The Laney College Eagles football team continues to roll on both offense and defense.

The Laney College Eagles football team continues to roll on both offense and defense.

The Eagles’ latest victim: The Feather River Golden Eagles, who were blasted by Laney 47-13 on Sept. 18 in Quincy.

For the Laney fans who made the four-plus hour trip up a winding Highway 70, they were treated to a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter when quarterback Noah Suszckiewicz (Berkeley High School) threw touchdown passes of 50 yards to Keith Tracy (Antioch HS) and 31 yards t o Ronald Thomas (San Leandro HS).

The Eagles extended the lead to 20-0 when Ahmari Davis (12 carries, 68 yards, James Logan HS) scored on a 3-yard run with 12:29 left in the second quarter. Marcel Dancy (12 carries, 94 yards, West HS-Oakland) scored on a 3-yard run with 2:40 left in the first half.

Laney led 27-13 at the half.

The second half was all Eagles. Armani Turner-Jenkins (Berkeley HS) picked off a pass and raced 35 yards for a touchdown just 15 seconds into the third quarter.

Laney made it 40-13 when quarterback Andrew Ve’e (Encinal HS) threw a 4-yard scoring pass to Devond Blair, Jr. (Bunche HS-Oakland) with 5:11 left in the third quarter. Dancy capped off the Eagles’ scoring when he ran 34 yards for a touchdown with 3:22 remaining in the third period.

Suszckiewicz completed 9 of 16 passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns as Laney rolled up 451 yards in total offense.

The Laney defense was sterling, especially in the second half when it held Feather River scoreless. Imani Moore (Dublin HS) led the effort with six solo tackles and two assists. Armani-Turner, besides his interception, had three solo tackles and four assists.

Joseph Butler (Sam Houston HS, San Antonio) and Cameron Nathan (Antioch HS) each had two solo tackles and three assists. The Eagles intercepted three passes—Turner-Jenkins, Da’Meak Brandon (La Salle HS-Cincinnati) and Zach Zimmerman (Monroe HS-Monroe, WA). Thomas was also credited with a blocked punt.

The Eagles’ ‘D’ held Feather River to 263 yards of total offense with just 74 coming in the second half.

Laney’s next game is Friday, Sept. 22, when it plays host to DeAnza College. It is Laney Alumni Night.

By Scott Strain

Laney College Sports Information

Laney makes history with double win over CCS

Wonder of wonders, miracles of miracles.
The Laney College football team has defeated City College of San Francisco twice in one season for the first time ever.
The Eagles (9-2) finished their best season since 2007 when they defeated the Rams 49-35 on Dec. 3 in the San Francisco Community College Bowl at CCSF. Laney had previously defeated CCSF 18-13 on Sept. 2 in the season opener in Oakland.

“I think the emphasis of the season is that we started strong and ended strong,” head coach John Beam said. “They played with tremendous enthusiasm and never quit.
“We won two games in the last minute and it just shows that the players kept fighting.”
Laney gained a school-record 652 yards in total offense against CCSF, including 360 yards rushing.
Quarterback Noah Suszckiewicz had his best performance of the season, completing 11 of 20 passes for 257 yards and four touchdowns. Running back Marcel Dancy ran 19 times for 117 yards.
Wide receiver Sean Pinson caught five passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns.
Laney jumped off to a 14-0 lead in the first four minutes of the first quarter. Suszckiewicz threw a 46-yard scoring pass to Pinson just three plays into the game and Ahmari Davis ran 42 yards for another touchdown three minutes later.
But the Eagles couldn’t hold the lead. CCSF came back to score two touchdowns in the latter part of the quarter to tie the game at 14-14.
It stayed that way after a scoreless second quarter, but things really got going in the third quarter when six touchdowns were scored—four in a span of less than three minutes.
Suszckiewicz threw an 86-yard TD pass to Pinson for a 20-14 lead with 7:46 left in the quarter and, after a CCSF fumble, then threw a 41-yard scoring pass to Michael Maxwell for a 27-14 lead with 7:25 left.
After another CCSF turnover, Suszckiewicz threw his fourth touchdown pass of the game, this one of 3 yards to Bryce Grandison with 5:31 left for a 34-14 lead.
The score stood for 13 seconds. Namane Modise ran the ensuing kickoff back 90 yards for the Rams to cut the lead to 34-21. CCSF scored again with 1:18 left in the period and all of a sudden Laney was clinging to a 34-28 lead.
But on the first play from scrimmage after that score, Laney running back John McDonald ran a scintillating 70 yards for a touchdown with 1:02 left in the period to extend the lead to 40-28. McDonald evaded three CCSF defenders inside the 10-yard line before scoring.
The Rams cut the lead to 40-35 with 14:35 left in the fourth quarter, but Suszckiewicz scored on a 1-yard run with 7:45 left in the game to push the Laney lead to 47-35 and give the Eagles a little breathing room.
From that point on, the Eagles defense stiffened and forced a safety with 4:02 left in the game that gave Laney the final two points of the game.

Senator’s speech inspires athletes

N.J. Senator Corey Booker visits Laney College Field House to talk confidence, success

New Jersey Senator Corey Booker (D) was the featured guest at a gathering of the Laney football team dinner on Thursday, Oct. 20. The team, now ranked fourth in the state, has a tradition of having a meal together following their last practice prior to away games.
The former mayor of Newark, New Jersey, Booker is a rising star in the Democratic Party. He gave the keynote address at this year’s Democratic National Convention, speaking right before First Lady Michelle Obama. Booker was even considered for the role of vice president this year by Democratic Party presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.
After a heaping meal of salad, spaghetti and bread, there was excitement in the air.
Laney College President Patricia Stanley, Executive Vice Chancellor of Strategic Planning and Advancement Elñora Webb, and Laney College Dean of Student Services Philip King were also present.
They, like everyone else, were waiting for the senator.
Webb got up and introduced herself to the team. She then introduced Stanley and King. Shortly, after she was finished, Peralta Chancellor Jowel Laguerre arrived.
When the senator entered the room, there was a round of wild applause.
Although he is from New Jersey, he attended Stanford University before becoming a Rhodes Scholar and later attended Yale Law School.
Head Coach John Beam arranged, through mutual friends, to have the senator, who was in town raising funds for Barbra Lee’s re-election campaign, speak to the team.

Laney Football Head Coach John Beam and New Jersey Senator Corey Booker pose for a picture after addressing the team and assorted dignitaries. The Senator, who was an All-American and attended Stanford University, inspired the team.

From the moment he began speaking, Booker had the entire room hanging on every word he said. He told stories about being a football player and about his young adult experiences that the players could relate to.
He talked about mistakes that he had made and the goals that he had set for himself.
He told the players that “any one of you could succeed at Stanford.” He let them know that all they had to do was set the bar high for themselves. He suggested they write all their goals down.
He told them how he had written all his goals on a whiteboard and made a promise to get no grade lower than a “B” at Stanford.
He also told them, “Confidence is a choice, and I have seen people win just through confidence and swagger.”
He also said, “You need to model the changes you want to see in the world.”
Many of the things he said seem like standard inspirational speeches, but because they were coming from such a dynamic speaker, who peppered his advice with personal stories tailored to his audience, his audience was entranced.
After his speech, Booker opened up the floor for questions. The players asked everything from how he got through hard times to how he decided to get into politics.
At one point, Coach Beam interrupted to point out that one player, Bryce Grandison, had been elected president of the Laney Phi Theta Kappa chapter.
Following the question and answer period, Booker was presented with a Laney Football T-shirt.
Coach Beam reminded the players that a United States senator had taken his valuable time to speak to them because of their potential both on and off the field, so they should take his advice to heart.
The coach also reminded them that potential was a “bad” word because it meant they had not yet achieved what they were capable of.
That weekend, the team defeated The College of the Sequoias 35 to 6, moving from fifth to fourth place in the state.