Bunker King | Arts & Entertainment Editor

The Santa Monica College (SMC) Corsairs got a much needed win at the homecoming game this Saturday, electrifying the crowd to win 35-34 against the Los Angeles Southwest College Cougars.

It was the culmination of SMC’s event-filled Spirit Week. Following a trivia day event, a pep rally, and a pajama-night movie screening of “Remember the Titans,” it was time at last for the homecoming football game.

Before the game, Associated Students (AS) provided free food and drinks to everyone in attendance. Popcorn, churros, cotton candy, hot dogs, coolers brimming with ice cold sodas, and school spirit trinkets were free to grab behind the stands.

Across from AS, Cheer Club set up a stall to fundraise for next semester’s uniforms. The stall was manned on and off by Hawk Kenny, who never broke character while dressed as the Corsairs’ mascot, Pico the Pirate.

Once the game started, the Corsairs made their intentions clear with a brutally quick touchdown 16 seconds into the game from wide receiver Myles Parker. The Cougars managed to then quickly score a touchdown, but missed their extra point conversion, leaving them down 7-6 at the end of the first quarter.

As if they were going for a repeat, the Corsairs scored their next touchdown five seconds into the second quarter, and the Cougars once again scored but failed their two-point conversion attempt. The Corsairs shook things up by scoring a field goal, leaving the score at 17-12 at the end of the first half.

The cheer team performed a dance at halftime coordinated by Cheer President Jacquelyn Meza and club member Nataly Quezada, set to a mixtape of contemporary pop songs.

When play resumed, however, things started to spiral out of control. Turnovers became more common, with fumbles and interceptions holding the Corsairs back. The score reflected the mistakes, with the Cougars reaching a comfortable nine point lead in the fourth quarter.

With only four minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Corsairs inched forward, making it 28-23. It was crunch time, and defensive back Jai Guess made an unbelievable - and extremely needed - interception, running it into the endzone for a pick-six to pull the Corsairs ahead 29-28.

Sadly, heartbreak reared its head as the Cougars made three massive plays that secured their last touchdown of the game. The score was 34-29, with just a minute left in the quarter.

Quarterback Dylan Moreno needed to make a massive pass to make it down the field, and that’s exactly what he did. It was within striking distance to the endzone - five yards and 21 seconds left in the game. The Cougars called the final timeout for either team, and both sides strategized as best they could in that time.

On first down, Moreno seemed to make a perfect pass, and his receiver caught it, but tragically landed just out of bounds. Second down, the defensive line crashed through, threatening a massive ten-yard sack, but Moreno threw it away just in time.

Third down, and nobody was open, but Moreno saw a hole in the Cougars’ formation. He ran it forward for the go-ahead touchdown with just seven seconds to spare. The score was set: Corsairs 35, Cougars 34. The Corsairs broke their four-game losing streak in style.

Moreno felt that the play was a team effort. “I just had trust in my offensive line. The whole game they were telling me they were gonna trust me, so I just trusted them.”

The Corsairs’ next game is Saturday, Oct. 28th, at Glendale College.

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