OCC ripe for more production

Improved offensive line and Crowell bolster Pirates’ hopes against Gauchos.The most productive offensive performance of the football season for Orange Coast College also ended in the Pirates’ most disappointing defeat Saturday against unbeaten El Camino.

Coming off a 36-33 loss to the Warriors (6-0), ranked No. 2 in Southern California, the Pirates (3-3, 0-1 in the Mission Conference National Division), will attempt to engineer a happier ending today at 5 p.m. at Saddleback.

The Gauchos (4-2, 1-0) are ranked No. 8 in Southern California.

OCC, ranked No. 16 in Southern California, scored five offensive touchdowns against El Camino, after producing just five in its first five games.

And while the insertion of freshman Kekoa Crowell at quarterback was an obvious boost, Coach Mike Taylor said he believes improved line play was the primary catalyst for the offensive productivity.

“Coach [Doug] Smith has been spending a lot of time with those guys coaching them up,” Taylor said.

Smith, a former six-time All-Pro offensive lineman with the then-Los Angeles Rams, has been working overtime to help the five-player unit -- which has one returning starter -- find some consistency.

“They definitely played better [against El Camino],” Taylor said. “And the quarterback play was better with Kekoa. His ability to run a little and get outside the pocket helped create a couple things for us.”

Crowell, expected to start this week despite exiting late in the El Camino game with a right shoulder injury, was 12 of 18 for 111 passing yards and two touchdowns last week.

Still, OCC ranks last in the 12-team conference in total offense (just more than 222 yards per game).

The Gauchos -- sixth in the conference in total offense (352 yards per game) and third in rushing offense (162.3 yards per contest) -- will be dueling a defense that has been OCC’s strength.

The Pirates rank second in the conference in total defense (just shy of 282 yards per game) and are tops in rushing defense (not quite 65 yards per outing).

“Saddleback is a good football team, but I’m not sure [the Gauchos] are as good as they’ve been offensively,” Taylor said.

Saddleback is led by freshmen running backs Daniel Dixon (571 yards and five touchdowns on 116 carries) and PT Gates (427 yards and three touchdowns on 63 attempts).

Sophomore Jake Buchanan is the leading passer (472 yards on 39 completions in 80 attempts with two interceptions and two touchdowns), though Taylor said Saddleback has been rotating quarterbacks since losing former Newport Harbor High star Kasey Peters to a broken arm early in the season.

Quincy Lever is the Gauchos’ leading receiver with 26 catches for 364 yards. Matt White -- the son of former OCC quarterback Dave White, now the longtime coach at Edison High -- has 20 catches for 218 yards this fall.

Sophomore tailback Robert Aoki and sophomore receiver Shane Hoffman, both of whom scored two touchdowns last week, have stood out for the Pirates.

Aoki has 433 rushing yards on 92 carries, while Hoffman -- the conference leader in kickoff return average (37.3 yards on 12 attempts, including two touchdowns) -- has 15 receptions for 204 yards and three touchdowns.