Zach Adkins does it all: 371 passing yards, 5 TDs, and 1 rushing TD in 63-35 toppling over El Camino College

RIVERSIDE (10-13-2012) – Sophomore Zach Adkins continues to shine as the best quarterback in the state. Adkins led the Tigers to a 63-35 mid-day victory against visiting El Camino College.  With the win, it marks the first time that Riverside has beaten the Warriors in ten years. Prior to this win, RCC had lost eight straight to El Camino College. All of those eight losses came prior to the arrival of Coach Tom Craft and his staff.

"It's a good win for us. We're trying to change our program, and I think we're doing that," Coach Craft said shortly after the victory. "Obviously, we are spreading the ball really well offensively, and sometimes you got to outscore people, and we did that today."

After trailing 15-7 at the conclusion of the first quarter, the Tigers responded with some well-rounded lethal offense. After the Warriors failed to reach a first down in three plays at the end of the first quarter, RCC received the ball on the Riverside 46-yard line when the Warriors punted the ball out of bounds. On the first possession of the second quarter, the Tigers ran a trick play that led to Adkins pitching the ball back to wide receiver Breon Redman, who then threw a 54-yard pass to an uncovered Jamil Austin for touchdown. After stopping the Warriors from getting another first down, the Tigers recorded eight plays for 76 yards that concluded with EJ Schexnayder rushing a 10-yard touchdown on first and goal. The Tigers then scored another touchdown when Adkins threw Devonn Brown a 14-yard touchdown reception with nine seconds left in the half. However, El Camino College closed the half with quarterback Jesse Scroggins finding receiver Michael Thompson on a Hail Mary 68-yard touchdown pass as time expired. RCC led 28-22 at the half.

With RCC leading 35-22 early in the third quarter, Scroggins connected with Thompson yet again for another remarkable 68-yard Hail Mary touchdown pass up the Tigers sideline with 10:39 to play in the third quarter. Riverside responded with two passing and two rushing touchdowns to close out the Warriors in the second half.

Schexnayder finished with 126 rushing yards, 87 receiving yards, and two touchdowns. Backup quarterback Tyler Shreve used his 230-pound body to punish the Warriors on the ground by gaining 55 yards on six carries, including a 19-yard rushing touchdown to finalize the game score. The Tigers totaled 439 receiving yards with six touchdowns from six different players.

"Another great game for EJ Schexnayder…Zack continues to lead the nation in passing," Coach Craft said. "So, you know, we're getting good production out of our whole offense. It's not just coming from one or two or three guys. Those two guys are really kind of at the top of their games. They're both leading the conference in their respective positions."

On defense, Paul Senn led the Tigers for the third consecutive game with eight tackles. Tray Hall notched five tackles.

RCC (6-1, 4-0 Central Conference), ranked number three in the Southern California Community College Football Poll, will travel to play Citrus, ranked number four in the Southern California Community College Football Poll, at 1 p.m. on Saturday.

Photo proivded by Dan Henley/Special to Viewpoints: Zach Adkins leads the conference with 1,979 passing yards.