Saturday night's 34-17 BC win over Hancock was the most impressive game of the season for the Renegades.

Sure, they beat Santa Monica 60-14 on Sept. 20, but Santa Monica is awful. Hancock is OK, not great, but a lot of little things made this BC's best game.

-- Only one fumble, and it was at the end of the game with the backups playing.

-- Sure-tackling from the get-go. Missed or failed tackles have plagued BC all season before the Hancock game.

-- Effective kicking game from the scoring perspective. Arturo Villa 2-for-2 on field goals and 4-for-4 on PATs. Numerous blocked kicks have been almost a weekly happening before Saturday, but Hancock never got close to Villa. BC still needs to improve its kickoff play, but that is mainly because the kickoffs aren't going deep enough.

-- Avoidance of those 12- or 10-men on the field situations. Didn't happen once on Saturday.

Some other highlights:

-- A great punt block by Yul Hawkins, a defensive back from Centennial. Hawkins later suffered an ankle injury and was on crutches at the end of the game. But he got the block in the first quarter, which gave BC possession on the Hancock 37, which set up an eventual field goal.

--Tyrone Crawford, a defensive lineman, seemed to be all over the field. He got the game's only sack and made numerous tackles, many for losses, that helped thwart Hancock's running game.

Next up is Moorpark, a road game in Simi Valley next Saturday. Moorpark got smoked by Canyons on Saturday, 48-3.

Canyons, which plays at BC to close the regular season in mid-November, looks like a contender for the state championship. El Camino, which beat BC in Week 3 and is undefeated, doesn't seem like as strong a team as what we've seen play BC the last couple of years. El Camino did beat Chaffey 30-15 on Saturday,

--30--

There's no sugar-coating it.

Bakersfield College's 31-28 loss to Pasadena City College Saturday night is a case of (choose one): been there, done that; or same-old, same-old.

Poor tackling. Defense unable to consistently stop drives. Offense that is pretty much one-dimensional. Those nagging, frustrating mistakes (poor kicking execution, whether it's having field goals or PATs blocked, which is becoming a weekly occurrence, or having short kickoff that are returned into BC territory; lack of focus--how else do you explain the weekly 2-3 times having 12 men on the field?)

BC coach Jeff Chudy challenged his team to win out; winning out is the only way to make the playoffs, he told the team and the media after Saturday's game.

But this team hasn't shown its capable of stringing wins together. The only victory thus far was a blowout of a very poor Santa Monica team. And no one on the BC schedule the rest of the season is as bad as Santa Monica. BC has played its two weakest teams, going 1-1 vs. Santa Monica and L.A. Valley.

In 1986, BC started 1-4, then improved somewhat in Western State Conference play to finish 4-6.

This new conference BC is in, the Northern National Conference, is much stronger than the  WSC of 1986. This new conference is made up of teams that have been successful in recent seasons. That's why those teams were lumped together. You won't see 0-10, 1-9 or 2-8 teams from the last couple of years in this conference. For a team struggling like BC, it makes running the table next to impossible.

At this point, pride's at stake for BC. The challenge is to get better and get a few wins, even if the playoffs are a longshot. The effort is there, but the execution hasn't been. That must improve, or a truly horrendous won-lost record (2-8? 3-7? lucky to go 4-6?) is likely.

Since the 1972 Renegades went 3-6, BC has had two losing seasons: 4-6 teams in 1986 and 2002.

Bakersfield College fell to 1-3 Saturday night (Sept. 27) when it lost 32-29 to undefeated El Camino College on a field goal with 10 seconds remaining.

Several thing jumped out at me as I watched the game:

-- El Camino, for an undefeated team that's ranked 4th in the state, made so many mistakes.

-- BC, which looked fairly adept at running the ball in the first half, was completely stopped in the second half.

--BC also made so many mistakes on a lot of little things, the type of things that have reared their head numerous times in the first four games.

Let's address each of those items.

El Camino: Three times in the second quarter, the Warriors were penalized for delay of game -- simply because they were slow getting their plays off.

Twice in the third quarter, El Camino had to call time out because it had only 10 men on the field. Twice El Camino was penalized for having 12 men on the field. One of those gave BC a first down on the Gades' only second-half touchdown drive as BC lined up to go for a first down on fourth-and-inches.

Then there were the physical mistakes by El Camino: fumbled snap from center to quarterback (at least twice); quarterback fumbling twice on decent (not great) snaps in shotgun formation. Two poor snaps on place-kicks (one PAT was blocked; one field goal was made despite a poor snap).

El Camino won this game because it had a dominant performance on the offensive and defensive lines. The best illustration of that: total yards in the 2nd half. BC had nine net rushing yards and 37 passing yards (46 total yards). El Camino in the 2nd half: 62 rushing yards and 142 passing yards (204 total yards). BC: 2 first downs in the 2nd half, El Camino 10.

BC: Bruce Frieson, who had three TD runs and a game-high 98 yards on 15 carries, had only five carries (for 11 yards with a lost fumble) in the second half. Frieson's lost fumble came on BC's first play from scrimmage in the third quarter and set up a field goal.

Andre Smith, probably BC's second-most dangerous player behind Frieson, touched the ball three times in the second half  (excluding kick returns) -- on three straight carries in the third quarter, gaining nine yards.

BC mistakes: The Renegades had to burn a timeout by having only 10 men on the field with El Camino closing in on a touchdown.

The BC kicking game again struggled. Arturo Villa had a PAT blocked and missed another one when El Camino had a hard rush from his left that he had to see out of the corner of his eyes. Punter Will Mahan had a great kicking game, but even he was pressured and El Camino came close to blocking a pair of punts.

And those third-down conversions, which were so costly to BC in its season-opening 31-25 loss to Fresno. BC was only 1-of-7 but El Camino was 11-of-16, and 6-of-6 in the second half.

As mentioned in the story that ran Sunday morning: All five of BC's scoring drives began inside El Camino territory. When BC started drives inside Renegade territory, the Gades never crossed midfield.

BC opens its conference play next Saturday at Pasadena. Pasadena beat RIverside City College 32-15 on Saturday.

Another score of note: Santa Monica, which BC routed 60-14 last week, beat L.A. Valley (which beat BC two weeks ago). That score was 38-24.

Bakersfield College put together its finest all-around game of the young season Saturday night, a 60-14 win over Santa Monica College.

BC was 0-2 prior to Saturday and was desperate for a win. Everything clicked on Saturday. The offense was strong — so strong the passing game was an afterthought. Defensively, BC had two interceptions returned for touchdowns and three fumble recoveries after having zero takeaways in the first two games.

As dominant as Saturday's game was, the real gauge on how good BC is will come Saturday night when El Camino comes to town.

El Camino, the state champion two years ago that was knocked out of the playoffs last year by the Renegades, was ranked No. 4 in the state poll last week and was off to a 2-0 start entering Saturday night.

BC coach Jeff Chudy told his players after Saturday's massacre over Santa Monica that El Camino is the best team BC has played this year. That's saying a lot, since BC lost to current No.2-ranked Fresno City College in the season opener.

Santa Monica made so many mistakes it was an easy game for BC. The Gades had to execute, to be sure, and they did. But don't expect El Camino to sleepwalk through the second half of the game and have so many missed tackles like Santa Monica had.

BC had two areas of concern on Saturday: the place-kicking game and too many penalties.

BC had, by my count, seven major penalties (penalties of 10 or 15 yards). Personal fouls, late hits out of bounds, chop blocks — those type of things are the type of mistakes that need to be reduced.

Place-kicker Arturo Villa had a rough night, but it wasn't his fault. Poor blocking and horrendous snaps on extra points marred his effort. Three extra points were missed — at least two because of bad snaps and possibly a third. Two field goal attempts were blocked.

You can bet that will be a focus the upcoming week in practice.

And then we'll see where the Renegades are.

A big play on third down again played a pivotal role in Bakersfield College's football misfortunes.

A 70-yard TD on third-and-13 tied the game in the first quarter, but it was an emotional lift to a Valley team that had lost 48-3 one week earlier. From that point on, Valley dug in and gave BC more than it wanted.

One week earlier, BC lost 31-25 to a Fresno City College team that converted 11-of-15 third down chances, including 7-of-8 in the first quarter.

You see it so often in sports: a weaker team is allowed to hang around in a close game, and then that team pulls off an upset.

One startling aspect of the game: BC's inability to score after reaching the red zone.

Six times Saturday night BC moved the ball inside the Valley 20-yard line. Three times the Renegades came away with zero points, twice BC was limited to short field goals, and once BC scored a touchdown.

A rundown:

-- The second series. BC drove from its 25 to the goal line, but got nothing out of it when fullback Justin Jackson fumbled when he was hit as he reached the goal line. Valley recovered in the end zone for a touchback.

-- BC scored its only TD of the night on the next red zone possession, a drive that started on the Renegade 34 and ended with Matt Peralta's 10-yard TD run.

-- On a drive that started late in the first quarter and ended in the second, BC drove from its 16 to the Valley 3, but couldn't punch it in, so BC settled for a 19-yard Arturo Villa field goal.

-- With a chance to take the lead at halftime, BC drove from its 28 to the Valley 11. But freshman WR Chikadibia Madu caught a short pass, saw nowhere to run and inexplicably ran backwards trying to make something happen. He lost five yards, and BC then lost seven more yards on the next play when quarterback Nick Gauthier badly overthrew a lateral that went out of bounds. The normally reliable Villa then missed a 40-yard FG try.

-- In the third quarter, BC drove from its 20 to the Valley 3, but again had to settle for a short Villa field goal when Gauthier threw high to a wide open TE Zack Lewis in the end zone on third-and-goal. Lewis got his fingertips on the ball but couldn't hold it.

-- And in the fourth quarter, BC drove from its 20 to the Valley 17. BC trailed 17-13 at the time (there was 6:38 remaining). Villa was initially sent on the field for a possible field goal, but the Renegade coaches changed their minds and went for the first down on fourth-and-2. Gauthier threw incomplete to end that drive.

Valley, to its credit, was effective calling running plays when BC inserted six defensive backs looking for passes. Valley used a no-huddle offense the entire night, which limits defensive substitutions.

There were other issues that cost BC dearly. One of the biggest plays occurred as Valley attempted a 50-yard field goal early in the second quarter. The attempt fell short but a roughing-the-kicker penalty gave the Monarchs a first down. The drive stalled shortly after that, but kicker Dylan Brenton made the easier 34-yard FG that ensued.

BC had some bright moments. Probably the highlight was keeping the Monarchs from scoring when they had a first-and-goal from inside the 1 in the fourth quarter. BC stuffed an option run and kept Valley's top runner out of the end zone. And the subsequent field goal try was blocked.

Santa Monica (0-2) is next up for BC, next Saturday at Memorial Stadium.

Fresno CC, by the way, recorded a stunning victory Saturday: 24-17 over defending state champion and top-ranked City College of San Francisco.

There were several aspects of the Bakersfield High vs. Canyon High season opening game at Canyon Country last night (Sept. 5) that didn't make it into the story that ran in Saturday's paper. Chalk that up to an early deadline and limited space.

Both teams were quality, but plagued by fumbles. Two BHS fumbles in the fourth quarter led to touchdowns (which I mentioned in the story), but also of note was the first Canyon possession, when Canyon raced down field and set up a field goal. The holder, Chris Rivas (who had a huge impact in the game being close) bobbled the snap, then tried to run and fumbled again. BHS' Chris Anderson picked it up and went 47 yards to the Canyon 18, setting up a touchdown.

Canyon's second TD was set up by a fumble by BHS' J.J. Johnson on the kickoff following the tying touchdown. What was interesting about the go-ahead TD play was Canyon going for a quick snap when it appeared the Cowboys would let the clock run out. I think that caught the Drillers off-guard and BHS wasn't dug in for a goal-line play, and a 3-yard TD run followed.

Two BHS fumbles inside the final 4:10 in the fourth quarter led to two Canyon TDs that cut what had been a 38-14 BHS lead to 38-32.

BHS recovered the onside kick with 54.6 seconds left on the 46-yard line. Canyon had two timeouts remaining, and I thought the Drillers could have used a little better clock management in those final 54.6 that would have eliminated any chance of a Canyons comeback.

Quarterback Alex Mitchell (who had a great, heady game, I thought, in his first start and with the added burden of following in his brother Peter's huge footsteps from last year) had a quick handoff for a 4-yard gain and Canyon called its second time out. I felt any time a handoff occurs, there's a chance for a mistake -- such as a fumble -- and thought Mitchell should have kept the ball, tried to eat up a few seconds before taking a knee prior to the arrival of any defender.

But the first handoff was quickly stopped, and the timeout was quickly called. Another handoff followed, and the final timeout came with 36.7 seconds left, leaving BHS in a third-and-3 situation. A quick knee at that point would not have run out the clock, so again BHS did a handoff. The gain went for a first down, clinching the game.

But I couldn't help but think back to that NFL game from many years ago when a handoff was fumbled and returned for a game-winning TD on the last play when the QB could have taken a knee. That cost the Eagles coach his job (I can't recall the year or the players involved, but ever since then I've thought about avoiding handoffs in waning seconds if necessary).

One of the biggest plays of the game was Mitchell handing off to Alfonso Jackson, and Jackson then lobbing a pass to Mitchell for 14 yards and a first down. That was a second-and-9 call on the first possession of the second half and kept alive a touchdown drive. Well executed all-around. I don't think Peter Mitchell could have done it any better than Alex did.

One classy sidebar: Canyon officials called for a moment of silence for Shari Ramey, the Drillers' cheerleading coach who was killed in a car crash earlier in the week.

The game was closer than it should have been, mainly because of the turnovers. But the mistakes made by BHS are correctable. The team has a lot of talent. This is a bye week for BHS, and you can be the coaches will be focusing on correcting the mistakes that are inevitable in an opening game of  a season.

The recent revelation that the Bakersfield Blaze could be relocated to the Carolina League is all about one thing: professional baseball not wanting to lose the Richmond, Va., market.

Richmond has been the long-time home of the Atlanta Braves Triple-A franchise, but the Braves are relocating that club to Gwinnett County (Condors fans might recall that name: Gwinnett also has a club in the ECHL), an Atlanta suburb.

So professional baseball people are concerned because that could leave Richmond (with more than 1 million in the city and nearby unincorporated area) without a minor league team. And Richmond has a beautiful playing facility.

The problem is that two teams need to move to the Carolina League to make this work. The Cal League has 10 teams and the Carolina League has eight. You won't see two 9-team leagues because that would leave at least one team with an idle date every day of the season in both leagues.

The Blaze was linked to Fayetteville, N.C., in the Baseball America article that broke the story 1-1/2 weeks ago. But Fayetteville does not have a stadium that meets professional baseball's standards, and it also has a signed deal with an independent league team that doesn't expire until around 2011 or 2012.

If the Carolina League can't come up with a suitable second stadium, wouldn't you think that moving a second team from the Cal League wouldn't happen?

Well, yes and no. If pro baseball wants the Richmond market badly enough (and I'm sure it does), some back-room dealing could lead to the Blaze departure. High Desert is evidently the other team in the Cal League mix and that club would move to Richmond, Baseball America reported.

High Desert is on the outs in the Cal League because the city of Adelanto, where the club plays, is talking about tripling its rent. The High Desert owners (two brothers of Hall of Famer George Brett) are squawking and want out before that increase hits.

The loss the Blaze is likely to happen, but it isn't as much of a slam dunk as it initially appeared.

One thing is certain: The Blaze is on borrowed time without a new stadium in Bakersfield, because sooner or later someone will spring for a new stadium and the Blaze would flee this town faster than you can blink. D.G. Elmore, the team owner, has no ties to this area. He'll go where the money is. And with small crowds, an antiquated ball park and greener pastures eventually elsewhere, the money isn't here.

August 1 has arrived and still no activity has started on the new Cal State Bakersfield baseball practice facility. The word is that construction is expected to begin at any time, but that's been the case for nearly two months now.

In mid-May, organizers hoped to begin construction by the end of May. But delays, much of it due to having as much work done on a volunteer basis as possible, has delayed things beyond what anyone would hope to see.

But it eventually will get done. CSUB is committed to baseball starting up in the 2008-09 academic year. It's just going at a snail's pace.

Coach Bill Kernen wants to have his first season's games on the on-campus practice facility. At least Sam Lynn Ball Park is available as a possible alternate playing site if the delay continues indefinitely.

College baseball will start in February; the Blaze doesn't start its season until early April, so there are alternatives.

Cal State Bakersfield and Bakersfield College are winding down their athletic seasons as the school year is coming to a quick conclusion.

I would love to see both institutions set up a retired number system to honor the best of the best who have competed at both schools.

Cal State Bakersfield: How about Kebu Stewart (men's basketball, remains the most dominant player in the 35-year-plus history of the program). Tyrone Davis, who helped CSUB reach the heights of Div. II. Beau Redstone, the school's rebounding and scoring leader.

Other sports: How about Barb SantaCruz, a great softball player who was the key to the 1988, 1989 and 1990 Div. II national championship teams. Kristine Karr, the best pitcher to ever play at CSUB, would be another worthy choice.

Other CSUB athletes to consider: Jamie Simpson and Nicole Van Dyke (women's soccer), Joe Munoz, Jeremy Gunn, Arturo Juarequi and Josh Wicks (men's soccer), Christy Wieneke and Amy Wade (women's volleyball).

BC has a longer tradition, dating to pre-World War II. What number did George Culver wear while at BC? It should be retired. He pitched in the big leagues and has done so much for the program since his playing days ended.

How about some of the football players, such as David Turner? Thomas Peregrin? Any number of the great linemen and linebackers over the years. Dean Jones in basketball. Just putting the names out there from track and field.

You get the idea. Both programs have so much tradition, and it grows every year.

Feel free to respond to this with your own ideas for possible athletes to be honored by retiring their numbers.

Here we are, less than three weeks into the major league baseball season, and you're seeing talented youngsters losing at-bats to veterans on various major league teams.

The Dodgers? Juan Pierre has speed, period, and no other skills. Worst throwing arm in the majors. No plate discipline. But he's playing 3-4 days a week while Matt Kemp, who hit .340-plus last year with good power at 22 years old, sits. You'd think Joe Torre would know better.

Giants? A sub-.200 hitting first baseman in Rich Aurilia playing instead of a 24-year-old named Daniel Ortmeier. Ortmeier was given the chance to win the job in spring training and didn't hit. So Aurilia plays every day. Aurilia is 37 or 38 years old, probably in his last big league season because he can't hit. Let Ortmeier play. It's not like the Giants are going anywhere. Same thing with 2B Ray Durham playing several days a week ahead of rookie Velez. Crazy. You'd think Bruce Bochty would know better.

In Cincy, it's Dusty Baker naming Scott Hatteberg the starting 1B over rookie Joey Votto. Votto has torn up Triple-A pitching and hit decently late last season when called up. At least Votto seems to be wrestling at-bats from Hatteberg in recent games.

If veterans are producing, fine. But it they aren't, let the youngsters get the majority of playing time. How do you know if they'll develop into anything beyond the journeyman level otherwise?