Orange Coast could make up Golden West game

Should the Orange Coast College football team not qualify to play in a bowl game this season, it will play Golden West, either Nov. 16 or 17 at OCC, Coach Mike Taylor said.

The game between district rivals, originally scheduled Oct. 27 as Golden West’s homecoming, was canceled the day before, due to poor air quality created by Orange County fires.

Taylor said the Commission on Athletics, which oversees California community college sports, voted earlier in the week to provide conferences that had to cancel games last week a one-time waiver to make up the games.

The game with Golden West would either be played Friday, Nov. 16, or Saturday, Nov. 17, before the regularly scheduled Orange County Bowl, for which OCC is the host.

The Pirates (3-4), ranked No. 20 in Southern California, are a long shot to earn the program’s third straight bowl game. They would need to defeat heavily favored El Camino (6-1), ranked No. 2 in Southern California, today at 5 p.m., then beat visiting Long Beach City College on Nov. 10 to post the 5-4 record needed to even be considered for a bowl berth.

— Barry Faulkner