Butte welcomes heat in opener
Roadrunners kick off at 1 p.m. Saturday at home vs. College of Sequoias
BUTTE VALLEY >> Saturday’s forecast for the Butte College football team’s home opener suggests temperates will reach above 100 degrees, but the Roadrunners are ready and eager to take the field.
The Butte College football team will host College of the Sequoias in both teams’ season opener Saturday at 1 p.m. at Cowan Stadium in Butte Valley.
Roadrunners head coach Robby Snelling said all focus is on game one, and until the team sees live game action the coaching staff will know where the team is truly at. Butte is replacing 11 starters on defense so Snelling said for fans to expect to see a lot of new faces at a variety of positions.
“You never know how each team is going to respond and we answered that question last year with a kick return for a touchdown in the first game with a minute and a half left in the game. We had a couple other games where unfortunately we didn’t get it done,” Snelling said. “For all these guys coming in and guys that have been here and they’re trying to figure out where they fit. I just tell them all them it’s performance over feelings. It’s just our consistency. Whoever performs at the highest level on a consistent basis is going to have the first opportunity to play and probably the most opportunity to play.”
Snelling said his team has been preparing for the heat since day one of training and it is not a concern for he or his team.
“We love it, bring the heat. The hotter the better for us,” Snelling said. “We’re in it, we practice in it, these guys know that we have to prepare for that and to hydrate and to take care our bodies. These guys know that that’s something that is a real thing being a college athlete and the higher levels you go you have to take care of yourself.”
Key returners
Pleasant Valley High School alumnus (class of 2019) Tanner Hughes will start behind the center as the quarterback for the Roadrunners in Week One. Hughes saw some action behind last
year’s starter Brian Harper in his freshman season. Snelling said Hughes is athletic similar to Harper but is a bigger bodied quarterback who has, “A really, really big arm. He can sling it.” Snelling said Hughes can make all the throws coaches are asking, whether it is a cross-field throw or a deep ball down the field.
Another key returner is this year’s starting running back Caleb Ramseur, who saw time last season and impressed coaches as the No. 2 running back behind last season’s starter Johnny Williams.
The Butte College wide receiving core is possibly its most experienced group of returning players, despite losing Adam Bunch and Conner McKenzie. Willows High School alumnus Logan Blair, DJ Jackson, Chandler Monahan, Troy Davis and Jailen Hammer all return as pass catchers for Hughes.
Elijah O’Neal returns for Butte at outside linebacker and defensive end, defensive lineman Lathun Snipes has returned on the defensive line, Lydell Hudson is a returner who played safety and corner back last season and Pleasant Valley High School alumnus Grant Garretson has moved from outside linebacker to middle
linebacker for the 2022 season.
Pleasant Valley High School alumnus Dante Jackson (class of 2020) is scheduled to handle a majority of both the punting and kicking duties in 2022. Jackson did the punting for Butte College last season and many of the longer kicking attempts, but Gabe Estabrook handled the point after attempts last season. Snelling said
Jackson has looked really good thus far and put himself ahead while being the most consistent.
New players to watch
Snelling pointed to Christian Vaughn and Deremy Stubbs as two running backs who have done a nice job in training thus far. Alex Tapia moved from defensive line to offensive line and has impressed coaches in the transition. Offensive
lineman Simiu Lets has impressed coaches and will start for the Roadrunners at center. Aidan Corning is a transfer from Simon Fraser in Canada who will play some interior offensive line.
Position battles
Snelling said there are still some things the team is figuring out while replacing its 11 starters on defense, but he did state that he expects all three quarterbacks to play at some point this season.
Biggest strength
Snelling pointed to his returners as the team’s strength, something he typically feels at this point of each season.
“The returners you feel pretty good about and guys that have played here and know how we do things and are familiar with the system and the terminology and schemes on offense and defense,” Snelling said. “Then you have the new guys who are really talented, there are always a lot of talented guys that come in here, it’s just kind of who’s picking things up the quickest. You might miss a chance for a rep if you’re not paying attention, you might miss an opportunity at practice somewhere where you might have made a play to move yourself up.”
Snelling expects this to continue through the first few games until Golden Valley Conference play begins Oct. 15 at home against Santa Rosa. He said the first five weeks the team is trying to figure out who the best 11 players are on every phase of the ball. The Roadrunners have had four weeks of practice and now they enter game week with an abundance of new faces.
“A lot of it is establishing who is who in that first five games and just trying to put yourself in the best position going into league play,” Snelling said. “These guys know we only get 10 so every game’s a big game. We’ve always got a great schedule and I’m looking forward to the schedule and who we have but it’s one game at a time as always, so all our focus is on Sequoias.”
Key matchups
Despite the Roadrunners’ focus being on College of Sequoias, there are several matchups to look towards on their schedule.
After the matchup against Sequoias, Butte will travel to Diablo Valley College in the East Bay in Week Two. In Week Three the Roadrunners will return home for a matchup with City College of San Francisco, where a pregame ceremony will be held honoring the five members of the 2022 Butte College Hall of Fame Class.
Week Six is Butte’s Golden Valley Conference opener against Santa Rosa Junior College and the “I wear pink for _ game” to honor Breast Cancer Awareness.
The Roadrunners will close out their regular season Nov. 12 at home against Shasta for Sophomore Day and Veterans Appreciation Day.
Tickets for the 2022 season may be purchased via credit card online or on side only. No cash transactions are available for the 2022 season.