Sep 27, 2014 4 min read

CALIFORNIA – When you are the head coach of an NCAA Division II football program and the coffers are not overflowing with funds, improvising is vital to success.

Terrell Roberson and Jawan Turner are two examples of making the most of the talent available on California University’s football team Saturday afternoon.

Roberson was buried on the depth chart at cornerback after spring ball and had little chance of playing. So he asked to be moved to running back, a position he played at Penn Hills High School. Jawon Turner, an undersized defensive tackle, was asked to move to defensive end for yesterday’s game against Edinboro.

Roberson rushed for two first-half touchdowns and Turner had 3 1/2 of Cal’s seven sacks in a 34-16 victory over the Fighting Scots in a PSAC West Division game at Adamson Stadium.

“We have to be creative,” said Cal head coach Mike Kellar.

The win moved the Vulcans to 3-1, 2-1 in the PSAC, with a trip to Seton Hill next week. Edinboro fell to 0-3 in the conference and 0-4 overall.

Turner’s 3 1/2 sacks were a career high for the 6-0, 255-pound sophomore from Woodland Hills. His shift to defensive end came just five days before this game.

“I like playing there because you get to see more,” said Turner. “It’s fun to rush off the edge. When you’re at tackle, it’s just like a mosh pit. You can’t see much so you have to make sure you are in the right position.”

Turner had five tackles, three for losses, as the Vulcans held the Fighting Scots to minus-12 yards rushing, the third lowest total in Edinboro’s history. Redshirt freshman linebacker Acantay Patton had 1 1/2 sacks, and sophomore tackle Jay Barlow and senior linebacker Jeff Knox each had one. Knox began his career as a short-yardage back at Cal but was switched to linebacker this year.

“The thing about this team is that it’s not selfish,” said Kellar. “We might be a little immature, which makes us do dumb things, but it is not selfish.”

Roberson gave the Vulcans a 21-0 lead when he scored the second of his 2-yard TD runs with 6:47 left in the half. Derek Fiore, a Ringgold High School product, opened the scoring by catching an 8-yard pass from quarterback James Harris. Fiore and Roberson combined for 93 yards on 33 carries.

“I wasn’t highly recruited, so Cal has worked out for me,” said Roberson. “At cornerback, I started to notice guys were playing better than me. I played running back in high school, so it was an easy transition. But everything starts with the offensive line.”

Not only did the line do a good job moving the Fighting Scots off the ball, it allowed Harris time to throw the ball. He completed 14 of 21 passes for 199 yards and two touchdowns in the first half when Cal built a 28-0 lead and finished 18 of 31 for 260 yards.

Harris got 48 of those yards when he found Garry Brown on a pretty post pattern for a touchdown 4:39 before halftime. In the second half, Harris led the Vulcans on two more scoring drives that were capped by field goals of 35 and 36 yards by Cody Nuzzo.

Harris’ counterpart, Cody Harris of Edinboro finished with 29 completions on 42 passes for 312 yards.

“They are a good spread team and Cody makes plays,” said Kellar. “They key for our defense was to stay in coverage when he scrambles. We worked on that all week. The pass rush was there all day. I saw Peyton Manning in the Super Bowl and he didn’t look good when the pass rush got to him.”

Edinboro made the game closer in the fourth quarter when Cody Harris scored on runs of 1 and 2 yards. Cal allowed a safety when punter Andrew Cerett had a kick blocked out of the end zone with 1:50 left in the game. Cerett then launched a 75-yard free kick from his 20-yard line.

“We got off to a slow start,” said Edinboro head coach Scott Browning. “Our offense and defense didn’t do anything to complement each other.”

Notes

Kolton Kobrys, a standout running back from Fort Cherry, is going to be redshirted this season, Browning said. Kobrys was listed as a wide receiver for the Fighting Scots. … Kellar said sophomore running back Nick Grissom was “sat down” for this game. Sophomore tight end Desimon Green was out because of a leg injury. … There were no turnovers in the game. … Anfreenee Williams led Edinboro with 13 rushing yards on 8 carries.