“Shut It Down!” Corsairs Football crush Roadrunners
On their home turf, Santa Monica College (SMC) football team, the Corsairs, defeated College of the Desert Roadrunners at Corsair Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 20. Within the first five minutes, it was clear that the Corsairs were prepared for success as two touchdowns were received by their tight end Bryson Wood and wide receiver Elijah Aaron.
At 4th and 17, the Roadrunners were required to punt. Kicker Mike Hoechsmann reached the 35 yard line where SMC’s Dylan Childs was able to recover for -1 yard before a big bang by roadrunner Sawyer Tether forcing a fumble. Struggling with incomplete passes, the Roadrunners were unable to score in the first quarter, giving Corsairs 14-0 lead.
Dylan Moreno’s quarterback skills soared as nearly every possession by SMC ended with a touchdown. Only five seconds into the second quarter, Corsairs had their third touchdown of the night after a complete pass to Braydon Sanford for 16 yards.
Tight end Bryson Wood, became a focal point of the game after making a remarkable catch, gaining 92 yards for a touchdown. SMC fans howled in praise and wordless cheering as parents of Desert players shook their heads at Wood’s speed. The score was 52-14 at the end of the second quarter.
“What we did this week at practice definitely showed up today,” said Corsairs head coach Kelly Ledwith on behalf of the team during half time. “We ask them to outrun and outhit the other team between the whistles and they’ve been doing that all night. We got to come out and do that in the second half.”
Going into the second half, SMC quarterback Moreno was subbed out for freshman Ethan Berde who maintained the team’s high performance. Sophomore kicker Jaiden Espadas successfully scored every extra point SMC needed to secure their victory. Most of the calls were rushing plays for the rest of the night.
The Roadrunners displayed persistence and were able to close the game with double the points they had at half time. After a complete pass from quarterback Noah Vaughn-Isr, wide receiver Robert Taylor earned an 11 yard touchdown in the third quarter. Their final touchdown came in the last minute of the game, after a two yard rush by running back Aidan Nsubuga. Each extra point kick attempt by Roadrunners Ryland Risk was good.
The Santa Monica cheer squad was in complete game mode, too. They kept spirits high for the sparse crowd, consisting mainly of immediate family members of the players from both sides. However, one attendee had an unmatched level of school spirit. “Wrap them up and lay them down!” cheered Coach Benson, mother of Naiem Powell, Corsairs’ defensive back. Donning a jersey with her son’s number in SMC colors, Bensen is a former cheer coach that made herself a perfect addition to the grandstands experience, reminding fans, “The scoreboard holds the truth!”
With a commanding lead over the Roadrunners, from kick off to the end of the game, Corsairs were the clear winners, landing a final score of 66-28. This proved to be a comeback for the Corsairs’ after their loss a week prior at Victor Valley, 27-16. Before that, they won the first two games of the season.
With only one loss and three wins during the 2025 Southern California Football Association’ season, the Corsairs are a dominating force in their division. Their next game is Saturday, Sept. 27 at LA Valley College at 1p.m.