JC Football: OCC’s White (Oregon State), Worthy (Northern Arizona) moving on
More so than in at least a decade, the Orange Coast College football team earned bragging rights on the field in 2015. Now, the Pirates have more reason to brag about their players.
Sophomore tailback Kyle White and freshman strong safety Brandon Worthy, announced they will play football next season at Oregon State and Northern Arizona, respectively, in an on-campus ceremony on Wednesday. And word on the future football homes of several more Pirates are forthcoming in the near future, Coach Kevin Emerson said.
White, a 6-foot-1, 210-pound bounce-back from Harding University in Arkansas, led the Pirates with 699 yards and six touchdowns on 135 rushing attempts to help OCC finish 7-4 and make its first bowl appearance since 2006. A two-time second-team All-Southern Conference honoree, White also caught 28 passes for 196 yards in 2015.
Worthy, a 5-11, 180-pounder out of Vista Murrieta High, was second on the team with 55 tackles and led the team with five interceptions. The second-team all-conference performer also recovered three fumbles to help OCC finish second in the Southern Conference and earn victories over highly regarded programs including Golden West (ranked No. 1 in the state at the time) and Fullerton (No. 9 in the state at the time).
White, who played high school football in Alabama, rushed for a team-best 581 yards and had 10 receptions for 44 yards as an OCC freshman, when he scored seven touchdowns.
“I chose Oregon State because it’s a great school, it’s a great team and a great place to further my academics,” said White, whose father, Mark White, ran the 110-meter high hurdles for the Beavers.
White’s decision to stay at OCC a second season paid big dividends, Emerson said.
“The [difference between scholarship] opportunities Kyle had last year to this year are basically night and day,” Emerson said. “He gave himself an extra year to develop and to get on the radar of these schools and in doing so, he landed at a Pac-12 school, one of the top conferences in the country.”
Worthy, who will have three years of eligibility in Flagstaff, said his options coming out of high school were limited.
“Unfortunately, I didn’t get the looks I could have gotten,” Worthy said. “My grades weren’t Harvard material, so that kind of hurt me, and I think size was a factor. There were just some things ... I had adversity, but I trusted God and I’m in a good position now.
“I visited [Northern Arizona] this past weekend. It was beautiful scenery, good people and I think I’ll be able to make an impact there.”
Both White and Worthy said Orange Coast had a big impact on their development, as players and people.
“Everything we did together as a team under Coach Emerson helped me,” White said. “I had a new running backs coach [former Costa Mesa High head man Wally Grant] and he taught me more than I knew in all my previous years playing football. He helped me become a better running back and a better player overall. And Coach Emerson helped me become a stronger athlete, mentally and physically. My whole JC time period has made me a stronger person. I know whatever happens at the next level, I’ll be prepared.”
Worthy, part of a secondary that produced 18 interceptions and a defense that finished the regular season ranked No. 15 in the state and No. 7 in Southern California in fewest points allowed (22.4 per game), said he benefited from the level of competition.
“One thing I loved about JC football is the camaraderie and that everybody is hungry,” Worthy said. “In high school, you get those guys who don’t really want to be there. At this level, you don’t have that. Everybody on the team is focused, striving to be their best. It was a lot of fun playing with a lot of guys that are all on the same mission.”
Sophomore defensive tackle Josh Odigie (Central Florida) and sophomore cornerback Joseph Jackson (Colorado State) have made verbal commitments.
Sophomore cornerback Derrick Worthy, a first-team all-conference player, has received an offer from Central Michigan and has also visited Colorado State and Texas-San Antonio.
Sophomore receiver Stefan Derrick, a first-team all-conference honoree who had 65 receptions for 1,161 yards and 16 touchdowns, has recruiting trips scheduled for Youngstown State this weekend, and Texas State the following weekend. He also listed Midwestern State in Texas as a school that is expressing strong interest.
Sophomore quarterback Mason Dossey, a first-team all-conference choice after throwing for 2,457 yards and 21 touchdowns in his only season at OCC after transferring from Humboldt State, is also being looked at by Youngstown State and Arkansas Tech, among others.
Sophomore defensive tackle Bobby Hill has received interest from Texas-San Antonio, Stony Brook, Lindenwood, Angelo State and Adams State.
Sophomore cornerback Gilbert Gildersleeve is considering Toledo, Western Alabama and Fairmont State.
Sophomore fullback Ian Pogue has an offer from Bethany College in West Virginia.
Sophomore tailback Daniel Rodriguez and sophomore receiver Darrel Watts both have a scholarship offer from Fairmont State in West Virginia, a school that joins Adams State with an interest in sophomore second-team all-conference center Brett Landon, Emerson said.
“We have some verbal commitments, but that’s still in the evaluation phase,” Emerson said. “Recruiting is kind of like a tidal wave. Once that wave starts, it gets bigger and bigger and bigger. Some of our guys are experiencing that right now. When one offer comes in, you tend to start to get other offers.”
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•In other OCC football news, Emerson said Carl Lopez, a secondary coach at OCC in 2014 before coaching at Whittier College last fall, will return to become the defensive coordinator. Lopez, who was previously a defensive coordinator at Pasadena City College and College of DePage, Emerson said, will replace Wayne Schmida, who ran the defense the last two years. Emerson said Schmida is stepping down to spend more time with his family.
