarter.

And Fresno City never looked back.

Brown finished the game with two touchdowns. The Rams' running back was productive, finishing with 162 yards, led by Jordan Colbert, who ran the ball nine times for 60 yards.

"We got some chunk plays in the run game," Caviglia said. "We made some good plays down the field. We spread the ball around. We left a little bit in the tank, but for the most part, we played really well."