No. 16 College of the Canyons took an early first quarter lead before suffering a 31-20 loss to visiting No. 13 Citrus College in its season opener at Cougar Stadium.

Sophomore wide receiver Da’Marrie Smith found the end zone on a 33-yard pass and catch from quarterback Brady Welch with 8:40 to go in the first quarter to create some early excitement for the Cougars. The PAT from Luis Rodriguez made it a 7-0 COC lead.

Citrus was quick to respond, however, with a 10-play scoring drive capped by Jamahl Wilson’s 22-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 7-7.

Later in the half the Owls were able to capitalize after a strip sack of Welch led to a scoop and score from the Citrus defense. The ensuing PAT moved the score to 14-7.

On COC’s next drive Welch was picked off, giving Citrus possession near midfield. Six plays later it was Wilson back in the end zone for the Owls, this time on a six-yard scoring plunge that pushed the score to. 21-7 heading into halftime.

Wilson finished the game with 94 yards on 15 carries as part for an Owls’ offense that totaled 354 yards of total offense, with 195 coming in the ground game.

Welch, making his first collegiate start, was 17-of-28 for the game with 158 yards, two touchdowns and the one interception.

Canyons seized back a bit of momentum when Dylan Flowers returned an interception 33 yards to the house early in the second half, bringing the Cougars back to within a score at 21-14. Flowers ended the night with five total tackles and a pass break up alongside the key turnover.

Less than three minutes later the Owls were celebrating again, this time after quarterback Talan O’dell connected with Tobin O’dell on a 15-yard touchdown reception that put Citrus back in control at 28-14.

Welch and company were able to claw back to within a score early in the fourth quarter on a Joseph Saenz 11-yard catch that found pay dirt. But Rodriguez’ kick failed leaving the score at 28-20 for the Owls.

Citrus went on to add a 29-yard field goal off the foot of Ruben Jimenez with 7:15 to go in the game to make it an eventual 31-20 final score.

The Owls were able to overcome more than 240 penalty yards in the game, while also limiting Canyons to just 206 yards of total offense. The Cougars rushed for just 48 yards on the ground with 25 coming on a wide receiver run from Smith

Smith finished with six catches for 60 yards in earning Offensive Player of the Game honors for the Cougars.

Jackson Forté recorded a pair of sacks in the game with all three of his takedowns results in a loss of yards. He was named the Defensive Player of the Game for COC.

Among the special teams units it was Jett McCollough earning Special Teams Player of the Week accolades.

Adam Geukens led Canyons with 10 total tackles, including seven solo stops, and a pass break up. Ajani Smith, who had an interception overturned due to penalty, finished with six tackles. Flowers, Duhron Goodman, Jake Pikor and Tony Testa were next at five tackles a piece. As a unit, Canyons recorded 10 tackles for loss equating to a deficit of 39 yards for the Owls.

Canyons (0-1) will next travel to face Fullerton College (1-0) at 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 14. The Hornets are currently ranked No. 5 in both the JC Athletic Bureau Head Coaches poll and the California Community College Sports Information Association (CCCSIA) poll. The Cougars hold the No. 21 spot in the current CCCSIA rankings.

Stay up to date on all this season’s action by visiting the College of the Canyons Athletic department and following on social media at @COCathletics on X, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.