Sandlin Leads Occidental to SCIAC Crown

Mike Sandlin of Occidental began the season with high expectations, but after missing 2 1/2 games because of cracked ribs and a twisted left knee, the 5-foot, 11-inch, 179-pound tailback was content to be in both good health and the starting lineup Saturday night.

The injuries that plagued Sandlin appeared to have healed completely in a 27-10 victory over Whittier that clinched the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football title for Occidental.

“The injuries had been really frustrating,” Sandlin said after rushing for a career-high 227 yards in 28 carries and scoring 3 touchdowns. “It seemed like I was spending more time trying to get healthy than I was at practice.”

Occidental Coach Dale Widolff had maintained that injuries were the only obstacle between Sandlin and a big game.

“He trained really hard in the off-season,” Widolff said. “And this is what we thought he’d do.”

Sandlin entered the game as the Tigers’ third-leading rusher with 398 yards in 103 carries but he ended the Whittier game as Occidental’s top cat.

Occidental (7-2, 6-0 in conference play) took a 7-0 lead with 59 seconds left in the first quarter when Sandlin ran 59 yards off right tackle for a touchdown. Sandlin, who gained 80 yards in 10 carries in the first half, broke 3 tackles on the touchdown run.

“I was hitting the line a little too quickly in the first half,” Sandlin said. “I was rushing into the line. In the second half, I started to sit back and read the line better.”

Sandlin’s second touchdown was a 29-yard run that gave Occidental a 17-3 lead with 6:42 left in the third quarter.

His third touchdown came on a 30-yard burst with 3:35 remaining that gave the Tigers their margin of victory.

Trailing, 17-3, midway through the third quarter, Whittier (3-6, 3-3) drove 77 yards in 12 plays to narrow the deficit to 17-10. Quarterback Michael Haney hit Mike Hernandez with a 13-yard pass for the score.

Mark Collinsworth added fields goals of 18 and 20 yards for Occidental.