THE GOLDEN WEST COLLEGE football team is 10-0 and ranked first in he nation (GWC photo).

We’ve got – potentially – a national college football champion.

Golden West College of Huntington Beach has posted a perfect 10-0 record and is ranked number one in the U.S. by JC Gridiron, ahead of traditional national powers like Hutchinson Community College of Kansas.
The next-highest-ranked California teams are sixth-ranked Diablo Valley College of Pleasant Hill and San Mateo College of San Mateo (eighth).

There is no “true” national title among two-year colleges. There’s a National Junior College Athletic Association, but California schools belong instead to the California Community College Athletic Association.
Nevertheless, congratulations are due to Head Coach Nick Mitchell and the other Rustler coaches and team.

Although it might be hard to believe, “jaycee football” was once a big thing. There was a Junior Rose Bowl annually from 1946 to 1966 featuring the top teams from California and the best from outside the Golden State. Crowds as big as 57,000 fans turned out.

In the latter years, the title was won by Orange County schools. Santa Ana College was the national champ in 1962 and Orange Coast College won it in 1963 and Fullerton College in 1965.

Two years later the game was rechristened the Pasadena Bowl pitting Division II four-year colleges. Attendance plunged and the last game was played in 1977 before 15,556 fans.