The 2009 SMC football season has not started well. The Corsairs have dropped the first three games of the season. They are 0-3.

In the first quarter of the first game of the season, the Corsairs came out strong. As their opponents, Orange Coast College, attempted a punt from deep in their own territory, the hike from the center goes awry causing the punter to fumble. In the mellay that followed Corsair Steven Gentili recovers the ball in the end zone and scores six for the home team. The point after was missed, but the score remained 6-0 for the rest of the first quarter due mainly to the Corsair defense. They simply shut down a very capable OCC offense.

Everything changed in the second quarter. OCC scored one touchdown on a 25 yard fumble recovery and two more touchdowns executing some great offense. The Corsairs were able to move the ball down the field but never got close enough to even try a field goal. OCC held the Corsairs scoreless in the second quarter and had 20 unanswered points. The half ended with a score of 20-6.

Offensively, the third quarter was not any better for the Corsairs - they scored no points. The defense managed to hold OCC to only ten points, but at 30-6, things were not looking good for the home team.

In the fourth quarter, the offense looked as good as they would all night. In fact, SMC was not out of the game with only 6:49 left and down by a score of 37-22. They started a drive deep in their own territory that looked like they were going to score and make this game one heck of a game. Instead of scoring however, they fumbled which lead to a OCC touchdown. This was the proverbial straw that put the game out of reach. SMC scored one final touchdown in the last minute of the game but it was too little too late. The final score was 44-28.

Last night, Saturday Sept. 19th, the Corsairs hosted the Bakersfield Renegades. Once again SMC looked pretty good in the first quarter. The Corsair defense held the Renegades to three points even though Bakersfield had three chances to get into the end zone. SMC's defense was tight. They forced a turnover and thwarted Bakersfield's best efforts at moving down the field. Conversely, the Corsair offense simply could get the ball close to the red zone either in the air or on the ground.

When all said and done however, the turnovers, the absence of first downs and the inability to score plague the SMC Corsairs. On a positive note, the Corsairs had their moments. On several drives they looked like a well oiled machine driving from one end of the field to the other . Those moments were few and far between although. And if they came close to the red zone they'd turn the ball over or have to punt.

If we must characterize the SMC Corsairs in one word, that word would be – inconsistent